Connacht’s Backs Coach Andre Bell the Perfect Teacher

Well-travelled New Zealander, Andre Bell is focusing on “simple things” as he looks to freshen up Connacht rugby team’s back-play, the Irish Independent reports.

Come along to any Connacht training session and you’ll immediately see the influence that Bell is having already.

Bell’s good-humoured, affable attitude immediately rubs off on his players, and the short, sharp training drills that he has introduced are clearly a hit with the squad.

Like fellow New Zealander, Connacht Rugby’s head coach Pat Lam, Bell is a teacher by trade, and it’s obvious that he is used to delivering knowledge efficiently. And going by some of Connacht’s back play this season, that message is hitting home.

Uprooting a young family from Wellington to the west of Ireland might seem like a massive shift, but Bell was excited by what Lam told him about Connacht. And after coaching stints in France, Scotland, Italy and Japan previously, the 44-year-old is well aware that moving is a big part of the game.

“That is just part of the industry. I didn’t think that I would initially come to Europe. But when this opportunity came up it was tough to ignore,” he explains.

His ability and track record of passing on the skills of the game to young backs makes Bell the perfect fit for Connacht right now.

Original article by Declan Rooney, Irish Independent, October 3, 2014.