The Sydney Roosters Rugby League Football Club is pleased to outline its football structure and appointees for 2015.
Sydney Roosters Chief Operating Officer Football, Mr Brian Canavan, said:
“Trent Robinson has done an outstanding job in his first two seasons as NRL Head Coach. In his short time as a Head Coach, he has proven to be a wonderful leader and has been a vital contributor to the culture shift at our Club, which is a huge ingredient to any football club striving for success."
"Just as importantly, he has also instilled a professional approach to all aspects of training and team preparedness on and off the field. This is also reflected in the Coaching Staff Trent has assembled.
“A couple of changes have been necessary in key positions due to staff moving on to pursue other opportunities, but as a Club, we are confident we have built the strongest possible off field team with a blend of youth and experience that also addresses modern trends in professional sport.
“As the team’s pre-season commences this month, we wish Trent, his Coaching Staff and the playing group all the very best as our preparations for the Club’s 2015 campaign get underway.”
Coaching Department
NRL
Head Coach Trent Robinson enters his third season as Sydney Roosters Head Coach.
Assisting Trent will be Craig Fitzgibbon, Steve McNamara and Justin Holbrook.
Craig Fitzgibbon commenced his role as NRL Assistant Coach in 2013 and will continue to play a key role in assisting Trent in the first grade team’s preparation. The much-loved former Sydney Roosters captain joined the Club’s coaching ranks in 2012 after retiring from the game. Craig has also acted as an Assistant Coach with the Australian National team, beginning in 2014.
Steve McNamara joined the Roosters as NRL Assistant Coach in 2014 and will continue to assist Trent in the preparation of the Club’s first grade team. Steve is also the England National Coach, a position he has held since 2010.
With the departure of Jason Taylor, joining the team is Justin Holbrook who has been appointed NRL Assistant Coach. The former Roosters player re-joins the Club after most recently coaching the Parramatta Eels NYC team to a Top 4 finish in his first season with the Club.
NYC
Adam Hartigan commences his second year as NYC Head Coach.
Assisting Adam will be Tony Barnes and Braith Anasta.
Tony Barnes coached the Sydney Roosters SG Ball side to victory in 2014 and joins Adam as an NYC Assistant Coach. Tony will also work with the Club’s Junior Representative Under 16s and Under 18s teams, ensuring consistency in the coaching programs.
Heralding his return to the Club he captained, Braith Anasta joins the NYC Coaching Staff as an Assistant Coach. He will combine this role with his television commentary commitments.
SG Ball (Under 18s) Competition
Chris O’Connell enters his first year as SG Ball Head Coach, having progressed from the position of Roosters Harold Matthews Coach in 2014.
Harold Matthews (Under 16s) Competition
Mark Kelly assumes the role of Harold Matthews Head Coach in 2015.
NSW Cup
The Roosters NSWRL Cup affiliation side is the Wyong Kangaroos, coached by the vastly-experienced Rip Taylor.
Performance & Science Department
Travis Touma – High Performance Manager
Travis commenced this role in 2013 and will continue to develop and oversee the first grade squad’s physical preparation and recovery programs. He joined the Roosters in 2009 as the Club’s Head Physiotherapist and is widely regarded as one of the leading practitioners in the game.
Scott Campbell – Strength and Power Coach
Joins the club from the St George Illawarra Dragons. Scott also holds this role with the Samoa national side and brings expertise and great experience to the role.
Hayden Knowles – Speed Conditioning Coach
Joins the Club having worked at fellow NRL Club the Parramatta Eels previously. Hayden has also been operating his own company focussed on athlete development and sprint coaching.
Dennis Russell – NRL Performance Analyst
Dennis commenced this role in 2013. He is responsible for the collation and preparation of match and training statistics and video analysis of player performance.
Sam Kennedy – NYC Strength and Conditioning Coach
After completing his university studies in 2013, Sam has progressed from the Club’s SG Ball Strength and Conditioning Coach to hold the role for the Club’s NYC side.
Patrick Lane – Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach
Working across the senior and junior squads.
Medical Department
Dr Ameer Ibrahim – Medical Officer
Ameer has had over 15 years of sports medicine experience dealing with professional and elite athletes and teams across a number of different sports and will enter his second year as the Roosters primary Medical Officer.
Steph Brennan – Head Physiotherapist
Steph has held this position since 2013. Formerly the Head Physiotherapist and Medical Manager at Harlequins Union Club in London, he was also Team Physiotherapist to the England National Rugby Union Team.
Louisa Cutler – Senior Squad Physiotherapist
Highly regarded as a leading sports physiotherapist, Louisa has held this position with the Roosters since 2007.
Adam Bentley – Rehabilitation/NYC Physiotherapist
Formerly of the South Sydney Sports Medicine Clinic, Adam will oversee programs for players returning from injury and will also work particularly with the Club’s NYC squad.
Football Manager
Adam Hartigan – Football Operations Manager
New to the role in 2015, Hartigan has replaced former Manager Lee Bennett after his departure at the end of the 2014 season.
Hartigan will share both roles as the Head Coach of the Under 20s and Football Operations Manager in the 2015 season.
Player Recruitment
Peter O’Sullivan – Player List & Recruitment Manager
Peter enters his eighth year as the Club’s chief scout.
Player Welfare and Education
Craig Walker – Player Development and Pathways Manager
Craig will oversee the Roosters Welfare and Education department and will ensure leading edge talent development programs at every level from the Roosters Academy programs to NRL in the areas of welfare and education.
Assisting Craig will be former NRL player Gavin Lester.
