Former prop Sam Hobbs has returned to Dragons Rugby after being officially confirmed as Forwards Coach in the Academy set-up.
Hobbs - who made 42 appearances for the region between 2016 and 2018 - joins the backroom team to support the development of the next generation of Dragons.
Matt O’Brien continues in his role as Head Coach in the Academy and will be supported by Rhodri West (Strength & Conditioning), Gwern James (Analyst) and Lewis Hudd (U18 Strength & Conditioning).
Brecon-born Hobbs is looking forward to his new role at Ystrad Mynach as Dragons Academy look to build on last season when the region’s Under-18s were crowned undefeated regional champions.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity and excited about such a good job, because this is something that I always wanted to do after playing," said Hobbs, a Welsh Rugby Union level three coach.
"I went to university at UWIC and the University of South Wales and got a degree in coaching, while I coached age-grade teams when I was playing.
"Being able to come here and focus solely on the Dragons Academy is something I can’t wait to tackle.
"You know that you can get more contact time with the players and you can be in the building that bit longer to look at what the other coaches are doing and try and mirror that so that the guys are familiar with the terminology.
"Ultimately the job is about creating more Dragons players and if they are going to step up to the under-23s and the senior environment then we want them to be able to understand it and come out of their shell.
"The biggest challenge, especially at age-grade, is to not throw so much at them, it has to be natural and stuff that they can handle for their growth,” he added.
"That's why I know I will enjoy it here because there is a massive emphasis on growing players both on the field and off it, letting them make decisions and backing them.”
General Manger James Chapron said: “Sam’s appointment to the Academy coaching set-up is a very important one for us.
“He has a wealth of experience in the Welsh game, knows this region extremely well and is determined to make an impact on the talented youngsters we have in our system.”
I'm grateful for the opportunity and excited about such a good job, because this is something that I always wanted to do after playing...
