Brian McClennan
McClennan with Fabian Soutar after winning the 2005 Bartercard Cup.
Personal information
Nickname	Bluey, young Brian BlueBoy
Born	16 February 1962 (1962-02-16) (age 47)
	Auckland, New Zealand
Playing information
Position	Stand-off
Club
Years	Team	Pld	T	G	FG	P
	Mt Albert Lions
1989–??	Northcote Tigers
	Total	0	0	0	0	0
Representative
Years	Team	Pld	T	G	FG	P
19??–90	Auckland
Coaching information
Club
Years	Team	Gms	W	D	L	W%
1998–??	Hibiscus Coast
????–05	Mt Albert Lions
2006–07	Auckland Lions
2008–	Leeds Rhinos	28	21	0	7	75
	Total	28	21	0	7	75
Representative
Years	Team	Gms	W	D	L	W%
2005–07	New Zealand	16	7	0	9	44
As of 11 August 2008
Source: Rugby League Project

Brian "Bluey" McClennan (born 16 February 1962 in Auckland, New Zealand) is a rugby league coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of the Leeds Rhinos and is a former coach of the New Zealand Kiwis.

Brian is the son of former St Helens coach Mike McClennan.^[1]

[edit] Playing career

McClennan started his playing career at Mt Albert under the guidance of his dad, Mike. He played at Stand Off and also kicked goals.^[2] When his dad moved to Northcote in 1989, Brian also moved and was a part of the team which won the Auckland Rugby League grand final that year.

McClennan also represented Auckland and in his final representative game he captained the province to a win over the touring Great Britain side.^[2]

[edit] Coaching career

McClennan assisted U16 Coach John Ackland at the Auckland Warriors in 1995.^[2] He then took over as coach of third division Auckland side, the Hibiscus Coast Raiders, and led them to repeated successes until they were part of the national Bartercard Cup.

He coached the Hibiscus Coast Raiders and Mt Albert Lions to championships in the Bartercard Cup, and was then assistant coach for the Kiwis under Daniel Anderson.^[3]

Despite this, his appointment in June 2005 as national coach of New Zealand was controversial, mainly because he had no top-level experience in Australia or Great Britain.^[3] However, he led New Zealand to an upset triumph in the 2005 Gillette Rugby League Tri-Nations series. New Zealand won the series final against Australia 24-0 at Elland Road, England. It was Australia's first defeat in a series or tournament since 1978.

In 2006 he coached the Auckland Lions to the minor premiership in the Bartercard Cup. However the Kiwis lost both mid-season tests to the Kangaroos and Lions. In 2007 he served as Director of Football to help the Auckland Lions prepare for their entrance into the NSWRL Premier League before leaving to concentrate on the Kiwis for the rest of the season.^[4] In mid 2007 reports emerged that he was looking for a job in the National Rugby League.^[5]

In July 2007 Leeds Rhinos announced that New Zealand national coach Brian McClennan would be joining the club as Head Coach on a two year contract from 1 December 2007. McClennan subsequently resigned as national coach, his position taken up by Gary Kemble in August 2007. In his first season as coach, the Rhino's won the 2008 World Club Challenge, beating Melbourne Storm 11-4 at Elland Road.^[6]

He coached Leeds to the 2008 Super League Grand Final victory over St Helens.^[7]

The following year he achieved the same feat beating St.Helens 18-10 in the 2009 Super League Grand Final.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Leeds profile