Old Viking and Rugby 7s coach Chris Cracknell is returning to his alma mater, Shiplake College, in order to impart his coaching wisdom to pupils. Chris has recently returned from Rio, where he was coaching the Fiji Rugby 7s team in their bid to win Olympic Gold.
Chris Cracknell is a professional rugby player turned coach, who himself had to withdraw from playing the sport due to an injury. Chris was only 28 when injury struck, and the career towards which he had been working for years was shattered around him. He commented: ‘I spent three or four months in and out of hospital and I wasn’t really sure what I was going to do. The opportunity arose to go to Fiji and coach, and it turned into a career move.’ Chris went on to coach the team to the Gold medal in the 2016 Olympics! He has also had experience coaching the England women’s 7s team, and now brings that coaching experience to Shiplake. The number of Rugby 7s tournaments coming up are an important part of the rugby season, and all of the boys involved are highly appreciative of all of the hard work Chris is putting into training them. Many tactics and techniques differ from playing rugby, and it is proving helpful to have a trained professional showing them the ropes.
Director of Rugby Mr Sam Beckett has commented: ‘it is great to have Chris on the coaching team. He has such a wealth of knowledge about rugby 7s, and the boys all massively respect him. There is a genuine warmth and passion about the sport in Chris’s style of coaching, which really helps the pupils to get on board. I’m looking forward to seeing Chris’s tips and tactics in action at the upcoming Rugby 7s tournaments.’