FRU Appoints Peter Ryan as New Defence Coach

The Fiji Rugby Union today confirmed the appointment of its new Defense Coach for the Vodafone Flying Fijians team, with Australian dual code champion Peter Ryan joining the coaching staff.  Vodafone Flying Fijians coach, John McKee will now have added experience and expertise for the team’s 2017 June and July tests, as the team focuses on RWC2019 qualification.

The FRU CEO stated that FRU was grateful to engage Ryan who is a well-known professional in his field who will be able to contribute positively towards the Vodafone Flying Fijians.  This will create great opportunities for the Vodafone Flying Fijians, our Elite programmes, domestic rugby (primary, secondary, clubs, provincial and Fiji rugby in general.

The FRU welcomes Ryan into the Fiji Rugby Family and looks forward to his specialized contribution towards the enhancement of the Elite Teams’ Defense codes which we are confident will lead to improved performances through the rugby structures in Fiji.

Rugby union and rugby league cross-code pioneer Peter Ryan is a former Brumbies championship winner and Brisbane Broncos premiership player. He is currently the Defense Coach for the Brumbies, and has agreed to join McKee’s coaching staff for Test assemblies and tours.

FRU Scrum Coach Alan Muir and Defense Coach Peter Ryan

Ryan was the first player to win grand finals in both the NRL and Super Rugby, and along with Brad Thorn, is one of the few League forwards to successfully transition to Union.

Described by Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy as “one of the most devastating defenders” in rugby league, Ryan played for the Broncos from 1989 to 1999.

He switched codes to join the Brumbies and won a Super Rugby title in 2001, before finishing his playing career in Japan.

John McKee said that Ryan will take charge of the collision zone and fine-tune the Vodafone Flying Fijians breakdown work and tackling techniques.

McKee says that Ryan’s appointment, on top of the addition of S & C Coaches Damian Marsh an John Pryor, will play a vital role in the team’s preparations for the June and July tests, as all three are world class in their roles.

“The 3 new technical coaches will make invaluable contributions to the Vodafone Flying Fijians World Cup campaign given their success in their respective roles with their former teams, which cannot be underestimated.

“The magnitude of their qualifications and experience is a massive advantage for us and their coaching credentials and achievements speak for themselves” McKee added.

Ryan joined the Vodafone Flying Fijians in Melbourne and has been training the team since then.

“Since joining the team in the last two days I’ve seen a passion of what I teach in terms of defense taken to a new level.  The Vodafone Flying Fijians have got ownership in terms of their passion of rugby but from now forward I think their passion will be defence in rugby and I think that the Wallabies this weekend is going to be a stepping stone for us to doing something quite special come the next two years at the Rugby World Cup” he said.

“Everyone speaks about the Vodafone Flying Fijians as a wonderful attacking team and I think that if we can add another dimension in terms of their defensive focus I think that they could be a team that could be possibly unstoppable and maybe along the lines of the All Blacks with years to come” Ryan added.