Northern Irish ex-player Allan Clarke coached in Major League Rugby between 2021-2024. He was appointed as Director of Rugby (DoR) of the Dallas Jackals in 2020, and moving to the Seattle Seawolves following the Jackals’ decision to defer their MLR entry to 2021, where he served as both Head Coach and DoR.

Capped 8 times for Ireland between 1995-1998, Clarke hails from Dungannon in Northern Ireland. He played with the Northampton Saints in England between 1993-1998, before winning a European Cup with Ulster in 1999. He finished his playing career in 2001 due to injury.

On the coaching side, Clarke has had an excellent career. He returned to the Ulster set up to establish their player pathway before being promoted to Assistant Coach. He joined the IRFU as High Performance Manager, also coaching the Ireland U20s to a U20 Six nations victory in 2010 before returning to an Assistant Coach role at Ulster. In 2017 he headed to Wales to join Ospreys as their Forwards Coach, before being promoted to Head Coach in 2018 where he served until 2020 when he was appointed DoR of the Jackals, then moving to the Seawolves once the Jackals pushed their entry into MLR to 2021.

achievements

• 2022 MLR Runner-Up: Seattle Seawolves