PENARTH RFC is pleased to announce the appointment of former Glamorgan Wanderers captain and coach Matthew Bolton as the new Penarth RFC head coach.

Last week, the 42-year old St Cyres Comprehensive PE teacher, met the players for a wide ranging discussion concerning the coming season 2015-2016.

“I am delighted that Matt has agreed to coach the club this season. His credentials are quite impressive and he was highly recommended by all who worked with him. We had a good meeting with the players and I am sure he will be able to harness the potential of the club’s young and talented squad. We are actively looking for an experienced backs coach and we hope to be able to make an announcement soon,” Penarth RFC chairman Mike Gooding said.

Born in Wolverhampton, Bolton started his rugby career in Shropshire, in the back row of Newport RFC, where he also played hooker. In 1994 he went to UWIC, where he switched to loose head prop, a position he retained for the rest of his playing career.

During university he developed under the guiding hands of several Welsh rugby luminaries of the likes of Alan Martin, John Lloyd and John-Huw Williams, in a successful team coordinated by Dr John Pugh. Occasionally that UWIC team was also coached by the legendary WRU and IRB chairman Vernon Pugh QC, whose passion for coaching was well known.

In 1998, he captained Welsh Universities and played for England Students against both their Welsh and French counterparts. After university, Bolton, by now a PE teacher with St Cyres comprehensive in Penarth, joined Caerphilly, where he played for three more years, with former Penarth fullback Adam Rosser, as head coach.

Eventually he joined Glamorgan Wanderers, a club for which he went on playing for six years, five of which as skipper. He ended his playing career in 2009 and joined the coaching staff of the Wanderers as forwards coach, with Richard Hodges as head coach.

In 2012 he became the Wanderers head coach and relinquished the position in 2014, when he joined Pentyrch for a year as forwards coach. His return to coaching after a year break has coincided with Penarth’s efforts to identify a quality coach to help the club fulfil its aspirations.

After Christmas Penarth head coach Paul Williams left the club to join Neath and former forwards coach David Morgan took over as head coach. Penarth finished the season eighth with 39 points, in League 2, East Central, with both Treherbert and Gwernyfed relegated to League 3A East Central.

“We will try to play an all-round game, trying to match the aspirations with the level of skill of the players," Matt Bolton said.

“As a coach I do not like to complicate things too much. I see my role as a facilitator, and I look forward to work with this young group of players, to help them develop their potential” he added.