Dan McFarland
Dan McFarland (born 10 April 1972) is a rugby union coach who is currently the head coach at Ulster Rugby. He was the assistant coach of the Scotland national team.[1] He was formerly an assistant coach of Glasgow Warriors.[2] He announced April 2018 that he was going to be the Ulster Head Coach and was released from his contract with Scottish Rugby in August 2018.[3]
Birth name | Daniel Joseph McFarland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | 10 April 1972 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Oxfordshire, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 120 kg (18 st 13 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
School | Ampleforth College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
University | Newcastle University | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Playing career
McFarland started his playing career in rugby union as a loosehead prop at Richmond Rugby Club as the club turned professional in 1996. Richmond suffered financial troubles in 1999 - the club went back to its amateur status in 2000 - and McFarland left Richmond in 1999 for France.
In season 1999-2000 he played for Stade Français and they clinched the French Top 14 championship that year.
From 2000-2006 he played for Connacht amassing more than 100 caps for the province.
Coaching career
McFarland became the Forwards Coach of Connacht [4] from 2006; becoming their Assistant Coach from 2010.
In 2007 he worked under the Ireland Under-20s Head Coach Eric Elwood to help coach the side to the Under 20s Six Nations championship. He later helped coach the Emerging Ireland side.[5]
McFarland took over from Shade Munro as assistant coach at Glasgow Warriors in 2015, shortly after the club won the Pro12 for the first time.[6]
In May 2017, it was announced that McFarland would be joining Gregor Townsend in moving to the Scotland national team as an Assistant Coach.[1]
McFarland took up the head coaching position with Ulster Rugby in 2018.
External links
References
- "Dan McFarland - Scottish Rugby Union". www.scottishrugby.org.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 April 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Glasgow Warriors profile
- "Dan McFarland: IRFU and Ulster secure release of Scotland assistant coach". BBC Sport. 19 August 2018. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Dan McFarland agrees to join Glasgow Warriors". scotsman.com.
- Gordon Parks (13 April 2015). "Glasgow Warriors: Forwards coach Dan McFarland to join squad from rivals Connacht". dailyrecord.
- "BBC Sport - Glasgow: Coach Dan McFarland to switch from Connacht". BBC Sport.