Buccaneers RFC have announced the appointment of Christian Short as head coach, as the Midlands club bids for an immediate return to the top flight in Irish club rugby next season.
The former Pirate returns to the club he played for as lock from 2003 to 2005, during which the team won a Connacht Senior League and Cup double.
Recently retired after 15 years as a professional rugby player, Short’s playing career included spells at Connacht, Northampton Saints and at French clubs Brive and LOU. In 2014, Christian became player/coach with CS Vienne near Lyon in the French Federale 1, at the same time as creating his business, Indoor45.
Short is no stranger to gaining promotion, winning the Championship in England as a player with Northampton Saints, the ProD2 with LOU, and more recently as player/coach with CS Vienne back into Federale 1.
With more than 300 games played during his career, Christian’s passion started off at an early age at Gosforth RFC, where his father John played. The simple values of rugby have been deeply imbedded in him.
As a player, Christian has always had an interest in coaching, initially at Ballinasloe and then Old Scouts in the English Midlands, before having coaching roles at Brive, LOU and CS Vienne.
Short brings a wealth of experience both on and off the pitch to the Athlone club. He is a great believer in hard work, with strong interpersonal skills, and will work closely with the Pirates Seconds and U20s squads. He will place a strong emphasis on developing and promoting players within the club in the bid to return to the top flight of Irish club rugby.
The management at Buccaneers RFC has thanked the departing Darin Claasen and Mike McCarthy for their input and contribution.
