Frank Morris Endacott , also known by the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

of "Happy Frank", is a New Zealand former professional

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 11 ...

footballer, and coach.

Background

His son,

Shane Shane may refer to: People * Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress * Shane (New Zealand singer) (born 1946) * iamnotshane (born 1995), formerly known as Shane, American singer * Shane (name) Shane is mainly a masculine g ...

, also played rugby league.

Playing career

Endacott played for Addington and Hornby in the

Canterbury Rugby League Canterbury Rugby League is the regional body that administers rugby league in Canterbury, New Zealand. CRL manages local competitions from senior level down to age group competitions. Canterbury Rugby League also manages the Canterbury rugby lea ...

competition. He made the

Junior Kiwis The Junior Kiwis side represents New Zealand in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kiwis, after the native bird of that name. Since 2010, they are an under-20s side, with players selected from the NRL, Intrust Super ...

in 1963, but after marrying and having a family of four sons decided not to take his rugby league playing career any further.

Coaching in New Zealand

Endacott started coaching

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

provincial sides in New Zealand before becoming involved with the

Auckland Warriors The New Zealand Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and is the League's only team from outside Australia. They were formed in 1995 as ...

, coaching the reserve side in the club's debut year in 1995. He continued with this role until

John Monie John Stephen Monie (born 6 October 1946) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1960s and 1970s, and coached in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. He is probably best known for his coaching career where he won p ...

was sacked as head coach halfway through the 1997 Super League season. He was the head coach of the Warriors for the rest of 1997 and the 1998 season, leaving after being dumped by the club's new owners prior to the 1999 season. While coaching Canterbury he was twice named Canterbury Coach of the Year by The Sir Richard Hadlee Sports Trust.

Coaching in England

Endacott joined the

Wigan Warriors The Wigan Warriors are a professional rugby league club in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the Super League. Formed in 1872 as Wigan Football Club, Wigan was a founding member of the Northern Rugby Football Union followin ...

after the 1999 season, initially only on a one-year contract. In 2000 he was named Super League's Coach of the Year. Endacott took the

to the 2000 Super League Grand Final but lost against St. Helens. He went on to coach the club until 2001. He won the Minor Premiership in 2000 and made the Grand Final but was sacked after a string of bad results in the 2001 season. However club chairman Maurice Lindsay said that Endacott had left the club in a better state than he'd found it. In August 2004 Endacott put his player management business on hold to act as an advisor to the

Widnes Vikings The Widnes Vikings are an English rugby league club in Widnes, Cheshire, which competes in the Betfred Championship. The club plays home matches at the Halton Stadium. Founded as Widnes Football Club, they are one of the original twenty-two r ...

. He helped the Widnes Vikings to avoid relegation at the end of the season and was subsequently appointed as head coach for the 2005 Season. He left at the end of the 2005 season after the Widnes Vikings were relegated from the Super League.

International

While coaching in Canterbury, Endacott led tours of both the

and New Zealand Residents. Endacott was appointed as head coach of the

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team ( Māori: Tīma rīki motu Aotearoa) has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of ...

in 1994 and continued in this role until the end of the 2000 season. His spell as head coach included two

World Cups A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

, in

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

and

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

. In 2008 Endacott was involved in his third World Cup, coaching the New Zealand Police team in the inaugural Police World Cup. The team lost the final 20–12.

Player Agent & Later life

Endacott is a well known player agent and, alongside his business partner Peter Brown, manages many professional rugby league players. In 2002, his biography ''Being Frank'' was published.Being Frank: A Biography of Rugby League Coach Frank Endacott (Paperback)
''amazon.co.uk'' In December 2006 Endacott was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, as part of the New Year Honours 2007.

References

External links

*
Frank Endacott Wigan Coaching Career Page
on the Wigan RL Fansite''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Endacott, Frank Living people Addington Magpies players Canterbury rugby league team coaches Hornby Panthers players Junior Kiwis coaches Junior Kiwis players New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in England New Zealand national rugby league team coaches New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand Warriors coaches Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league player agents Widnes Vikings coaches Wigan Warriors coaches Year of birth missing (living people)