GPS have announced former Super Rugby lock Pat O’Connor as head coach of the Gallopers BLK Queensland Premier Colts side for the 2017 season.
O’Connor, who earned caps with the Western Force and the Waratahs before a stint with Agen in France’s Top 14, will come back to the club where it all started, having launched his own career at Yoku Road.
With the premier colts information evening approaching, Director of Rugby at GPS Daniel Nethery is looking forward to welcoming O'Connor back to Yoku Road.
“It’s great to See Pat back at the club and coaching at premier colts level. Pat is very good coach and continues to be a student of the game. In addition to his coaching abilities, Pat brings with him a wealth of experience from not only his Super Rugby playing days but also from his time playing in the Top 14 in France,” he said.
More recently O’Connor has been helping with player development at St. Patrick’s College and St. Joseph’s Nudgee College, but the former lock is looking forward to returning to the club where it all began.
“As an old boy of the club, it’s going to be enjoyable going down to a place where I’ve had great experiences. GPS is where I started my own journey and it’s a place I hold close to my heart because of the experiences I’ve had there. I want the players to have similar memories of GPS and I’ll be happy if I can help them with that,” he said.
Joining O’Connor as assistant coach will be David Sheehan who was in charge of GPS premier grade backs in 2016.
“Sheenan and I have been talking quite regularly and we’ve got similar philosophies which makes us compatible. We’ve talked a lot about how we would like to attack and the areas of the game we will prioritise,” O’Connor said.
“We’ll work hard on our conditioning in the pre-season so that we can be abrasive through the centre and move the ball at a high tempo.“On top of that, one of the biggest things I enjoyed was the culture and connecting with the older players not just on the field but being able to mix with them in a social setting.”
As the pre-season approaches GPS will be hosting a colts information evening on Wednesday, 2nd of November, at the clubhouse located on Yoku Road Ashgrove, starting at 6:00PM.
