Nottingham appoint Fowkes as new head coach

Nottingham Rugby have announced the appointment of current first-team coach Neil Fowkes as the club’s new head coach, from the end of the current season.

Fowkes needs no introduction to the Nottingham faithful, with the locally-born, 37-year-old having been part of the club, both as a player and a coach, since 1987.

Moving through the club’s junior ranks at Ireland Avenue, after joining as an Under-7 minis player, Neil went on to make 210 first-team appearances for Nottingham, at loose head prop, across 12 years, between 1999 and 2011.

He was also part of the Green and Whites squad, which achieved promotion to National Division One, now known as the Championship, during the 2003/04 season.

On retiring from playing, Fowkes moved straight into a coaching role with Nottingham, working alongside both Glenn Delaney and Martin Haag, and he will now take over the reins from current head coach Ian Costello, at the end of the 2017/18 campaign, with Costello moving to a senior coaching role at Premiership side Wasps.

Clearly pleased to have been given the opportunity to take charge of the club he has been part of for most of his life, a proud Fowkes said: “It’s an absolute privilege to have been selected to do the job at Nottingham.

"It’s a club that’s so close to my heart and I’m very proud to have got that across the line.

“First and foremost, my job here is to support the current head coach Ian Costello as much as possible and we’re focusing on London Scottish this weekend, and the Championship, and the remaining B&I Cup games.

"Obviously, with a change of coach, there’s a slight change of style in terms of personality but we’re very closely aligned at the club and we just want to make sure the continuity is there and were still moving in the same upward trajectory.”