Family connection was a factor in Joe Ford appointment at Sale

Sale Sharks have confirmed the news RugbyPass broke last week, that Joe Ford has been appointed as the club’s new attack coach.

Sharks Director of Rugby, Alex Sanderson, believes that Ford, older brother of Sale and England fly-half George, has a very bright future in the game.

The 35-year-old former Sharks, Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints fly-half joins the club from Doncaster, where he climbed the ladder to become head coach – a role that Sanderson believes he’ll one day fulfil in the Premiership.

Under Ford, Doncaster finished third in the Championship after winning 10 consecutive league matches, and the Knights will be sorry to see him go, especially as their recruitment for next season is well underway.

“I had a conversation with Alex at the back end of the season and it just went from there,” said Ford.

“I was in a great position at Doncaster, with a fantastic squad and a great team around me and there weren’t many jobs that I would have left for. But sometimes a job comes up that just feels right.

“I’m from Manchester, Sale Sharks is my home club, I’ve played there and it’s an amazing opportunity to work with a brilliant set of players and coaches. Plus, it could be the only chance I get to work with George. It feels like the right decision for so many reasons.”

Ford originally joined the Knights’ coaching team as backs coach from Yorkshire Carnegie in the summer of 2020, before stepping up to the top job after Steve Boden had been displaced.

And after agreeing to join Sale, he paid tribute to his former club, where Sir Ian McGeechane has been mentoring him.

“When I took over at Doncaster, we had about 30 players out of contract, but that was a great opportunity for us to have a reset. We brought in a lot of new players and it took a bit of time for everyone to gel,” he added.

“Since the turn of the year, the results have been fantastic and we finished the season really well. It was a great way for me to finish what’s been a brilliant five years.

“I’ve loved working with Steve (Lloyd), Tony (De Mulder) and Geech, and I can’t thank them enough for the opportunity they gave me and the mentorship I’ve had.

“The job of a head coach comes with an awful lot of extra work to deal with, so I’m looking forward to getting stuck into being an attack coach again.

“Sharks have a squad filled with incredibly talented attacking players and it’s my job to work out how to get the ball into their hands.

“This is a massive opportunity for us to achieve something really special for the club and for northern rugby, and I can’t wait to get started.”

Sharks Director of Rugby Alex Sanderson said: “Joe has been so successful in the Championship at a tender age and the players who played under him at Doncaster all say how good he is as an attack coach. At 35, there’s still a lot of growth in him.

“He’s coming on his own merit because he’s a fantastic coach in his own right, but he brings with him the intellectual property of not just himself, but his two brothers and his dad. He has good counsel around him.

“We’ve known Joe for years, there’s no reason why he can’t go on to be a very good Director of Rugby in the Premiership in time. As a coaching group, we already have strong relationships with him and we can’t wait to see what he can do.”

Doncaster have promoted forwards coach Darren Fearn as Ford’s replacement.