Sam Vesty
{{short description|England international rugby union player & coach}}
{{EngvarB|date=March 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Infobox rugby biography
| name = Sam Vesty
| image = Sam Vesty leicester bath h cup.jpg
| birth_name = Samuel Brook Vesty
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=y|1981|11|26}}
| birth_place = Leicester, England
| height = 6 ft 0 ins (1.83 m)
| weight = 14 st 8 lb (92 Kg)
| nickname =
| school = John Cleveland College
| university = Loughborough University
| relatives =
| ru_position = Fly-half, Centre, Fullback
| ru_currentclub =
| ru_clubyears = 2002–2010
2010–2013
| ru_proclubs = {{nowrap|Leicester Tigers
Bath Rugby}}
| ru_clubcaps = 157
64
| ru_clubpoints = (241)
(121)
| ru_nationalteam =England
| ru_nationalyears = 2009
| ru_nationalcaps = 2
| ru_nationalpoints = 0
| ru_ntupdate =
| pcupdate =
| repupdate =
}}
Samuel Brook Vesty (born 26 November 1981) is an English rugby union player and coach. He is currently the Head Coach of Northampton Saints. He played utility back (though his preferred position is full back) principally for Leicester Tigers. He has also had coaching roles principally at Worcester Warriors.
Family and early life
Vesty is the fourth generation of his family to play for the Tigers.{{cite web|url=http://www.england-rugby.com/englandrugby/index.cfm?fuseaction=News.News_Detail&storyid=22748|title=Same Vesty England Profile|date=28 May 2009|accessdate=14 June 2009}}{{dead link|date=May 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} His father Phil Vesty made 47 first-team appearances for Leicester as a prop between 1971 and 1976, his paternal grandfather Albert (Bernard) Vesty made one appearance for Leicester on the wing in the last game of the 1946/47 season, and a great-grandfather, Jack Dickens, a centre-cum-wing, made 15 first-team appearances for Tigers in the 1909–1910 season.
Vesty attended John Cleveland College, and studied sports science at Loughborough University.{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/homegrown-vesty-finds-his-place-414443.html|title = Homegrown Vesty finds his place|website = Independent.co.uk|date = 2 September 2006}}
Vesty is an all-round sportsman, having played as a wicket-keeper/batsman for Leicestershire C.C.C.'s 2nd XI before having to give up cricket to focus on his rugby.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/club-rugby/sam-vesty-dad-told-me-no-one-likes-players-who-dont-tackle-1689692.html|title=Sam Vesty: 'Dad told me no one likes players who don't tackle'|last=Hewett|first=Chris|date=23 May 2009|work=The Independent|accessdate=14 June 2009 | location=London}} He has also played tennis to county level.
Vesty played in a rock band with other Tigers players Ollie Smith Dan Hipkiss, Aaron Mauger and George Chuter called Slo Progress before moving club to Bath, where he still plays music with club colleagues in the music room at Farleigh House.{{cite web|last=Vesty|first=Sam|title=Baths budding rock stars|url=http://www.livingrugby.co.uk/blogs/sam-vesty/2011/09/baths-budding-rock-stars|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130505022928/http://www.livingrugby.co.uk/blogs/sam-vesty/2011/09/baths-budding-rock-stars|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 May 2013|publisher=Living Rugby}}
Playing career
Vesty could play full back, fly-half or centre. He has also played one game on the wing, though his lack of pace proved problematic. His strengths lay in the fact that he was an all-round footballer, with good ball handling and kicking skills.
He came through the Tigers academy, making his first team début in 2001 Biarritz in the Orange cup. Initially he played as fly-half after Andy Goode moved to Saracens, but he was young, inexperienced and at 12 stone had not properly bulked out (he later weighed 14 stone). He played in other backs positions and was voted the members player of the year for the 2005/06 season. Vesty started as Leicester won the 2007 Premiership final.{{cite news
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/english/6637669.stm
|title=Premiership final
|publisher=BBC
|date=12 May 2007 |accessdate=9 February 2020}}
He did not feature much in the early part of the 2008/09 season and had been considering leaving Leicester to get game time when circumstances changed in February 2009.{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/club/5278847/Sam-Vesty-goes-from-zero-to-hero-at-Leicester-Tigers.html|title=Sam Vesty goes from zero to hero at Leicester Tigers|last=Gallagher|first=Brendan|date=5 May 2009|work=The Telegraph|accessdate=14 June 2009 | location=London}} With Toby Flood with the {{nrut|England}} squad and Derick Hougaard injured, Vesty was brought back to play at fly-half. This coincided with a change in fortune for Leicester who started rising up the Guinness Premiership table. Vesty remained in the team either at fly-half or inside centre for the rest of the season. He subsequently started as Leicester won the Premiership final that year.{{cite news
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/english/8048413.stm
|title=Leicester 10–9 London Irish
|publisher=BBC
|date=16 May 2009 |accessdate=9 February 2020}}
In April 2010 it was announced Vesty would be joining Bath Rugby on a 3-year contract at the end of the season.{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/my_club/bath/8605845.stm | work=BBC News | title=Tigers fly-half Vesty joins Bath | date=7 April 2010}}
Vesty was rewarded for his good end to season with a call up to the full England squad for the summer tour against {{nrut|Argentina}}.{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/international/england/5345647/England-to-call-up-Leicesters-Sam-Vesty.html|title=England to call up Leicester's Sam Vesty|last=Mairs|first=Gavin|date=18 May 2009|work=The Telegraph|accessdate=14 June 2009}} He made his début off the bench against Argentina in Old Trafford in June 2009.{{cite web|url=http://www.leicestertigers.com/news/13561.php|title=England debut caps the season for Vesty|last=Sherrard|first=Gary|date=6 June 2009|publisher=Leicester Tigers|accessdate=14 June 2009}}{{Dead link|date=April 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
Vesty retired from playing in 2013.
Coaching career
Vestey worked as a coach at Worcester Warriors from 2013, initially coaching the Worcester Cavaliers to the Premiership Rugby A League final for the very first time in the 2014/15 season. He then progressed from Transition Coach to Backs Coach two years later.
He then worked for a summer as skills coach for the England rugby team, under Eddie Jones, overseeing two Test victories over Argentina in 2017.
In summer 2018 Vesty joined Northampton Saints as Attack and Backs coach, working under Chris Boyd.{{Cite web|url=https://www.northamptonsaints.co.uk/person/sam-vesty|title = Sam Vesty (Attack Coach)}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.premiershiprugby.com/2018/03/07/sam-vesty-join-northampton-saints-coaching-team-2018-19-season/|title = Sam Vesty to join Northampton Saints coaching team from 2018-19 season}} Boyd in 2019 said this recruitment was "one of the best decisions I’ve made."{{Cite web|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/northampton-say-sam-vesty-unavailable-21021617|title = Northampton says Sam Vesty is unavailable as Eddie Jones seeks new attack coach|website = Daily Mirror|date = 4 December 2019}} In the season of 2022/23, Vesty was promoted to Head Coach after the departure of Boyd, alongside Phil Dowson who was promoted to Director of Rugby.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070930023737/http://www.england-rugby.com/englandrugby/index.cfm?fuseaction=News.News_Detail&storyid=10918 England profile]
- [http://www.leicestertigers.com/squad/players.php?player=4480&includeref=dynamic Leicester profile]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20071220185209/http://www.guinnesspremiership.com/112_146.php?player=4480&includeref=dynamic Guinness Premiership profile]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20111114154511/http://www.livingrugby.co.uk/blogs/sam-vesty Sam Vesty Blog, Living Rugby]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vesty, Sam}}
Category:England international rugby union players
Category:English rugby union players
Category:Leicester Tigers players