HUDDERSFIELD GIANTS have appointed Dave Wilson as their new head of performance.
Wilson will head up the strength and conditioning department at the club, taking over from Gareth Whittaker, who has taken up the same role at Super League rivals Castleford Tigers.
Wilson began his career at Leeds Rhinos in 2016 whilst completing a Masters in Strength and Conditioning at Leeds Beckett University. He remained with the club until the end of the 2019 season, a spell that included their 2017 Grand Final triumph and resultant World Club Challenge in Melbourne the following year.
He then joined Toronto Wolfpack ahead of the 2020 season, their first in Super League, before moving to Featherstone Rovers as head of strength and conditioning in 2021, during which time the club lifted the 1895 Cup at Wembley and reached the Million Pound Game, in which they fell short to Toulouse.
After a spell in football leading the academy programme at Hull City, Wilson returned to Rugby League with the Giants in 2023, where he has led the club’s academy and scholarship programme for three seasons before moving up to the first-team last year.
The club say that Wilson’s transition into the new role has been seamless, with his appointment one that has been richly deserved.
“I’m really looking forward to the challenge,” he admitted. “It’s something I’ve been working towards since I joined Huddersfield four years ago.
“I’m really grateful to the club, Jim (Lenihan, head coach) and Andy Kelly (head of rugby) for putting their trust in me to take on this role, leading into a really exciting future for the Giants with the new training facility and stadium nearing completion.
“I’m sad to see Gaz (Gareth Whittaker) leave because we struck up a really good friendship inside and outside of work but that’s created an opportunity for me that I’ll grab with both hands and I’ll give everything to prep the boys for success on the field.
“The transition has been really smooth, which is a credit to everyone really. The boys have been really receptive and I’m looking forward to working with them again this year.”
Academy strength and conditioning coach Adam Williams will step up to the first-team to join Wilson, with scholarship strength and conditioning coach Miles Kelly taking on a new role with the club’s academy.
“Both are young, hungry practitioners who are keen to learn and develop,” explained Wilson. “But most importantly they are really hard working which encapsulates what we want to be about as a team and club this year underneath Jim.
“We have the same goals as every other club – we want to be the fittest, fastest, strongest and most robust team we can be. The key part is translating the words into actions.
“We’ve a clear mantra and identity under Jim about what we want the team to be this year, so my job is to reverse-engineer that and make sure the lads are able to play to the game model and ultimately compete.”
