Deon Davids

Deon Davids
Full nameDeon Horace Davids
Date of birth (1968-02-11) 11 February 1968 (age 56)
Place of birthVictoria West, South Africa
Height1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight102 kg (225 lb; 16 st 1 lb)
SchoolAlbert Myburgh Secondary School, Bredasdorp
UniversityUniversity of the Western Cape
Rugby union career
Position(s) Number eight / Flanker / Lock
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
Boland ()
Correct as of 4 December 2015
Correct as of 4 December 2015
Coaching career
Years Team
1998 Villagers Worcester
2002 Boland College
2002 Boland 'A'
2002 South Africa Students
2002–2006 Boland Cavaliers
(assistant coach)
2005 African Leopards
2006–2007 Boland Cavaliers
(Vodacom Cup)
2007–2009 Boland Cavaliers
(head coach)
2008 Emerging Springboks
(assistant coach)
2009 South Africa Under-20
(assistant coach)
2010–2011 UWC
(head coach)
2011–2012 Golden Lions
(Vodacom Cup)
2011–2012 Golden Lions
(Under-21)
2012–2015 SWD Eagles
(academy head coach)
2015 SWD Eagles
(director of coaching)
2016–2019 Southern Kings
2016–2017 SWD Eagles
(head coach)

Deon Horace Davids (born 11 February 1968 in Victoria West, South Africa) is a South African rugby union coach, most recently the head coach of the Southern Kings Pro14 franchise.[1]

Career

Davids played as a number eight, flanker or lock and spent the majority of his career playing in the Boland Super League, as well as playing for university side UWC. He played for Villagers Worcester, where he also took over as coach, guiding them to the Boland Super League B title in 1998. He also guided Boland College to a title win in 2002 before he was appointed as the assistant coach to Hawies Fourie at provincial side Boland Cavaliers.[2]

With Davids coaching the forwards, Boland Cavaliers won the Currie Cup First Division in 2003 and 2004 and the Vodacom Shield in 2004. When Fourie left to become the backline coach of the Stormers for the 2006 Super Rugby campaign, Davids took over as the head coach of the Vodacom Cup side,[3] but remained as the assistant to Fourie and Director of Rugby Rudy Joubert in the Currie Cup competition. When Fourie permanently left to join the Free State Cheetahs coaching staff in 2007, Davids was appointed as the head coach of the Boland Cavaliers for the 2007 Currie Cup Premier Division,[4] guiding them to seventh spot in the competition. His side reached the quarter-finals of the 2007 Vodacom Cup before Davids assisted Chester Williams in coaching the Emerging Springboks side to victory in the 2008 IRB Nations Cup competition held in Romania.[5] Upon his return to South Africa, he once again helped Boland Cavaliers finish in seventh spot in the 2008 Currie Cup Premier Division.

He helped the Boland Cavaliers make another quarter final appearance in the 2008 Vodacom Cup, before he was appointed as the assistant to Eric Sauls for the South Africa Under-20 team that finished third at the 2008 IRB Junior World Championship.[6] The Boland Cavaliers had a disappointing season in the 2009 Currie Cup Premier Division and the Boland Rugby Union decided to appoint Chester Williams as their Director of Rugby,[7] effectively marginalising Davids, who had a contract with the union until 2012. Davids left Boland amidst threats of legal action[8] and took over as head coach of university side UWC, as well as joining the youth selection committee of Western Province.[9]

Davids coached UWC in the first ever Varsity Shield competition, helping them to finish in third spot in the 2011 competition, but left during the competition to join the Golden Lions, becoming head coach of their Vodacom Cup side for the 2012 season, as well as coaching the Under-21 side.[10]

At the end of 2012, Davids returned to the Western Cape to join the George-based SWD Eagles as the head coach of their academy, and taking charge of the SWD U21 side.[11] He remained in that role until 2015, when he also assisted the first team, coached by Bevin Fortuin.[12] When Fortuin left to join the Blue Bulls at the end of the 2015 season, Davids was appointed as the head coach of the SWD Eagles on a three-year contract.[13][14] Within a week of his appointment, the South African Rugby Union announced that Davids would coach the Port Elizabeth-based Southern Kings Super Rugby franchise in the 2016 Super Rugby season.[15] He would coach them before returning to the SWD Eagles once the Super Rugby season was completed.[16]

References

  1. ^ "SA Rugby Player Profile – Deon Davids". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
  2. ^ "Hawies Fourie neem leisels by Boland oor". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 11 September 2002. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  3. ^ "Hawies gaan Stormers help brei". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 17 November 2005. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  4. ^ "Davids brei Kavaliers". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 31 May 2007. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  5. ^ "Chester brei naasbestes". Son (in Afrikaans). 16 May 2008. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  6. ^ "Davids staan Sauls by". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 8 November 2009. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  7. ^ "Chester in Wellington met 'n regruk-mandaat". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 8 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  8. ^ "Davids soek 'n miljoen by Boland ná Chester oorvat". Son (in Afrikaans). 29 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  9. ^ "Oud-Boland-breier gee die WP hand met sy jeugspanne". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 22 April 2010. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  10. ^ "UWK staan stewig". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 25 April 2011. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  11. ^ "SWD-Arende soek nuwe breier". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 3 November 2012. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  12. ^ "Davids help slyp die arende". Die Burger (in Afrikaans). 5 February 2015. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  13. ^ "Deon Davids is nuwe SWD Arende afrigter". The Gremlin (in Afrikaans). 30 November 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  14. ^ "SWD Arende mik na topnege in Curriebekerreeks". Pale Toe! (in Afrikaans). 3 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  15. ^ "SA Rugby unveils Southern Kings management team and operational plan" (Press release). South African Rugby Union. 4 December 2015. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  16. ^ "Davids net aan Kings geleen". Son (in Afrikaans). 8 December 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2015.