Saturday, 23 July 2022

Greg Cooper off to coach MLR’s Warriors

    By Hayden Meikle
    1. Sport
    2. Rugby

    Former Highlanders coach Greg Cooper is joining the Warriors.

    You read that correctly.

    But no, the long-serving rugby coach has not decided on a switch to the 13-man code at this stage of his career.

    He is adding Major League Rugby to his bulging CV and will coach the Utah Warriors in the American professional league next season.

    Cooper was unveiled on Thursday as the fourth coach in the history of the Warriors franchise.

    He will be comfortably the most experienced coach in Major League Rugby.

    "After a thorough and exhaustive process, we are excited to welcome Greg Cooper to Warrior Nation," Utah general manager Brandon Sparks said.

    "Greg is bringing a diverse wealth of global experience to our rugby operation, which will benefit the team and organisation.

    "His coaching style and personality will lend itself to our development-focused mindset and we are eager to see his contributions to our team and community as we turn Utah into the epicentre of North American rugby."

    Warriors chief executive Kimball Kjar also welcomed the arrival of the well-travelled Otago great.

    "Greg’s experience at the highest levels of professional rugby as both a coach and player ensures that the Utah Warriors are in the most capable coaching hands in the MLR," Kjar said.

    "Not only does Greg’s leadership and success speak for itself, but his ability to work in dynamic environments shows he and his teams can succeed no matter the situation."

    Cooper has been on the hunt for new opportunities since finishing a stint in Japan, where he led the Mitsubishi Dynaboars to promotion to the top tier of Japan Rugby League One.

    He has previously coached in France after finishing spells with the Blues, Highlanders and Otago.

    Cooper replaces Shawn Pittman, the former US prop who was named Major League coach of the year in 2021 but was dumped halfway through this season.

    Before Pittman, the Warriors coach was former Wallabies fullback Chris Latham.

    New Zealand links in the Utah team recently have included Zion Going, the halfback from the famous Northland whanau, NFL player Paul Lasike, former Auckland lock Jamie Lane and one-cap Highlanders utility Caleb Makene.

    Tasman and former North Otago first five-eighth Tim O’Malley captained the Warriors in 2019.