Huntingdon & District Rugby

After three years at the helm the Stags Coaching Team of Reggie Reid and Tom Laws have decided to step down from their roles as Head and Assistant Coach at Huntingdon RUFC and take a well-earned break. Their enthusiasm, commitment and quality coaching has ensured the senior playing group is in a positive place to move forward and the chairman and committee would like to thank them both on behalf of the club and especially the senior players for their efforts over the last 5 years, and we look forward to seeing them at Stags in a social context and in Reggie’s case with the minis on a Sunday!

Whilst sad to say goodbye to Reggie and Tom, we are delighted to welcome Simon Leader as the new Head Coach of Huntingdon RUFC. As you will see from his bio, Simon is a rugby man through and through. After an impressive playing career, which included two stints at Stags, with a year as Captain he found his true vocation as a coach. Simons is much sought after in local rugby circles and his recruitment is something of a coup for the club.

Simon’s ethos of developing playing and coaching skills across the club, fits with the club vision and allows us to build the foundations that are already in place. Barry Turner-Flynn remains in place leading the integration of juniors to senior pathway and supporting Simon.

I started my rugby career as a scrum half but quickly moved along the back line, specialising as a fly half or inside centre.

• I played Junior rugby at St Ives, before moving to Wales at 19 as part of the Llanelli Scarlets Academy, also playing for Llangennech a Level 3 side.

• I represented the Welsh Districts side 8 times playing strong teams such as the British Army, Denmark, and Germany.

• Returning from Wales I joined Huntingdon, who were then a level 6 team, with the honour of captaining the side in my second year.

• In order to realise my ambition to play rugby professionally I moved to France and playing semi-professionally for 3rd tier of side Angouleme. A fantastic experience which also saw me selected for an East of France squad.

• Returning from France I played a second stint for Huntingdon.

• In the latter stages of my playing career, I played Rugby League for Kings Lynn, and for Cambridge 2nds, before retiring and focusing on my coaching.

The end of my playing career overlapped with the start of my coaching, and I quickly worked my way up to become an RFU Level 3 coach in July 2016. I have worked with professional clubs, semi-professional clubs, and international teams, as well as with all ages and with men and women.

Having set up and coached the Rugby Programme at the College of West Anglia, I then moved on to work for Northampton Saints, as a development officer and also a lead coach in their developing player programmes.

• 2014 – 2018: - I was employed as backs, attack, skills and kicking coach for the Belgium National Team playing in the Rugby Europe competitions. I also worked with the U20s and 7s sides.

• 2016 – 2020: - Coach, Cambridge RFC in National 1. As backs, attack, and skills coach.

• 2020-2022: - Head of Rugby Wisbech Grammar School.

• 2022-2023: - Head coach of Loughborough Lightning U18s Centre of Excellence.

My passion is developing talent and ensuring players and coaches achieve their potential and have a pathway in to the highest level of rugby they can achieve. Alongside my Stags role I will be coaching on Impington Colleges Rugby Scholarship Programme.

Huntingdon is a club very close to my heart and I look forward to challenges ahead, building on the good work of those that have gone before me.