Full name | Robert Maxwell Deans | ||||||||||||||||
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Nickname | Robbie | ||||||||||||||||
Date of birth | 4 September 1959 | ||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Cheviot, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||||||||||||||||
Weight | 79 kg (12 st 6 lb) | ||||||||||||||||
School | Christ's College, Christchurch | ||||||||||||||||
Notable relative(s) |
Bruce Deans (brother) Bob Deans (great-uncle) |
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Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||
Current status | |||||||||||||||||
Position(s) | Panasonic Wild Knights coach | ||||||||||||||||
Playing career | |||||||||||||||||
Position | Fullback | ||||||||||||||||
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Provincial/State sides | |||
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Years | Club / team | Apps | (points) |
1979–1990 | Canterbury | 146 | (1641) |
Correct as of 2007-12-29
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National team(s) | |||
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Years | Club / team | Apps | (points) |
1983–1985 | New Zealand | 5 | (50) |
Correct as of 2007-12-29
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Coaching career | |||
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Years | Club / team | ||
1997–2000 2001–2003 2000–2008 2008–2013 2014– |
Canterbury New Zealand (assistant coach) Crusaders Australia Panasonic Wild Knights |
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Correct as of 2013-07-12
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Robert Maxwell Deans (born 4 September 1959) is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former player, currently the head coach of Japanese club Panasonic Wild Knights. He was head coach of the Australian national team between 2008 and 2013. Deans had previously coached the Crusaders for eight seasons and was an assistant coach of New Zealand between late 2001 and 2003. As the coach of the Crusaders, Deans has won more Super rugby titles than any other (three Super 12 titles and two Super 14). He has also coached Canterbury in the National Provincial Championship, winning the title in 1997. As a player, Deans represented Canterbury, first playing at fly half, and later fullback. He also played nineteen matches for the All Blacks, including five tests.
Deans attended Christ's College, Christchurch as a boarder where he played rugby mainly at first five-eighth. He made his provincial debut for Canterbury in 1979 and played mainly at fullback, as the team already had future All Black coach Wayne Smith playing at first-five. Deans was the first-choice goal-kicker for the team and scored 1,641 points for the union. He was a member of the Canterbury team during the Ranfurly Shield era of the early 1980s. This included kicking eight of Canterbury's 16 points in its 16–12 challenge win over Wellington in 1982. The shield reign ended in 1985 against Auckland in "the match of the century" where Deans also played. This reign is the longest in Canterbury rugby union history. He went on to represent Canterbury 146 times, with his career ending in 1990.