Sir Gordon Tietjens has signed on as the next coach of the Samoan national sevens side.
The 12-time sevens World Series champion ended weeks of speculation with the announcement on Friday morning, with the Samoa Rugby Union confirming they had secured his highly sought after services, effective January 1st of 2017.
“We know that there was much competition to secure the services of such a prestigious figure in world rugby sevens,” said SRU chairman Tuilaepa Sailele L. Malielegaoi.
“In entrusting our beloved sevens team to Sir Gordon, we know we have a coach who understands how important rugby is to our people, and he has a deep appreciation for how to get the best out of the talent we know we have”.
Tietjens expressed his enthusiasm at the appointment.
"I am hugely excited to be joining the boys in blue," said the 60-year-old.
"Samoa Sevens has always represented their country with pride, passion and a great natural talent in rugby and I am massively motivated to help them achieve their goal to be a consistent top performer on the world stage."
Tietjens stepped down from his role as head of New Zealand Sevens in September after a legendary 23-year career, during which he lead the side to two World Cups and was named a Knight Companion of The NZ Order of merit for his contribution to the sport.
Stephen Betham has been named as Tietjen's assistant.
More to follow
Newshub.
