Kevin Hopkins (born 29 September 1961) is a retired Welsh International rugby union player. He made seven appearances for his country, as well as representing Cardiff RFC, Swansea RFC and Neath RFC in the top division of Welsh club rugby, and played twice for the Barbarians invitational side. Following his retirement from playing, Hopkins has held numerous coaching positions.
| Birth name | Kevin Hopkins | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 29 September 1961 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Cwmllynfell, Wales | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 76 kg (12 st 0 lb) | ||||||||||||||||
| School | Maesydderwen Comprehensive School | ||||||||||||||||
| University | South Glamorgan Institute of Higher Education | ||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||
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His grandfather, Tom Hopkins, was also a Wales international rugby player.
Club career edit
Hopkins started his playing career with his home town club Ystradgynlais RFC before going on to represent the first class teams Cardiff RFC, Swansea RFC and Neath RFC.[1] He was club captain for Swansea during the 1991–92 season when they won their first Welsh league title.[2]
International career edit
Hopkins made his international test début in April 1985, against England in Cardiff during the 1985 Five Nations Championship. Hopkins' next international appearance came in the 1987 Five Nations championship, where he played in the matches against France, England and Scotland. Hopkins was a member of the Wales squad for the 1987 Rugby World Cup and played in the pool game matches against Tonga and Canada. His final appearance for Wales was in their match against the United States during the US's 1987 tour of the country.[3]
Coaching career edit
Hopkins was appointed Director of Rugby for the Ospreys regional team in September 2006. The position was discontinued two seasons later and Hopkins opted in May 2008 not to take an alternative role at the region.[4]
Hopkins took up a post at Pembrokeshire College as their sports academy coaching co-ordinator in August 2009.[5] In 2010, Hopkins was appointed backs coach at Dings Crusaders.[6]
References edit
- ^ "Past Players: Kevin Hopkins". Cardiff RFC. Archived from the original on 2016-01-19.
- ^ "Swansea RFC legend Keith Colclough back at St Helen's". South Wales Evening Post. 2014-04-28. Archived from the original on 2014-12-29.
- ^ "Player - Kevin Hopkins (Wales)". ESPN Scrum.
- ^ "Hopkins and Ospreys part company". BBC Sport Online. 2008-05-22.
- ^ "Former Wales rugby player appointed to key college post". Western Telegraph. 2009-08-27. Archived from the original on 2015-11-08.
- ^ "Former Wales cap Kevin Hopkins joins Dings Crusaders as new backs coach". Bristol Post. 2010-06-18.[dead link]