Bob Dwyer
Encyclopedia
Bob Dwyer is an Australia
n rugby union
coach
.
Educated at Sydney Boys High School
, he coached Sydney
club Randwick
to four Sydney championship wins before becoming Australia
's national team coach. He coached Australia from 1982-83, and again from 1988. He coached Australia to victory at the 1991 Rugby World Cup.
Dwyer moved to Leicester Tigers
after the game turned professional in 1996 and replaced Chalkie White
. Tigers had immediate success, in 1997 reaching the Heineken Cup
final and winning the Pilkington Cup, but finished fourth in the league. Dwyer's harsh attitude to the players led to the them dubbing him 'Barb Dwyer' ('barbed wire') and a public spat with one of them, Austin Healey
ensued. The club's board decided to replace Dwyer with former club captain Dean Richards
.
In 1998 Dwyer was appointed head coach of recently-relegated Bristol Rugby
. Under him the club returned to the Premiership at the first time of asking. The next season saw Bristol finish sixth in the top flight and narrowly miss out on qualification for the Heineken Cup
. In 2000, Dwyer left Bristol after changes to the club's back room staff. In his time at Bristol Dwyer was a forceful advocate for the club's potential to be the leading light in English rugby, "the potential here is greater than in any other rugby city in England, including Leicester".
In 2001 Dwyer returned to Australia and became coach of the New South Wales Waratahs
in Super Rugby (at the time known as Super 12). He led the Waratahs to an eighth-place finish in 2001 and their first semi-final in the competition in 2002. He resigned in 2003 after a fifth-place finish but stayed with the New South Wales union as a development officer.
In 2011, he was inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame
, alongside all other Rugby World Cup
-winning head coaches and captains through the 2007 edition
.
He has written two autobiographies - The Winning Way (1992) and Full Time: A coach's Memoirs (2004).
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
.
Educated at Sydney Boys High School
Sydney Boys High School
Sydney Boys High School is an academically selective public secondary school for boys, located in the City of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, with 1,180 students, from years 7 to 12...
, he coached Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
club Randwick
Randwick DRUFC
Randwick District Rugby Union Football Club, also known as the Galloping Greens, is an Australian rugby union club which competes in the Sydney grade competition. The club was formed in 1882 and since then has won 31 first grade premierships and seven Australian club championships...
to four Sydney championship wins before becoming Australia
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
's national team coach. He coached Australia from 1982-83, and again from 1988. He coached Australia to victory at the 1991 Rugby World Cup.
Dwyer moved to Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers is an English rugby union club that plays in the Aviva Premiership.Leicester are the most successful English club since the introduction of league rugby in 1987, a record 9 times English champions - 3 more than either Bath or Wasps, the last of which was in 2010...
after the game turned professional in 1996 and replaced Chalkie White
Chalkie White
Herbert Victor "Chalkie" White was an English rugby union player and later coach, instrumental in the success of Leicester Tigers.White was born in Carlisle and served in the Royal Navy before becoming a schoolteacher...
. Tigers had immediate success, in 1997 reaching the Heineken Cup
Heineken Cup
The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
final and winning the Pilkington Cup, but finished fourth in the league. Dwyer's harsh attitude to the players led to the them dubbing him 'Barb Dwyer' ('barbed wire') and a public spat with one of them, Austin Healey
Austin Healey
Austin Sean Healey is a former English rugby union player, who played as a utility back for Leicester Tigers, and has represented the England national rugby union team and the British Lions....
ensued. The club's board decided to replace Dwyer with former club captain Dean Richards
Dean Richards (rugby player)
Dean Richards is a former England and British & Irish Lions rugby union player. He had a long playing career with Leicester Tigers, and played 48 times for England and six times for the British & Irish Lions.-Club career:...
.
In 1998 Dwyer was appointed head coach of recently-relegated Bristol Rugby
Bristol Rugby
Bristol Rugby is a rugby union club based in Bristol, England. The club currently plays in the RFU Championship and competes in the British and Irish Cup. They rely in large part on the many junior rugby clubs in the region, particularly those from 'the Combination'...
. Under him the club returned to the Premiership at the first time of asking. The next season saw Bristol finish sixth in the top flight and narrowly miss out on qualification for the Heineken Cup
Heineken Cup
The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
. In 2000, Dwyer left Bristol after changes to the club's back room staff. In his time at Bristol Dwyer was a forceful advocate for the club's potential to be the leading light in English rugby, "the potential here is greater than in any other rugby city in England, including Leicester".
In 2001 Dwyer returned to Australia and became coach of the New South Wales Waratahs
New South Wales Waratahs
The New South Wales Waratahs are an Australian rugby union football team, representing the majority of New South Wales in the Super 15 Super Rugby competition...
in Super Rugby (at the time known as Super 12). He led the Waratahs to an eighth-place finish in 2001 and their first semi-final in the competition in 2002. He resigned in 2003 after a fifth-place finish but stayed with the New South Wales union as a development officer.
In 2011, he was inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame
IRB Hall of Fame
The IRB Hall of Fame is a hall of fame operated by the International Rugby Board that recognises special achievement and contribution to the sport of rugby union. The IRB Hall of Fame covers players, coaches, administrators, match officials, institutions and other individuals...
, alongside all other Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
-winning head coaches and captains through the 2007 edition
2007 Rugby World Cup
The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 20 October. France won the hosting rights in 2003,...
.
He has written two autobiographies - The Winning Way (1992) and Full Time: A coach's Memoirs (2004).