Scottish coaches named for annual Six Nations Conference

A total of six Scottish coaches have been selected to attend the annual Six Nations Coaching Conference – starting today – to further their development in coaching high performance rugby (Tuesday 9 – Friday 12 May).This year’s conference will take place in Parma, Italy, with coaches from across Scotland’s club game and representative squads sharing their knowledge and experiences with fellow participants from across the other five nations.The four-day conference will cover a broad range of coaching topics, associated with high performance rugby and delivered through keynote speakers and practical sessions.All six coaches have followed Scottish Rugby’s coach development programme and are UKCC Level 3 qualified.Neil Graham, Scottish Rugby’s Coach Development Manager, said: “The Six Nations Conference is part of our development programme for coaches involved in the BT Premiership, BT Sport Scottish Rugby Academy, and international age-grade and representative rugby.The conference is a platform for all of the coaches to strengthen their knowledge of performance rugby and learn from the experience of other coaches who work with similar teams across Europe.”The Scottish coaches who have been selected have already coached at a high level and have coached their respective squads to some great achievements this season.”Peter Jericevich (Scotland Women), Bryan Easson (BT Sport Scottish Rugby Academy and Scotland U16), David Wilson (Scotland U16), Ben Cairns (Currie and Scotland U18), Roddy Grant (Scottish Rugby Specialist Coach) and Finlay Gillies (Glasgow Hawks) will all attend the conference.Jericevich, a former Scotland 7s and Club XV international, enjoyed a successful playing career with BT Premiership side, Ayr, before making a move towards coaching with GHA.The Scottish Rugby Strength & Conditioning Development Officer is the current Scotland Women Assistant Coach and contributed to the squad’s first Six Nations victory since 2010 when they defeated Wales in this year’s championship, which was then backed up with another win against Italy.Easson and Wilson have recently guided Scotland U16 to victories in this year’s Colwyn Bay Rugby Festival, with Easson also maintaining a coaching role with the BT Sport Scottish Rugby Academy in Edinburgh.Cairns, a former Scotland international and Edinburgh Rugby utility back, has enjoyed a successful season as Currie Head Coach, with the capital club finishing fourth in the BT Premiership and reaching the knockout stages of Scotland’s premier club competition.He also coached Scotland U18 to victory over their Italian counterparts in this year’s International Series in Wales through his role as Assistant Coach and is currently undertaking his UKCC Level 4 qualification in partnership with Edinburgh Napier University.Grant is a Scottish Rugby Specialist Skills, Contact and Defence Coach having previously represented Scotland A and 7s on the international stage.The former Edinburgh Rugby back-row works with the BT Sport Scottish Rugby Academy, is an Assistant Coach with Scotland U18 and also provides support to the Scotland Women coaching team.Gillies, a former Glasgow Warriors hooker who previously represented Scotland 7s and Scotland U20, coached Glasgow Hawks to a third and qualifying knockout spot in this season’s BT Premiership.