Joe Ford (born 4 June 1990) is a
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
coach. He has previously also been a player for
Yorkshire Carnegie
Leeds Tykes (formerly Leeds RUFC, Leeds Carnegie and Yorkshire Carnegie) is an English rugby union club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the National League 1.
The club was founded as Headingley FC, but renamed in 1991 when it j ...
, in three other spells, as well as
Northampton Saints
Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
They were formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. James", ...
,
Sale Sharks
Sale Sharks is a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
Originally founded in 1861 as Sale Football Club, now a distinct amateur club, they adopted the n ...
and
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...
in
Premiership Rugby
Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...
. He has recently been appointed a coach at
Doncaster Knights
Doncaster Rugby Football Club are a rugby union club representing the town of Doncaster, England. The first XV are known as the "Doncaster Knights", and play in the RFU Championship. Being the most promoted side in English history has led to ...
.
Career
Ford was a member of the
Bradford Bulls
The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is predom ...
Academy and played amateur
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
for the
St Albans Centurions
The St Albans Centurions are a rugby league club based in St Albans, Hertfordshire. The club plays their home games at Toulmin Drive, St Albans and their clubhouse is in High Oaks, St Albans.
Founded in 1996, they first played in various loca ...
.
Ford made his professional rugby debut for
Leeds Carnegie
Leeds Carnegie was a brand name used by several sports teams associated with the Carnegie School of Physical Education, now part of Leeds Beckett University. These include:
Current
* Leeds Carnegie Handball Club
Changed name
* Leeds Carnegie (ba ...
on 8 November 2009 in the
Anglo-Welsh Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs ...
against
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...
, Ford scored 13 points in 28-17 win. His brother
George Ford made his debut for
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
in the same game.
Ford moved to
Northampton Saints
Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
They were formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. James", ...
in 2010 but returned to Leeds at the end of the season having only featured in five games for the Saints.
After two years in the
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
, including being the third highest points scorer in the
2012-13 season, Ford moved back to the Premiership with
Sale Sharks
Sale Sharks is a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
Originally founded in 1861 as Sale Football Club, now a distinct amateur club, they adopted the n ...
. After three years with the Sharks Ford returned for a third spell with Leeds, now called
Yorkshire Carnegie
Leeds Tykes (formerly Leeds RUFC, Leeds Carnegie and Yorkshire Carnegie) is an English rugby union club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the National League 1.
The club was founded as Headingley FC, but renamed in 1991 when it j ...
.
In 2017, it was rumoured that
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...
were interested in signing him as back-up to his brother George. And on 1 June 2017 it was confirmed that Ford would join his brother at
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
. Ford made his first start on 4 November 2017 against
Gloucester
Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...
in the
Anglo-Welsh Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs ...
, and was named captain for the match. On 15 May 2019 he was announced as one of the players to leave Leicester following the end of the
2018-19 Premiership Rugby season.
On 2 August 2019 Ford was announced as re-joining
Yorkshire Carnegie
Leeds Tykes (formerly Leeds RUFC, Leeds Carnegie and Yorkshire Carnegie) is an English rugby union club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the National League 1.
The club was founded as Headingley FC, but renamed in 1991 when it j ...
in the role of player-head coach. A role he left on 23 January 2020.
He later signed a two year deal to join
RFU Championship
The RFU Championship is an English rugby union competition comprising twelve clubs. It is the second level of men’s English rugby and is played by both professional and semi-professional players. The competition has existed since 1987, when ...
side
Doncaster Knights
Doncaster Rugby Football Club are a rugby union club representing the town of Doncaster, England. The first XV are known as the "Doncaster Knights", and play in the RFU Championship. Being the most promoted side in English history has led to ...
as a coach from the 2020–21 season.
Family
His brother is international
George Ford. He is the son of former
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
defence coach
Mike Ford.
References
External links
Leeds Carnegie Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Joe
1990 births
Living people
English rugby union players
Leeds Tykes players
Leicester Tigers players
Northampton Saints players
Rugby union fly-halves
Rugby union players from Oldham
Sale Sharks players