Neil McCarthy (rugby union) was effectively ended in 2002 by a serious knee injury. McCarthy spent two years attempting to come back from the injury which included a final spell with Orrell Rugby, eventually retiring in 2004 after further complications from the original injury. He was Leicester Tigers Academy director from 2007-2015 and produced current England players George Ford, Manu Tuilagi, Dan Cole, Tom Croft, Billy Twelvetrees and the Youngs Brothers Ben and Tom. On 11 March 2015, McCarthy returned to Gloucester Rugby to become their new Head of Academy. Having restructured and established the Gloucester academy as a leading programme McCarthy moved into
Tom James (rugby player) Tom James (rugby player) Tom James (born 17 April 1987 in Rhymney) is a Welsh rugby union player. He was a former Welsh athlete before turning to rugby. His older brother, Robbie, is a professional welterweight boxer and former Welsh ABA Champion. After turning to rugby, he joined Merthyr RFC on the wing. After a successful year at Merthyr James joined Cardiff RFC at the start of the 2006–07 season. James scored 11 tries in just nine games to open the season which brought him to the attention of the first fifteen, with whom he had an academy contract. He