Cudmore to join Canada staff

Jamie Cudmore will be added to the Canadian senior men’s team for the Americas Rugby Championship, but for the first time as a coach rather than a player. Americas Rugby News has confirmed through reliable sources that the Clermont second row will be included as a forwards coach for the upcoming tournament, being granted leave from his French club while he rehabilitates a neck injury suffered in December. An announcement is expected when the squad is officially named within the next day or two.

This will be Cudmore’s first professional experience in a coaching capacity, though his ongoing playing career is extensive. He won the first of his 39 test caps in 2002 and has since appeared in four World Cups as well as over 200 matches for Clermont since joining in 2005. This will be Cudmore’s last season for the club, as the 37-year-old is expected to move elsewhere in a player-coach capacity next season. Gloucester, Scarlets, and Lyon all believed to have shown interest in his signature.

Cudmore’s fierce competitiveness, even on the sidelines, will be seen as a major boost to a team that has suffered from a perceived lack of toughness in recent times. His character is highly regarded in France, where he is known not just as an enforcer but for his sense of humour – also on the display in the World Cup – and even his wine-making interests.

The coaching team will be lead by national senior women’s head coach François Ratier, who takes over on an interim basis only for the ARC after the resignation of Kieran Crowley, who will join Italian club Benetton Treviso in June. Rugby Canada is currently on the hunt for a new permanent head coach and it is hoped a successful candidate will be in place ahead of the June internationals.