Paul John (born 25 January 1970 in Pontypridd) is a former Wales international rugby union player with 10 caps. He is the son of Dennis John, former Wales head coach.

Playing career

A scrum-half, he played his club rugby for

Cardiff RFC Cardiff Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Caerdydd) is a rugby union club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876Parry-Jones (1989), pg 59 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, shortly after ...

, and then Pontypridd RFC, where he was captain. John started playing for Llantwit Fardre Cardiff from 1986/87 -1990/91. He won 10 Welsh caps, making his debut against Tonga in 1994. He retired as a player in 2005.

Coaching career

He was, until 2010, head coach at Pontypridd. He was assistant coach of the club, as well as a successful Head Coach of the Wales Sevens team, who won the

2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens The 2009 Rugby Sevens World Cup was the fifth edition of the Rugby World Cup Sevens. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected Dubai in the United Arab Emirates as the host venue for the tournament ahead of bids from four other countries. The f ...

. John was appointed backs coach for

Cardiff Blues Cardiff Rugby ( cy, Rygbi Caerdydd) are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby competitions. Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms ...

in January 2014. Paul was a teacher of physical education (PE) at

Bryn Celynnog Comprehensive School Bryn Celynnog Comprehensive School is an 11–18 mixed, English-medium, community secondary school and sixth form in Beddau, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Notable alumni * Ellis Jenkins, rugby union player * Gethin Jenkins, rugby union player * ...

Beddau Beddau ( en, Graves cy, Y Beddau) is a large former mining village (and electoral ward) situated within the South Wales Valleys Davies (2008), page 507. around from Llantrisant and from the larger town of Pontypridd in the county borough of R ...

, and Coedylan Comprehensive School in Cilfynydd before becoming a full-time coach within the Wales Rugby Union National Academy. He is now coaching the Hong Kong Sevens Team. In

2018 Asian Games The 2018 Asian Games ( id, Pesta Olahraga Asia 2018 or ''Asian Games 2018''), officially known as the 18th Asian Games and also known as Jakarta-Palembang 2018 or Indonesia 2018, was a Asia, continental multi-sport event that was held from 18 A ...

, Hong Kong won all the games in the competition including upset victory over long time rival

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

with scoreline 14–0. Hong Kong became the first

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

winners in the Asian Games Rugby Sevens under his guidance.

References

1970 births Living people Welsh rugby union coaches Welsh rugby union players Wales international rugby union players Wales rugby union captains Pontypridd RFC players Rugby union players from Pontypridd {{Wales-rugbyunion-bio-stub