The Irish Rugby Football Union has announced that the Ireland squad’s strength & conditioning coach Paul Pook has decided to step down from the position due to personal reasons.
Welsh native Paul Pook joined the Ireland set-up in 2008 with a renowned CV in the area of sports science and specifically rugby fitness having worked with the Welsh Under-21 squad and English Premiership side Harlequins, as well as acting as a consultant to various representative sides.
The IRFU will continue to use his expertise, particularly regarding his research into the advancement of player longevity, injury prevention and high performance.
Philip Morrow, the current IRFU head of fitness, will now be taking on the role of the Irish squad’s strength & conditioning coach in the short to medium term, including the upcoming GUINNESS Series of games in November.
Commenting on his decision, Paul Pook said: “Although I’ve enjoyed two great years working with the national squad, management and provincial staff, I’ve been away from my wife and two young daughters for the majority of that time.
“I felt it was time to step down given the fact I want to spend more time with my family and concentrate on developing a high performance training centre at my home in France, while writing a second edition of my book, ‘Complete Conditioning for Rugby’.”
Ireland head coach Declan Kidney said: “I would like to thank Paul for his work during his time with the squad. The players certainly benefitted from his experience and I am sure his knowledge will see him continue to be successful.
“Myself and the rest of the management team wish him the very best for the future.”
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