Who is England Women’s Rugby World Cup coach John Mitchell?

JOHN MITCHELL is head coach of the England Women’s rugby side and he’ll be desperate to lead his side to glory in this year’s World Cup.

The New Zealander recently helped them to a Six Nations Grand Slam title.

GettyJohn Mitchell, 61, will be looking to triumph in his first World Cup as head coach of England[/caption]

GettyThe last time England lifted the World Cup was 2014[/caption]

And expectations are high for England women going into this tournament due to Mitchell’s vast experience.

The host nation last won the World Cup just over ten years ago, finishing as runner-up in both competitions since.

Mitchell takes a side to the World Cup who are unbeaten in 27 games and high in confidence as they look to go all the way this year.

Who is John Mitchell?

Mitchell, 61, is a professional rugby union coach and former player from New Zealand.

He has a son named Daryl Mitchell, who is a professional cricketer and frequently features internationally for New Zealand.

The 61-year-old Head Coach has just under three decades of international experience, having coached in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, USA, Japan and England.

Mitchell took over from Simon Middleton as head coach of the England Women’s team in May, 2023.

Middleton had stepped down from his role after eight years following the loss to New Zealand in the World Cup final.

It’s so far so good for Mitchell as head coach of the Red Roses, being unbeaten so far in his tenure.

He secured the Guinness Women’s Six Nations Grand Slam title in April, beating France 43-42 in the final and labelling it as an “ideal” test ahead of the World Cup.

GettyJohn Mitchell has just under three decades of international experience[/caption]

GettyJohn Mitchell will look to build on the success of securing the Guinness Women’s Six Nations Grand Slam title in April[/caption]

Who did John Mitchell play for?

Mitchell was a Rugby Union player, starting his career at King Country then moving to Waikato, where he made a name for himself.

The 61-year-old former pro also spent a year in Ireland for Garryowen where he finishing second in the All-Ireland League, just below Cork Constitution.

He was most famous for his time at Waikato, featuring for the New Zealand-based side on 134 occasions over ten years.

Making his debut in 1985 for the Mooloos, Mitchell soon became firmly established at number eight and would become the equal top scorer in first division rugby in 1989–90.

Mitchell became captain in 1989 but lost it the following year due to a knee injury which made him absent for over half the season.

He was re-appointed captain in 1991 and would remain in the role until his retirement in 1995.

Overall, he featured a record 86 times as captain for Waikato, scoring 335 points from 67 tries and winning the National Provincial Championship twice.

PAMitchell enjoyed a successful career at Waikato as a player[/caption]

What happened to Johnny Mitchell during his attack?

Mitchell almost came close to the Men’s World Cup in 2003 with his native New Zealand.

But they were dumped out in the semis by Australia, who went on to lose to England.

And while reflecting on how the exit haunted him, Mitchell then revealed a terrifying attack that took place in South Africa during him time with club side Lions, who he coached between 2011 and 2012.

“The falling into the ‘outcome bubble’, once I got attacked in South Africa, the challenge that evening, waking up from that was, ‘Hold on, I need to sort some things out here’.

“I promised myself that I would never fall into that mindset again, so now it’s basically enjoy it.

“I started coaching the Lions and myself and the strength and conditioning coach, Wayne Taylor, we were in a place in Hyde Park, which is quite a good area in Sandton, and we just left ourselves exposed because one of the windows was open and they jumped in.

“They basically got us two in the morning in my sleep. I basically thought it might have been Wayne playing a practical joke, and then I was tied up with mobile phone wire and curtain cord wire and stabbed in the process of waking up.

“It seemed like an eternity but I managed to negotiate my way out of it and I was very fortunate. So from that point onwards, I thought I needed to change a bit.”