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| Full name | Andrew Friend | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | (1969-04-24)24 April 1969 (age 55)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Canberra,ACT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Andrew Friend (born 24 April 1969) is an Australianrugby union coach and former player. He completed his most recent post as Director of Rugby for Irish provinceConnacht at the end of the 2022/23 URC season. He was previously head coach of theAustralia Sevens team,[1] theBrumbies inSuper Rugby,[2] English clubHarlequins,[3] andCanon Eagles andSuntory Sungoliath in the JapaneseTop League.[1][4]
Friend was selected in theAustralia Schoolboys rugby team for 1986–87 before going on to play provincial rugby for the ACT Kookaburras.[1] His position of choice wasfull-back.[5]
Friend began his coaching career within anAustralian Institute of Sport rugby programme in 1995.[1][6] He held assistant coaching positions at theNew South Wales Waratahs and the Brumbies.[7][8] He was also the Brumbies skills coach underEddie Jones.[9]
In the summer of 2005, Friend joined English Premiership teamHarlequins as head coach.[10][11] Following the conclusion of the2007-08 season, he signed a three-year contract with theCanberra-basedBrumbies side.[3]
He took over fromLaurie Fisher as head coach at theSuper Rugby club.[12] After completing two full seasons in charge, Friend has his contract terminated in March 2011 following a loss to the Melbourne Rebels and rumours of player discontent.[2] He was the third coach to either be fired or not have their contract renewed by the ACT Brumbies board. After helping out as a trainer for various Canberra high school teams, Friend went to Japan in 2012 and became the head coach atCanon Eagles for two seasons.[1] He was head coach ofSuntory Sungoliath from 2014 to 2016.[4]
Friend was appointed as the head coach ofPro14 sideConnacht on a three-year deal in May 2018.[13]
Inaugural inductee toUniversity of Canberra Sport Walk of Fame in 2022.[14]
Friend guided theAustralian Under-21 team to the final of the2005 World Championships.[15] He worked within theWallabies setup for the2002 Tri Nations Series and2003 Rugby World Cup.[16] He was appointed as head coach of theAustralian Sevens team in 2016.[1]
Following an accident in 2010 when his wife, Kerri Rawlings, came off her bike and suffered a serious brain injury, Andy Friend undertook a 5000 km journey from Cooktown to Canberra to raise awareness and money for Acquired Brain Injury. This was to support Brain Injury Australia and Outward Bound. The journey was successful, with his wife as part of the support crew, and was completed in late November 2011.[17]