From May 18 to 29, the Crusaders Global Academy ran its Coaching Course in Christchurch: a 14-day intensive that put a group of coaches from around the world inside the environment of the most successful team in Super Rugby history.
The cohort was genuinely international. Coaches came from the United States, Canada, England, Australia, the Cook Islands, and New Zealand, coaching everything from college and club programs to community and youth sides. They shared one reason for making the trip: to learn how a program with 15 Super Rugby titles builds and sustains a winning environment, and to take that back to their own teams.
What the two weeks covered
The Coaching Course is a structured program, not a camp. It pairs daily classroom sessions with practical field work and real-time feedback from Crusaders coaches, and the 2026 group got the full experience.
Members of the Crusaders coaching and support staff presented across the fortnight, walking the coaches through their technical and tactical frameworks, session planning, strength and conditioning, and analysis. The Matatū staff shared how they coach the women's game. The curriculum ran from scrum detail to opposition analysis to how to structure coaching roles within a team.
The coaches also got inside access to the professional program itself. They watched the Crusaders train live, seeing how a championship side prepares for a Super Rugby fixture, and observed the academy's own players in skill sessions. Then they did the work: in game-planning groups, the coaches broke down an opponent's threats and presented the opportunities, then took the field to lead live drills with CGA players and receive direct feedback on their delivery.
Around the sessions was rugby at every level of a rugby nation. The group attended a Crusaders Super Rugby match at the new one.nz Stadium, watched a Matatū women's fixture at Lincoln University, and took in club and school games across Christchurch over the weekend. A cultural immersion, including learning the Haka, rounded out the two weeks.
What the coaches took home
The value of the course shows up after it ends, back at each coach's own training.
That is already happening. In the weeks since, coaches in the cohort have reported putting what they learned straight to work. One coach shared that after applying a session concept from the course, her players stayed so long after practice she nearly had to send them home. The group has kept trading resources, book recommendations, and ideas well beyond the fortnight, turning the course into an ongoing network of coaches who keep pushing each other.
Among the 2026 group were several US college coaches, including Richard Ashfield, Stanford University's Director of Rugby. For coaches at that level, the draw is direct access to a real professional environment and a methodology they can implement at home.
The 2027 Coaching Course
The 2027 Coaching Course returns to Christchurch in May, and the waitlist is now open. It remains a 14-day program for coaches at high school level and above, men and women, built on the methodology behind 15 Super Rugby championships.
Spots are strictly limited to protect the quality of the experience. To ask about dates, pricing, and availability, complete the inquiry form and the Crusaders Global Academy team will be in touch.
