Earlier this week Phil Blake was appointed as head coach of the North Harbour Rays on a two year contract for the upcoming National Rugby Championship.
Blake (photo below) will be joined by a highly qualified who have all coached or played at Super Rugby or International level. The coaching staff includes Scott Fava (Forwards coach, pic bottom), Haig Sare (backs coach) and Geoff Townsend (skills coach and will oversee defence).
North Harbour Rays chairman Gary Flowers was excited about the appointment of Blake as head coach.
“We’ve come a long way in a short space of time and the appointment of Phil and his coaching team is a major step in the right direction and lays the foundation for our success in the inaugural seasons of the NRC”
“The time frame to get this venture up and running and making sure that we touch all levels of our (Rugby) community has been tight, but with these appointment I feel that a major building block has been put in place.”
Blake was confident about how the team is shaping up for the competition which begins on August 23 later this year.
“I’m the guy that has the head coach title, but this is very much a team effort on the coaching front and we are all excited about bringing all the elements together that make a successful Rugby team,”
“It’s funny working closely with guys that you are coaching against like I will be against Haig (Warringah first grade coach) this weekend, but we’re all excited about the opportunities that this competition offers.
“We’re keen to stay one step ahead and in coming weeks we’ll be working hard on where we feel the Rays can find a sustainable competitive advantage.”
The North Harbour Rays are set to announce their logo, playing strip, major partner and the location of their home ground in the coming weeks.
Coaches Bio
PHIL BLAKE (Manly)
ARU Tier 3 Accredited
Manly rugby league Skills and Conditioning Coach – 1998-1999
South Sydney rugby league Skills and Conditioning Coach – 2002-3
South Sydney rugby league Director of Coaching – 2002
Shute Shield Assistant Coach – Southern Districts – 2006
Shute Shield Head Coach – Manly – 2007-2010
Wallabies Defence Coach – 2010- 2011
Super 15 Skills Coach – Western Force – 2011-2012
Super 15 Interim Head Coach – Western Force – 2012
Shute Shield Head Coach – Manly – 2013 to present
SCOTT FAVA (Northern Suburbs)
ARU Tier 2 Accredited
Eastwood Forward Coach 2009
Northern Suburbs Rugby Forward Coach 2010
Northern Suburbs Rugby Head Coach 2011 to present
National Academy Forward Coach 2011
Waratahs A Head Coach 2013
GEOFF TOWNSEND (Gordon)
ARU Tier 3 Accredited
Smart Rugby Accredited
Co-Coach – NSW Under 19s – 1997-99
Shute Shield Co-Coach – Manly 1999-2000
Coach/Technical Advisor – Kobe Steelers (Japan) – 2001
ARU Smart Rugby Program – Educator/Presenter – 2001-2
Coach/ Technical Advisor – Teikyo University Rugby( Japan) – 2002-2004
Shute Shield Head Coach – Southern Districts – 2004-06
Super Rugby Academy Head Coach – Western Force – 2007-09
Super Rugby Assistant Coach – Western Force – 2009-10
Shute Shield Consultancy Coach – Sydney University 2011-2012
Shute Shield Head Coach – Gordon Rugby – 2014
HAIG SARE (Warringah)
Shute Shield Head Coach – Warringah – 2013 to present
Junior Gold Cup Assistant Coach (North West)
Western Force Player 2005 – 2010
Australia A Player 2007
Biarritz Player 2005 (French Top 14)
