'A fresh start': Nick Easter agrees to double job at Worcester

Worcester have appointed ex-England No8 Nick Easter as their new defence and forwards coach for the 2022/23 season. He will be joining from Newcastle where he is defence coach, taking over the defence coach role from Jonny Bell, who is re-joining Ulster, and taking on the forwards coach duties previously held by Jonathan Thomas, who left the Warriors in January.

Before coaching at Newcastle, Easter had two seasons in Super Rugby as defence and forwards Coach with Durban-based Sharks and two seasons as defence coach of Harlequins, the club he represented a record 281 times as a player. Easter won 54 caps between 2007 and 2015 and played in three World Cups

“Nick will be a huge addition to our management team,” said Steve Diamond, the current lead rugby consultant at Worcester who will become director of rugby in the upcoming off-season. “He has vast playing experience at the highest level and he has served an excellent coaching apprenticeship at Harlequins, Sharks and Newcastle.

“I have been very impressed with his mentality of how he wants us to play moving forward. He is very ambitious and his forthright approach will complement our coaching team.”

The 43-year-old Easter has played and coached against sides coached by Diamond for almost 20 years and is now looking forward to working with him for the first time. “I have always appreciated and respected what Steve has done in the game, particularly at Sale and how he has built that club up a couple of times.

“They were struggling, he went back there when they probably didn’t have the resources that they have now. He can get the best out of a group of players and individuals in terms of managing potential. He understands what it takes to win games of rugby, particularly in the Premiership.

“I have enjoyed his company and from our discussions in the last few weeks, we both seem very aligned in how we see the game. The opportunity at Worcester is exciting as well. It’s a fresh start under Steve and it is an excellent opportunity. It’s a club with good investment, ambitious owners and one that needs to be put on the map.”

Easter began his professional playing career with Orrell in what is now the Championship and he played in a match at Edge Hall Road in January 2004 that effectively sealed promotion to the Premiership for the first time for Worcester. “I remember playing against Worcester with Orrell when they got promoted ahead of us in 2004. You knew what they stood for then with that Tony Windo side.

“Since then stars have come and gone and it’s never quite clicked. We have now got a chance to imprint an identity on the club, to build from the bottom up, build something sustainable and something that lasts.

“What I really like is the squad that Steve is putting together and the guys who are staying. There is a great backline there, he is bringing in some talented, hard-nosed experienced forwards which you need so that the backs get the quality of ball they need. If we can amalgamate them quickly, get a clear plan in place, practise it in pre-season and get buy-in from the players then hopefully we should see performances improve.”