Mark Sexton confirmed as Connacht attack coach to complete Pete Wilkins’ backroom team for next season
Mark Sexton — © SPORTSFILE
Mark Sexton has been promoted to the Connacht senior coaching ticket for next season as Pete Wilkins puts the finishing touches to his plans.
Andy Friend’s time as the western province’s coach comes to an end in the next couple of weeks after their season ended with Saturday’s URC semi-final defeat to Stormers.
Wilkins will step up from the role of head coach to run the show, with John Muldoon returning from Bristol Bears to run the lineout and maul, former Leinster and Australia star Scott Fardy coming in to handle the defence and Colm Tucker remaining on to take charge of the scrum and breakdown.
While Wilkins will continue to lead the attack, the highly regarded Sexton will assist him having been an Elite Player Development Officer at Connacht where he also coached the backs and attack for their second team since 2021.
A younger brother of Ireland captain Johnny, Sexton won the All Ireland League with St Mary’s as a player in 2012 before going on to coach the club and school while also working with the Leinster U-19s.
Wilkins said: “Mark’s appointment is another positive step for us. He's an excellent coach who we know very well and who has benefitted from his experience with our Academy and with the Ireland U20s.
"Mark has a strong understanding of what we are trying to do from an attacking point of view and more importantly how we can move this forward again next season.
"His knowledge of our younger players - both in the Academy and those who have recently graduated to our Pro team is another valuable perspective to have within our management team and I look forward to working closely with him in his new role.
“With the coaching team now complete, I'm incredibly excited to get going for next season and to build on the progress we have made over the last few years.
"We've assembled a group that provides a good balance of continuity and change, both within the management team and within the squad.
"Coupled with our return to the Champions Cup there is a lot to look forward to and the hard work begins when we gather for pre-season training in early July."
