Warriors have appointed Chris Morgan as the club’s new Forwards and Transition Coach of the Three Pears Academy.
Morgan has arrived at Sixways from Greene King IPA Championship club Cornish Pirates where he was Assistant Coach and a former captain. He succeeds Mike Hill who has taken up a position in the Academy of Bath Rugby.
“What has been clear over the last 12 months is that we want to make sure that we have got people who are adding real value in our organisation whether that be staff or players,” said Warriors Head Coach Jonathan Thomas.
“The Academy is an incredibly important part of our vision, producing home-grown talent, and the role of Academy Forwards and Transition Coach is integral to that and it was important that we got the right person.
“We advertised for the role and Chris was a hugely impressive in the interview process. I have had some interactions with him in the past in his role at Pirates when we have sent players on loan there and he has always struck me as someone with unbelievable knowledge of the game.
“What came through strongly in his interview was how much he cares about the development of players which is very important at Championship clubs. You don’t always get the best players so you have to make sure that you develop and improve them and build good relationships.
“The young players in our Academy should be really excited about working with Chris in the future.”
Morgan played his formative rugby for Burnham-on-Sea and then studied at Cardiff University. He played Premiership and Championship rugby for Bristol and then had a spell with Newbury Blues.
He joined Pirates in 2008 and went on to make 227 appearances for them, mostly in the back-row but latterly as a lock. Morgan was a British & Irish Cup winner with Pirates in 2010 and moved into coaching three years ago, initially as a player/coach.
“We are delighted to have secured the services of Chris,” said Warriors Director of Rugby Alan Solomons.
“He joins us from Cornish Pirates, where he garnered great experience, working with Alan Paver and Gavin Cattle.
“Chris has already fitted in seamlessly at Warriors . He is a first-class coach and a good man, who is well aligned with our senior coaching staff.
“Our Academy is central to our vision and as such Chris has a key role to play here at the club. He is the perfect fit and it is great to have him on board.”