Sport | Rugby
England coach to step down after first two World Series rounds
Mike Friday has resigned his post as coach of England, chasing their third successive victory at the Emirates Airline Dubai Sevens.
- By Steve Hill, Correspondent
- Published: 23:35 May 3, 2009
- The press conference which announced the details of the Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens, which begins today. The three-day extravaganza, to be held at the Dubai Exiles Rugby and Football Club in Al Aweer, will showcase a variety of talents ranging from amateurs to top future stars of the world.
- Image Credit:
Dubai: Mike Friday has resigned his post as coach of England, chasing their third successive victory at the Emirates Airline Dubai Sevens.
According to the Rugby Football Union, Friday, a former England sevens captain, will remain at the helm for the first leg of the IRB World Series, which takes place tomorrow and Saturday, and for the second tournament the following week in George, South Africa, before stepping down.
Friday said: "I am extremely sad to be leaving the sevens squad, but I have been offered a fantastic opportunity in the City and further developing my business career. I have enjoyed working with the England Sevens players and management since 2001 when I first joined Joe Lydon as assistant coach, and have also enjoyed my time as a National Academy coach.
"I will miss the team spirit that the sevens squad enjoys, as well as the pride in watching the youngsters progress through their careers, but I will continue to follow their progress with interest."
Friday has had a profound influence on English rugby since taking charge of the sevens squad in 2004, helping point a long line of players towards the full national side.
Nine men, who featured in England's loss to South Africa last Saturday, graduated from the sevens set-up, and he is confident that fans attending this week's Dubai event will be able to spot more future internationals.
He said: "These are the stars of tomorrow, young men who are finding their way. You get a first look at them here, and hopefully they will progress and become the stars of tomorrow at 15s."
England have named seven new caps in their squad of 12 for the Dubai event, including flying winger Marcel Garvey, who has the challenge of stepping into the boots that Tom Varndell filled with such authority last year.
New Zealand, whose run of six successive IRB world titles came to an end this year, have arrived in Dubai with a new-look squad.
Coach Gordon Tietjens admitted it had been "a real challenge" to find players because of the knock-on effects caused by domestic preparations for the World Cup.
"It's an exciting team," he said. "But the challenge for us is to gel and come together quickly. There's a lot of exciting potential here, and if we put that together we could be tough to beat."
Gary Chapman, President Group Services and Dnata, Emirates Group, the title sponsors, meanwhile, said the event would move away from its traditional venue at the Dubai Exiles "over my dead body".
Temporary stands are erected around all four pitches each year at the venue to handle sell-out crowds, leading to speculation that the sevens would eventually move to purpose-built facilities.
But Chapman said the venue was "unique" and "that's why we are different, and that's why we have the best sevens event in the world."
Share this article
Popular in Sport
-
Pictures
Kings of the court
The world's top tennis players who will battle in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals
Sport Editor's choice
-
India trounce Sri Lanka to record 100th Test win
It was also India's biggest margin of victory over Sri Lanka surpassing their previous best
-
UAE take on Afghanistan in crucial clash
Both teams have equal points going into crucial match in Abu Dhabi
-
Al Qamzi comes second in Qatar Grand Prix
Emirati shadows winner Cappellini to finish and regains seven-point lead in 2009 UIM F1 Drivers' Championship
