Rugby Canada has announced the appointment of Steve Meehan as the new head coach of the Canadian men's national team.
Steve Meehan comes into the role with 17 years of professional coaching experience with some of the top rugby competitions in the world. He served as head coach of Bath in the English Premiership for five seasons which included winning the European Challenge Cup. His coaching experience includes stints with French Top 14 teams Stade Français and Toulon, as well as Australia’s Western Force and Queensland Reds in Super Rugby.
"This is an exciting opportunity to be part of the next chapter for Canada’s rugby team and help guide the programme into the future,” said Meehan. “I know Canada is a proud rugby country with a deeply passionate rugby community, and I look forward to start meeting coaches and players around the country. I see great potential in the players and a look forward to the role I can play to help grow the team and our sport across Canada.”
In pursuit of qualifying for Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 in Australia, the decision to name Meehan was taken following a lengthy process analysing team results, performance, preparation, player feedback, and staff effectiveness conducted by Rugby Canada’s High Performance Director.
"A coach profile was identified to guide the competences, experience and characteristics needed in the next Canadian national team coach would need to have to give the program the best opportunity to succeed,” said Stephen Aboud, Rugby Canada’s High Performance Director. “We did a wide and expansive search for the next coach, evaluated over 150 coaches and Steve came through the process as our top candidate.”
"Steve brings proven experience in coaching successful teams and a strong track record for improving players,” said Rugby Canada CEO Nathan Bombrys. “We believe Steve’s positive coaching and leadership will create the right environment for our team to achieve the growth needed to reach their potential and qualify for the Rugby World Cup.”
