Nigel Carolan

Last updated

Nigel Carolan
Date of birth (1974-12-27) 27 December 1974 (age 49)
Place of birth Galway, Ireland
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
School St. Joseph's Patrician College
University NUI Galway
Rugby union career
Amateur team(s)
YearsTeamApps(Points)
Galway Corinthians ()
Galwegians ()
Senior career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1996–2000 Connacht 40 (25)
Coaching career
YearsTeam
2004–17 Connacht Academy
2008–10 Ireland U20 (Assistant)
2012–14 Connacht Eagles
2014–17 Ireland U20
2017–21 Connacht (Backs)
2021– Glasgow Warriors (Asst.)

Nigel Carolan (born 27 December 1974) is a rugby union coach from Ireland. He is currently the Assistant coach to Scottish United Rugby Championship side Glasgow Warriors. He was previously a Backs coach at Connacht. Before becoming a coach Carolan represented Connacht as a player, but was forced to retire due to injury in 2000.

Contents

Early life

Carolan is a native of Galway and was a student in St. Joseph's Patrician College in the city. [1] After finishing school, he attended Galway-Mayo IT studying marketing. He later studied systems analysis at NUI Galway. [2]

Playing career

Carolan played primarily as a wing, but was also used at centre during his career. [3] He represented both Galway Corinthians and Galwegians at amateur level. [4] In 1996, at the outset of the professional era Carolan was a part of Warren Gatland's Connacht side. He played for the side in the Interprovincial Championship and the European Challenge Cup until 2000, when a neck injury forced him to retire at the age of 26. [1]

Coaching career

Carolan was appointed as head of Connacht's academy in 2004, overseeing the development pathways of youth players, coaching under-age sides and scouting youth prospects from outside the province. [5] For the first year of his career, he also served as a technical analyst to the Irish under-21 team. [1] Carolan was later appointed as assistant coach to the Irish under-20s under Allen Clarke in 2008, staying in the role until 2010. [6]

In the 2012–13 season Connacht's second tier side, the Connacht Eagles began competing in the British and Irish Cup, with Carolan serving as the team's head coach. He performed this role for two seasons, before being appointed to succeed Mike Ruddock as head coach of the Ireland under-20 team in October 2014. [5] Carolan coached the side in three Six Nations and two World Championships, with the team's runner-up finish in the 2016 World Championship their best ever performance in the tournament. [1]

In March 2017, it was announced that Carolan would be part of the new senior backroom team under Kieran Keane for the 2017–18 season. Following this announcement, he left his role with the Irish under-20s with immediate effect, with Peter Malone replacing him for the upcoming World Championship. [7] The promotion brought an end to Carolan's 13-year stewardship of the province's academy, with former Connacht head coach Eric Elwood named as his replacement in May 2017. [8]

On 21 June 2021 it was announced that Carolan was appointed as an Assistant Coach at Glasgow Warriors, focussing on attack. Carolan said of the move: [9]

Glasgow Warriors play an exciting brand of rugby that fits perfectly with my own philosophies on how the game should be played. I’ve also been really impressed with the clarity and direction in which Danny Wilson and Al Kellock are taking the club. The squad consists of world-class players and some really exciting up and coming young players. Helping those players realise their potential is something I will take a lot of pride in.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connacht Rugby</span> Rugby team in Ireland

Connacht Rugby is one of the four professional provincial rugby teams from the island of Ireland. Connacht competes in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team represents the IRFU Connacht Branch, which is one of four primary branches of the IRFU, and is responsible for rugby union throughout the geographical Irish province of Connacht.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eric Elwood</span> Rugby player

Eric Elwood is a former Irish rugby union player from Galway. He played as a fly-half. He played for Ireland internationally, and provincially for Connacht. He was on the Coláiste Iognáid team that won the Connacht Schools Rugby Senior Cup in 1985. He split his club career between hometown club Galwegians and Lansdowne in Dublin, starting and finishing his career in Galway, with a stint playing with Lansdowne in the 1990s. Elwood earned 35 caps for Ireland, scoring 296 points for the side. He played 168 games for Connacht scoring 1,152 points. He was the first Connacht player to make 100 appearances for the side, while his points tally remained a record until being surpassed by Jack Carty in 2023. Elwood also made a single appearance for international invitational side the Barbarians before being capped by Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Muldoon (rugby union, born 1982)</span> Irish rugby union coach and player

John Muldoon is an Irish rugby union coach and former player. He is currently the Lineout & Maul coach for Connacht.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eoin Griffin</span> Rugby player

Eoin Griffin is a former professional rugby union player from Ireland. He primarily played as a centre, and played both outside and inside channels. Griffin last played for Connacht in the Pro14.

Eoin McKeon is a rugby union player from Ireland. He primarily played in the back row. McKeon played for his native province of Connacht in the Pro14 from 2010 to 2020. He played his club rugby for Galwegians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Carty (rugby union)</span> Irish rugby union player

Jack Carty is a rugby union player from Ireland. His primary position is at fly-half. Having started out with his hometown club, Buccaneers, Carty currently plays for the team of his native province of Connacht in the United Rugby Championship, having come through the team's academy. He is Connacht's record points scorer in the Pro14, having overtaken Ian Keatley in March 2019. Carty is an Ireland international, having made his debut for the side against Italy in 2019.

Shane Patrick O'Leary is an Irish-born professional rugby union player who represents Canada at the international level. He primarily plays at fly-half, but has also played as a centre. O'Leary currently plays for Pro D2 side Rouen, and for the Toronto Arrows in Major League Rugby (MLR).

Dan McFarland is an English rugby union coach and former player. He was head coach of Ulster Rugby from 2018 to 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eoghan Masterson</span> Irish rugby union player

Eoghan Masterson is an Irish professional rugby union player who plays for Aurillac. He primarily plays in the back row, though he has played as a lock at under-age level. Masterson previously played for Irish provincial side Connacht in the Pro14, after being promoted from the academy ahead of the 2015–16 season.

The 2015–16 season was Irish provincial rugby union side Connacht Rugby's fifteenth season competing in the Pro12, and the team's twentieth season as a professional side. It was Pat Lam's third season in charge of the side. Connacht finished the season as league champions after defeating Leinster in the 2016 Pro12 Grand Final, the team's first trophy in its 131-year history.

Seán O'Brien is a professional rugby union player from Ireland. He plays as a lock and across the back row. O'Brien currently plays for Irish provincial side Connacht in the Pro14, after being promoted from the academy ahead of the 2015–16 season.

Shane Delahunt is a professional rugby union player from Ireland. He primarily plays as a hooker. Delahunt currently plays for Irish provincial side Connacht in the Pro14.

The 2016–17 season was Irish provincial rugby union side Connacht Rugby's sixteenth season competing in the Pro12, and the team's twenty-first season as a professional side. It was Pat Lam's fourth and final season in charge of the side.

Conor McKeon is a rugby union player from Ireland. He primarily played fly-half for most of his youth career, before changing to scrum-half at senior level. McKeon played professionally for Irish provincial side Connacht in the Pro14 having come through the team's academy, and played his club rugby for Athlone-based side Buccaneers.

The 2017–18 season was Irish provincial rugby union side Connacht Rugby's seventeenth season competing in the Pro14, and the team's twenty-second season as a professional side. It was Kieran Keane's first and only season in charge of the side.

Ciaran Gaffney is a former rugby union player from Ireland. He played as a fullback or on the wing, and also played at centre in his youth career. Gaffney last played for Italian side Zebre in the Pro14, having come through the academy of Irish side Connacht.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conán O'Donnell</span> Irish rugby union player

Conán F. O'Donnell is a rugby union player from Ireland. He plays as a prop.

Cillian Gallagher is a professional rugby union player from Ireland. He primarily plays as a lock, but can also play in the back row. Gallagher currently plays for Irish provincial side Connacht in the Pro14, having come through the team's academy.

The 2018–19 season was Irish provincial rugby union side Connacht Rugby's eighteenth season competing in the Pro14, and the team's twenty-third season as a professional side. It was Andy Friend's first season in charge of the side.

The 2019–20 PRO14 was the nineteenth season of the professional rugby union competition originally known as the Celtic League. It was the third season to be referred to as the PRO14.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Ireland U-20s to keep it brilliantly simple in England showdown". Irish Times . 25 June 2016. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  2. ↑ "Nigel Carolan: Professional Profile". LinkedIn . Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  3. ↑ "'Minimalist' ensuring a tidy supply of talent to the coal face". Irish Independent . 21 November 2014. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  4. ↑ "Crossing the Floor". Galway Corinthians RFC . Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  5. 1 2 "Connacht's Carolan appointed Ireland U20s coach after Ruddock steps down". The42 . 10 October 2014. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  6. ↑ "Carolan named Ireland U20 assistant coach". Connacht Rugby . 14 October 2008. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  7. ↑ "Nigel Carolan and Jimmy Duffy join Connacht coaching set-up". Irish Independent . 23 March 2017. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  8. ↑ "Connacht legend Eric Elwood succeeds Carolan as academy manager". The42 . 28 April 2017. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  9. ↑ "Carolan named as Assistant Coach". Glasgow Warriors.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.