Ahead of Leinster’s United Rugby Championship season opener away to the Stormers in Cape Town, head coach Leo Cullen has confirmed several changes to his backroom team and new contracts for his senior coaches.
At an open training session in Wicklow RFC today, where the squad met with local schoolkids and supporters, Cullen confirmed that Robin McBryde, Jacques Nienaber and Tyler Bleyendaal had all signed contract extensions with Leinster until the end of the 2026/27 season.
Cullen also confirmed that a new position, that of provincial kicking coach, had been created to better align the work at base in UCD with the clubs and the schools, and the player pathway.
Emmet Farrell, the former Leinster flyhalf and current lead performance analyst at Leinster, has been appointed to that new role, and Cullen confirmed that Farrell would also continue in his current role as kicking coach with the senior team.
With Farrell starting his new post over the last few weeks, Brian Colclough has taken over Farrell’s former position as lead performance analyst for the club.
Colclough has been with the club since the 2016/17 season and has, in the past, worked with Samoa at the most recent World Cup and was part of the Irish backroom team during the games against Georgia and Portugal this summer.
Talking about the changes, Cullen said, “I think we can all appreciate the work that Robin, Jacques and Tyler have done, but also the mark that they have left and are leaving on Leinster in their time here.
“They have all brought tons of relevant experience and a different perspective to how we do things, and I think that’s hugely important for the development of our group, that we hear other voices and other ways of operating.
“It’s not just around the senior team as well, you see it with our Academy players and the work that they do visiting the clubs and the schools and giving freely of their time. I’m delighted to have them all on board again.
“I am also delighted for Emmet, someone who has been a key part of the success of this club on and off the field for more than 20 years, that he gets an opportunity to continue to grow as a coach and that others will benefit, not just ourselves based here in UCD.
“That consistency and alignment are crucial for us between what we are doing here in UCD and the brilliant work underway in our pathways and at the Ken Wall Centre of Excellence in Donnybrook Stadium.
“That new role for Emmet offers an opportunity for Brian to move up and also for Juliette Fortune to move up to a more senior role in the analysis team, and I am delighted for them both.
They both started with us as interns and it’s brilliant to see them continue their professional journey with us at Leinster.”
