Steve Bates and Simon Hardy, two familiar faces in Hertfordshire rugby, form part of this year’s England Saxons coaching team for the 2008 shadow Six Nations competition. Newcastle Falcons coach Steve Bates will be head coach and he will be joined by the RFU’s National Academy coaches Graham Rowntree and Simon Hardy.
As a scrum half Steve Bates enjoyed a long and successful career alongside Rob Andrew at London Wasps, during which time he played 11 County Championship matches for Hertfordshire. He won one England cap against Romania in Bucharest in the summer of 1989 and toured South Africa with England in 1994.
He moved north to take up a coaching role with Newcastle Falcons in 1995 and was the club’s head coach until 2003, leaving to take over as director of rugby at Borders, who he led into the Heineken Cup.
Steve went on to coach Scotland A at the Barclays Churchill Cup in 2006, where they beat England Saxons 13-7 in Toronto, before returning to Kingston Park as Coaching and Technical Director in the summer of 2007.
As a teacher at Lord Wandsworth College in Hampshire, he was instrumental in the development of the young Jonny Wilkinson, who joined the Falcons on his recommendation in 1997.
Simon Hardy is a World Cup winner with England, having been the specialist lineout coach for 81 Tests, including the Six Nations winning sides of 2000 and 2001 and a memorable 2003 when they won a Grand Slam, beat New Zealand and Australia Down Under and then returned to Sydney to lift the Webb Ellis Cup. In his specialist capacity, he also worked with the England team in advance of last year’s 2007 Rugby World Cup.
A hooker for Saracens, Wasps and England U23 before his playing career was ended by injury, the Loughborough University graduate joined the Rugby Football Union as Youth Development Officer for Hertfordshire in 1990. He became South West Technical Administrator two years later and was National Coach Development Manager between 1994 and 1999. He joined England part-time before the 1999 World Cup, going full-time in 2000.
As one of the RFU’s National Academy Coaches, he works as a coach and mentor with England’s up and coming players.
This will be his second stint with England Saxons, having been part of the successful 2006 Churchill Cup coaching team.
The England Saxons will play two fixtures against Ireland A at Welford Road on Friday 1 February (kick off 7.45pm) and Italy A in Sicily on Saturday 9 February (kick off 6.15pm local time).
