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| Date of birth | (1980-12-09)9 December 1980 (age 44) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | Cork,Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 109 kg (17.2 st; 240 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Christian Brothers College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University College Cork | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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James Coughlan (born 9 December 1980) is a retiredIrishrugby union player and current coach. Coughlan played primarily as anumber 8 and represented Cork-based amateur clubDolphin in theAll-Ireland League, his native provinceMunster and French clubPau, and, internationally,Ireland Wolfhounds and theIreland 7s team during his career.
Coughlan started playing rugby with Old Christians at the age of 10. He continued playing when he went toChristian Brothers College and was selected for theIrish Schoolboys team. After school, Coughlan went toUniversity College Cork and played for theIrish Universities team. He joinedDolphin in 2001 and played 85 times for them in theAll-Ireland League &Cup, scoring 32 tries, a club record. In 2008, Coughlan also played on the Irish Sevens team that qualified for the 2009 Rugby Sevens World Cup, which was held in Dubai.[1]
Coughlan made his Munster debut againstCardiff Blues in theCeltic League in September 2006,[2] and his performances in his first season earned him a full contract.[3] He made one appearance for Munster during their victorious2007–08 Heineken Cup campaign.[4] Coughlan was one of the stars for Munster in their 18–16 defeat byNew Zealand at the opening ofThomond Park in November 2008.[5]Denis Leamy's injuries propelled Coughlan into the Munster starting XV in the 2009–10 season, and he become a mainstay in the team, captaining Munster during their historic 15–6 win overAustralia in November 2010,[6] and winning the Munster Player of the Year award for 2011, beating fellow nomineesKeith Earls,Ronan O'Gara andDoug Howlett.[7] He started at number 8 for Munster as they beat old rivalsLeinster 19–9 to win the2011 Magners League Grand Final.[8] Coughlan was ruled out of the remainder of the 2011–12 season after a fractured bone in his hand, sustained in Munster's Heineken Cup quarter-final defeat againstUlster on 8 April 2012, required surgery.[9]
Coughlan agreed a contract extension with Munster in January 2013.[10] Coughlan scored a try and won theplayer of the match award in Munster's 38–6 win againstEdinburgh in round 6 of the2013–14 Heineken Cup on 19 January 2014, a win that secured a home quarter-final for Munster.[11] Coughlan was nominated for the Munster Rugby Senior Player of the Year 2014 award,[12] and won theIRUPA Unsung Hero award during the annual awards in May 2014.[13] Coughlan left Munster in June 2014, after being granted an early release from his contract to move abroad.[14]
Coughlan joined FrenchPro D2 sidePau on a two-year contract at the beginning of the 2014–15 season.[15] Coughlan announced that he was retiring from rugby union upon the conclusion of the 2016–17 season, bringing to an end his 11-year professional career in which he won 139 caps for Munster, 69 for Pau and 1 forIreland Wolfhounds.[16]
Coughlan was called into the seniorIreland squad for the2012 Six Nations Championship to replace the injuredLeo Cullen, but did not feature in the tournament.[17] He was also called up to the Ireland squad for the uncapped warm-up against theBarbarians on 29 May 2012 in Gloucester,[18] coming on in the 60th minute forChris Henry in the 29–28 defeat.[19]
He was called into Ireland's training squad for the2013 Six Nations Championship on 21 January 2013,[20] and captainedIreland Wolfhounds in their 14–10 friendly defeat againstEngland Saxons on 25 January 2013.[21] He was added to Ireland's squad for their game againstScotland on 17 February 2013,[22] and was named in the Ireland squad for the2013 Autumn tests,[23] but Coughlan never won a senior cap for Ireland, much to the frustration of some.[24]
Upon retirement, Coughlan immediately progressed into coaching with Pau's academy. During this time, 27 of the 30 players in the academy went on to sign professional contracts. After two years with Pau, Coughlan joinedAix as a forwards coach for the 2019–20 season and oversaw a transformation of the team's defence from the fifth-worst to the fifth-best, as well as turning the team's scrum from the fourth worst to the second-best in thePro D2. Coughlan's work caught the attention ofTop 14 clubBrive, and he joined the club in July 2020 ahead of the 2020–21 season.[25] Ahead of the 2021–22 season, Coughlan, having left Brive, joined another French Top 14 club,Toulon, as their defence coach,[26] and was placed in temporary charge of the team after head coachPatrice Collazo left in October 2021.[27]