Francois Ratier Named Head Coach of France Women’s XVs and Jack Hanratty Named Head Coach of USA Women’s XVs
Two Canadian coaches have been hired by other countries to lead their women’s rugby programs. Francois Ratier who led the Canadian women’s XVs team to a 2nd place finish at the 2014 World Cup is being appointed as the new France women’s XVs head coach. Jack Hanratty who led the Canadian women’s 7s team to a 2nd place finish, Silver Medal, at the 2024 Olympics is being appointed as the new USA women’s XVs head coach.
Both coaches arrived in Canada from abroad early in their coaching careers and applied their talents at the club, university and regional level.
Francois Ratier came from France and coached Rugby Club de Montreal, before moving to McGill, Concordia and the Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue club and also served as head coach of Quebec’s provincial program. He took over the Canada men’s XVs team on an interim basis when Kieran Crowley left.
Jack Hanratty came from Ireland and landed a job with Rugby Nova Scotia as a Development Officer and coach of the provincial team, Nova Scotia Keltics. He became involved in coaching various age-grade teams at the national level. He left his position as Canada women’s 7s coach after the Olympics and became head coach of the University of Ottawa women’s XVs team.
Both were well respected coaches in Canada. Francois should have become the permanent Canada men’s XVs coach after Kieran Crowley left, and that was a fail by Rugby Canada in not following that path. Jack Hanratty left Rugby Canada after his Olympic 7s success, and it’s a bit of a mystery why he left a well-paying job at the University of Ottawa after only a brief stay there. There might be more to that story.
It’s also an irony that it has been 18 years since the men’s XVs program has had a Canadian coach or a coach who has developed in Canada, yet our greatest rugby export seems to be coaching talent.
from Canadian Press
Former Canada rugby coach Francois Ratier named coach of the French women’s team
Francois Ratier, who led the Canadian women to the Rugby World Cup final in 2014, has been named coach of the French women’s team. The French Rugby Federation (FFR) said Ratier’s appointment is effective as of January.
Francois Ratier, who led the Canadian women to the Rugby World Cup final in 2014, has been named coach of the French women’s team.
The French Rugby Federation (FFR) said Ratier’s appointment is effective as of January. His first game in charge of the fourth-ranked French women will be their April 11 Six Nations Championship home opener against Italy.
Ratier, who coached the Canadian women from 2013 to 2017, has served as coach of Bordeaux in the French women’s league most recently.
Born and raised in La Rochefoucauld, a small town in southwest France where his father was a mason and his mother a factory worker, Ratier played his club rugby on the wing for SC Angoulême. When injuries cut his career short, he turned to coaching and looked for a fresh start.
“Travelling was not in my DNA (growing up),” he said in 2017. “But I wanted to see the world.”
He knew rugby but not English at the time, so he turned to Quebec and, in 2003, offered his services for free.
He bought a plane ticket for Montreal, where he would later meet his future wife. He coached with Rugby Club de Montreal, before moving to McGill, Concordia and the Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue club and also served as head coach of Quebec’s provincial program.
Ratier worked with Canada’s under-17 side from 2008 to 2012 before taking over the senior women in May 2013.
The Canadian women made it to the championship game at the 2014 World Cup, losing 21-9 to England after defeating France 18-16 in the semifinal. He also served as interim head coach of the Canadian men in 2016, helping them to a second-place finish at the Americas Rugby Championship after New Zealand’s Kieran Crowley resigned.
Ratier was in charge when the Canadian women last beat England — 52-17 in July 2016. The top-ranked Red Roses have won all 14 meetings with Canada since then, including a 33-13 victory in the Sept. 27 World Cup final.
Ratier and the Canadian women finished fifth at the 2017 World Cup.
Ratier stepped down as coach of the Canadian women to become head coach of Rugby Canada’s academy in Langford, B.C., while also helping coach the national senior men’s centralized program. Ratier left seven months later to become Rugby Quebec’s director general and technical director.
In 2021, Ratier joined Major League Rugby’s Toronto Arrows as a consultant.
The French women, led by co-coaches Gaëlle Mignot and David Ortiz, finished fourth at this year’s World Cup, losing 42-26 to New Zealand’s Black Ferns in the third-place game.
It marked France’s lowest finish at the tournament since placing fourth in 2010, with three straight third-place finishes — including a 36-0 win over Canada in the third-place game at the 2021 tournament (played in 2022) — before this year.
The FFR said it started looking in October for a new coach to start preparations for the 2029 World Cup
USA Rugby High Performance announced today the official appointment of Jack Hanratty as the new Head Coach to the USA Women’s Eagles.
The new hire comes after a benchmark year for the Women’s 15s National Team and beginning of the next four-year cycle into Rugby World Cup 2029. Hanratty’s 16-year coaching resume extends across all levels of rugby, bringing a wealth of experience and performance standards that have earned success on international podiums. Most notably in 2024, Hanratty led the Canadian Women’s Sevens program to a silver medal finish at the Paris Olympics; a formula of excellence USA Rugby is very pleased to welcome as Hanratty will relocate to the United States and begin his tenure in January 2026.
Jack Hanratty said on his appointment with USA Rugby, “I am truly honoured to take on this role at such a promising moment for women’s rugby globally. I look forward to engaging with athletes and coaches in their performance environments worldwide, as well as collaborating with the exceptional talent we have domestically. This is an ambitious program with big targets, and we are eager to test ourselves against the best in the world in 2026.”
Hanratty joins USA Rugby following his most recent position as Women’s Head Coach at the University of Ottawa, a quality program that has been a pathway for Canadian internationals and a model experience for the similar landscape of USA Rugby. Hanratty first began coaching with Leinster Rugby in 2009, before becoming well-established on the international level with Rugby Canada. First serving as an Assistant Coach at the U18 level, Jack would climb his way to Head Coach of the Canadian Women’s U20s program and Senior National Team Assistant Coach in 2018, which included experience during the 2022 Rugby World Cup. Shifting to the sevens pitch, he would soon be named Head Coach of the Canadian Women’s Sevens National Team, setting new performance benchmarks and reaching the Olympic final in 2024.
USA Rugby General Manager of High Performance, Tamara Sheppard added, “We are delighted to welcome Jack as the new Head Coach of the USA Eagles Women’s 15s National Team. His deep North American rugby experience and proven ability to deliver when it matters most, make him an outstanding leader for this next chapter. Jack brings an innovative and enthusiastic approach to building a high performance program, with a strong commitment to working closely with our athletes both domestically and abroad. His vision positions us well for Rugby World Cup 2029 in Australia, and even further as we build toward hosting the Rugby World Cup in 2033.”
Jack Hanratty will officially join USA Rugby in January 2026, relocating to San Diego to be based at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center alongside both USA Rugby Sevens programs.