David Wessels

David Wessels (born 1982), is a South African-Australian professional rugby union football coach. He is currently the head coach of the Melbourne Rebels team that compete in the Super Rugby competition.[1] He was previously head coach at the Western Force,[2] and co-head coach of the Perth Spirit in Australia's National Rugby Championship.[3] South African born, Wessels is a naturalised Australian citizen.[4]

David Wessels
Date of birth1982 (age 40–41)
Place of birthCape Town, Cape Province, South Africa
SchoolSt Stithians College
UniversityUniversity of Cape Town
Rugby union career
Coaching career
Years Team
2008–2009 Stormers (consultant)
2009–2011 UCT Ikey Tigers (assistant)
2012–2013 Brumbies (consultant)
2014–2016 Western Force (assistant)
2014 Perth Spirit
2016–2017 Western Force
2017–2021 Melbourne Rebels

Wessels was born in Cape Town, South Africa, he then moved to Johannesburg where he attended St Stithians College before enrolling at Cape Town University. He was a defensive consultant to the Super Rugby team the Stormers in 2008 and 2009, before being appointed as an assistant coach at UCT (Ikeys) in the Varsity Cup from 2009 to 2011.[5]

He moved to Australia as a defensive consultant to the Brumbies under head coach Jake White in 2012, and had a significant influence on the rejuvenated Brumbies with the team conceding the fewest points in the Australian Conference and the second least in the Super Rugby competition.[6][7] He joined the Western Force as the senior assistant coach for the 2013 Super Rugby season.[5][7] Wessels was appointed, alongside Kevin Foote, as co-head coach of the Perth Spirit for the inaugural season of Australia's National Rugby Championship in 2014.[3]

Wessels became the caretaker head coach of the Western Force for the last three games of 2016, before being appointed as head coach for the 2017 Super Rugby season.[2]

Following the Australian Rugby Union's decision to exclude the Force from Super Rugby after the 2017 season,[8] Wessels joined the Melbourne Rebels as head coach in September 2017, signing a two-year deal with the team.[1] He coached the team for three and a half seasons before departing ahead of the Super Rugby Trans-Tasman competition in 2021.[9]

References
  1. "Rebels appoint David Wessels as new Head Coach" (Press release). Melbourne Rebels. 29 September 2017. Archived from the original on 29 September 2017. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
  2. "David Wessels Appointed Head Coach of the Western Force" (Press release). Western Force. 7 September 2016. Archived from the original on 20 September 2016. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  3. "Spirit unveils coaching squad for Buildcorp NRC" (Press release). RugbyWA. 5 August 2014. Archived from the original on 6 August 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  4. "One Percenters: Rebels emerge as Slipper's possible new home". Rugby.com.au. 12 August 2018. Archived from the original on 12 August 2018. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  5. "Coaching Staff". WA Rugby. 2014. Archived from the original on 29 July 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  6. Barbeler, David (27 April 2013). "Wessels switch means same old line in defence". The Canberra Times. Fairfax. Archived from the original on 6 August 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  7. "Force snare SA defence coach". Sport 24. 26 November 2012. Archived from the original on 28 January 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  8. "Force cut after arbitration finds in favour of ARU" (Press release). Australian Rugby Union. 11 August 2017. Archived from the original on 11 August 2017. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
  9. "Club Update: Wessels Stands Down as Melbourne Rebels Head Coach" (Press release). Melbourne Rebels. 30 April 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
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