A neck injury prematurely ended the 300-NRL game career of John Morris however the talented hooker and utility player has wasted no time in starting the second phase of his rugby league journey after being appointed Elite Player Development Coach at the Sharks.
Armed with the lessons learned from 15 seasons at the top level and a Master’s Degree in Elite Coaching, Morris will now impart some of his vast knowledge of the game on the next group of Sharks juniors coming through the ranks.
Hard at work in his new job since prior to Christmas, Morris is every bit as enthusiastic about his new role as he was about the game during his playing days.
“It was a pathway I identified a couple of years ago that I really wanted to go down and it’s worked out well that I can coach and work for the club that I played for for five years,” Morris said. “I can help mentor this next crop of juniors through the NRL. It is really exciting times.
“I love working for the club, it’s very rewarding.”
In just a few short months Morris has already taken control of a Pathways Camp for youngsters brought in from out of district, coached Matthews Cup in the absence of their regular coach, overseen the coaching in the Summer Academy program for local area players and has conducted position specific extra school holiday training sessions for the clubs Junior rep teams.
He will also play an active role in junior talent identification and player welfare.
“I’m a bit of a jack of all trades, I’ll do a little bit of everything,” Morris added.
A Sharks TV camera has followed Morris both prior to and post-Christmas, carrying out the various tasks associated with his new position and has put together a video package.
Click on the ‘play’ link and learn about the new, exciting and very important role John Morris will play at the Sharks during 2015 and beyond.
Morris embraces a new role – now playing on Sharks TV.