Auimatagi unveiled as new Canterbury Bulls coach

The Board of Canterbury Rugby League is pleased to announce Andrew Auimatagi as the new Head Coach of the Canterbury Bulls for the 2016 season.

Auimatagi takes over from Darrell Coad, who coached the Bulls to two NZRL Premiership grand finals and a championship win (2014) during his two years in the job. Coad did not reapply for the role.

Auimatagi will guide the Bulls into the NZRL’s revamped national competition which, in a departure from the zone format, will feature a return to district teams in the form of Auckland, Counties-Manukau, Wellington and Canterbury.

Andrew is a very experienced mentor and currently coaches the Linwood Keas’ premier team, the runner-up to Papanui in the 2015 CRL grand final. He has held national positions as head coach of the NZ Secondary Schools side and as assistant coach of the NZ 18’s team.

During 2014-15, Andrew coached the Canterbury A team to back to back South Island premiership titles, and led the South Island Premier team to victories over NZ Universities in 2014 and Australian Universities in 2015.

New Hornby Premier coach Jed Lawrie will be Auimatagi’s Bulls assistant, while he will also enjoy the support of selectors Dave Perkins and Brent Stuart, two of the most experienced coaches on the Canterbury rugby league scene.