Date of birth | 31 July 1976 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Place of birth | Weston-super-Mare, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Danny Wilson is a professional rugby union coach. He is lineout and contact coach at Harlequins. [1] He was previously a head coach at Glasgow Warriors. [2]
He was born in the West Country in Somerset, near Weston-super-Mare, England. [3] As a player he turned out at Hooker. [4]
Wilson began playing rugby union for a couple of Weston-super-Mare sides; Hornets and Weston-super-Mare. [4] He moved to Cardiff to study and then played for Cardiff Metropolitan University. [4]
Wilson played for Bristol Bears under 21 side. [5]
A degenerative disc problem in his back ended Wilson's playing career at the age of 25; and Wilson moved into coaching. [4]
He secured a job coaching at Cardiff Blues academy before being named as London Welsh head coach in 2008. [6]
Wilson has coached three of the four Welsh regions being forwards coach at Newport Gwent Dragons and the Scarlets before taking over as head coach at the Cardiff Blues in 2015, replacing Mark Hammett in the role. [7]
Wilson from 2014 to 2015 was Bristol's forwards coach, working under former England coach Andy Robinson. However, in 2015 he left the club after they failed to gain promotion from the RFU Championship, to join the Cardiff Blues as head coach. [8]
After three seasons in Cardiff, it was announced that he would be leaving at the end of the 2017/18 season to join Wasps as Forwards coach. [9] He subsequently pulled out of that deal with Wasps, when the Forwards coach role with the Scotland team became available. [10]
In 20 November 2019, Wilson was announced as the new head coach of Glasgow Warriors for the 2020-21 season, succeeding Dave Rennie. [2]
Wilson stated: “I’ve been extremely impressed with the Scottish system in recent years and I’m looking forward to working with an exciting and talented squad of players at the Warriors. I want to build on the high-tempo style of play that I know the fans love and pay to see week in, week out." [2]
He officially took over as head coach of Glasgow Warriors on 1 June 2020. [11]
Glasgow Warriors finished 8th in the league in the 2021-22 season, and following a huge 76-14 loss against Leinster in the quarter-finals - the second worse loss in the team's history - on 6 June 2022, Wilson was relieved of his position as head coach. [12]
Wilson joined Harlequins as a lineout and contact coach on 12 January 2023, ahead of the 2023-24 season. [1]
Wilson also coached the Wales U20s team in the 2012 Junior World Championship [13] where the Welsh side defeated the Baby Blacks 9-6 in the group stage.[ citation needed ] Wales were knocked out in the semi-finals by the Baby Blacks but claimed the Bronze medal defeating Argentina in the third place playoff.[ citation needed ]
It was announced in 2018 that he would be joining the Scottish National side coaching team as forwards coach. [14]
While playing in Wales, Wilson married Welsh international player Rachel Poolman. [3]
Cardiff Rugby are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby competitions.
Bristol Bears are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
Andrew Powell is a Welsh former rugby union player, who last played for Merthyr RFC. He is a former international rugby union player having played for both the Wales sevens team, and the Wales national rugby union team as well as touring with the British and Irish Lions (uncapped). His regular rugby union position was either No. 8 or blindside flanker in the back row.
Jordan Rhys Williams is a Welsh rugby union footballer who plays for the Dragons. His regular position is at full-back, but he has also played at fly-half and on the wing. He began his career with amateur side New Dock Stars RFC, before being signed by Llanelli RFC and ultimately breaking into the Scarlets regional side. However, he struggled to find playing time with the Scarlets and moved to Bristol in 2016, only to return to Wales with the Dragons two years later. He has also played internationally for Wales at under-16, under-18 and under-20 level, as well as for the Wales Sevens team.
The 2017–18 PRO14 was the seventeenth season of the professional rugby union competition originally known as the Celtic League. It is the first season to be referred to as the Guinness PRO14 Championship, with the addition of two South African teams.
The 2019–20 season will see Glasgow Warriors compete in the competitions: the Guinness Pro14 and the European Champions Cup. Due to the coronavirus pandemic the season was postponed in May 2020. It continued with a very restricted season finale in August 2020.