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Yorkshire Carnegie appoint Gary Mercer as head coach
ESPN Staff
August 22, 2014
Gary Mercer has worked with the Scottish Rugby Union and the Scotland U20s © Getty Images
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Yorkshire Carnegie have appointed former New Zealand rugby league international Gary Mercer as their head coach on a two-year contract.

Previous coach James Lowes left at the end of last season to switch codes and take over at Super League side Bradford Bulls.

Mercer, 48, had a spell with Leeds Rhinos during his playing career. He has been part of the SRU's coaching set-up for the past decade, during which he has also spent time working with Glasgow Warriors.

"I am very excited about the future for Yorkshire Carnegie and what we can achieve over the next few years," Mercer said. "The structure that has been put in place by Sir Ian McGeechan and Chris Gibson is something that I believe will create a sustainable and, importantly, a successful future for the club.

"I spoke to James Lowes about the squad and the environment at the club and he encouraged me to consider the job. From my time in Yorkshire as a player and a coach, I am aware of the raw pool of talent that is available and I think we are in a great position to capitalise on that now.

"The squad and the coaching team last season did a fantastic job and came so close to reaching their goal, our challenge now is to go even further next season."

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