Joe Barakat facts for kids
Joe Barakat speaking at a Rugby Function
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| Birth name | Joseph Barakat | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 23 February 1963 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Sydney | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Marist Brothers College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | Australian Catholic University | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation(s) | Rugby Union Coach | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Joe Barakat was born on February 23, 1963. He is a well-known Australian rugby union coach. He has coached many teams both in Australia and around the world. Recently, he spent two years in Japan. There he worked as a forwards and defense coach for the NTT Communications Shining Arcs team in Tokyo, Japan.
Joe Barakat's Education
Joe Barakat finished high school at Marist College, Kogarah, in 1980. He then went on to study at the Australian Catholic University. He earned a Diploma in Education, focusing on Physical Education. He also received a Graduate Diploma in Computer Education and a Certificate in Religious Education. Joe continued to learn more about sports science. He studied biomechanics and human movement. He also earned a high-level coaching certification for rugby (Level 3).
International Rugby Coaching
Joe Barakat has coached rugby teams in several countries. He has worked with national teams and top club teams.
Coaching in Fiji and Samoa
In 2003, Joe Barakat became a special advisor for the Fijian Rugby Union and Samoan Rugby Union. This was for the Rugby World Cup. This experience started his strong connection with Fiji rugby.
Later, in 2008, he was named the Technical Director for Fiji Rugby. His job was to help improve how the national team and the Under 20 squads played. He focused on parts of the game like scrums and line-outs. In 2010, he joined Coach Sam Domoni as an Assistant Coach for the Fiji national team.
Coaching in Japan's Top League
Joe Barakat has spent seven years coaching in Japan's Top League. This is a top professional rugby competition. He coached for two teams: NTT Communications Shining Arcs and Toshiba Brave Lupus. Before signing full contracts, he also worked as a special coach for Toshiba in 2009/2010. He helped them with specific skills like set pieces and defense.
Success with NTT Communications
At NTT Communications, Joe Barakat was very important to the team's success. He helped guide famous players like former All Black Isaac Ross and former Australian rugby league player Craig Wing. Under his coaching, the team, which used to be in the second division, became known for having one of the best defenses. They also ranked high in line-out attacks.
Achievements with Toshiba Brave Lupus
At Toshiba Brave Lupus, Joe Barakat coached and mentored many talented players. These included former All Blacks Richard Kahui, Steven Bates, and David Hill. He also worked with Maori All Black Tanerau Latimer. He helped develop Japan's national captain, Michael Leitch, and Japan's record holder for most test caps, Hitoshi "Kin" Ono. Four of the forwards he coached at Toshiba Brave Lupus were chosen for the Japanese national team.
At the end of the 2014/2015 Top League season, Toshiba Brave Lupus was recognized for having the best scrum and line-out in the competition. Their scrum success rate was 96.4%, and their line-out success rate was 85.9%.
In 2019, Joe Barakat returned to NTT Communications as the Forwards and Defense assistant Coach. The tournaments during these two seasons were affected by the global pandemic.
Joe Barakat's time coaching in Japan:
- From 2010 to 2012, he was the Forwards and Defence Coach for NTT Communications Shining Arcs.
- From 2012 to 2015, he coached for Toshiba Brave Lupus. He was the Set Piece and Forwards Attack Coach. The team reached the Grand Finals of the Top League in 2012/2013 and the All Japan Grand Finals in 2013/2014.
Coaching Ulster Rugby
In July 2015, Joe Barakat joined Pro12 club Ulster Rugby in Ireland. He became their Defence Coach on a two-year contract. He worked again with head coach Les Kiss, whom he knew from their time at the NSW Waratahs. Joe was mainly in charge of the team's defensive plans. In the 2015–2016 season, Ulster Rugby had one of the best defenses, with only 29 tries scored against them. His contract was cut short by six months when he received an offer from an Australian Super Rugby team, The Western Force.
Working with the Wallabies
After a coach resigned, Joe Barakat was considered for the role of scrum coach for the Australia national rugby union team, also known as the Wallabies.
Coaching The Barbarians
In 2017, Joe Barakat was announced as the forwards coach for The Barbarians. This famous invitational rugby team toured Australia for two matches.
Australian Domestic Rugby Coaching
Joe Barakat has had a big impact on rugby in Australia. He has worked as a Head Coach and as a specialist coach for forwards, set pieces, and defense.
Coaching School Rugby Teams
Joe Barakat was the Head of the PD/H/PE Department at St Patrick's College. He also coached their 1st XV rugby team. He led them to win five Independent Sporting Association Championships in a row. He was highly respected in NSW school rugby. From 1997 to 1998, he was the Head Coach for the ISA Combined XV team. He also coached the NSW Schools 1st XV team from 1997 to 1999, winning two championships. He helped develop future stars like Phil Waugh, George Smith, Craig Wing, David Lyons, and Ryan Cross.
Coaching Australian U/21s
In 2004, Joe Barakat joined the coaching staff for the Australian U/21s team. He was the Forwards and Defence coach. The team finished first in their group but lost in the semi-finals to Ireland.
Coaching NSW Club Rugby
Joe Barakat started coaching club rugby in 1998. He was the forwards coach for Southern Districts Rugby Club until 2000. Then, he spent five years as the Head Coach for West Harbour RUFC. He was even voted Coach of the Year in 2002. At West Harbour, he mentored players like Des Tuiavii, Fili Finau, Chris Siale, and Fotu Auelua. In 2015, he briefly returned to West Harbour RUFC as their head coach.
Coaching the NSW Waratahs
In 2006, Joe Barakat officially joined the NSW Waratahs. He started as the Academy Coach and stayed until 2010. As Head Coach of the Waratahs Academy and the Waratahs A Team, he helped find and develop future Super Rugby players. These included Dave Dennis, Kane Douglas, and Lachlan Turner. Their success showed how well the program worked.
During his time with the NSW Waratahs, Joe Barakat built connections with the Fiji National Rugby Union and the Japanese Top League team, Toshiba Brave Lupus.
Coaching The Western Force
In January 2017, Joe Barakat joined The Western Force as the Forwards and Breakdown Coach. He worked under Head Coach David Wessels. The team had a very successful year, finishing second in the Australian table. They had the same number of wins as the first-place team. Even though they were the most improved Australian team in 2017, The Western Force team was unfortunately removed from the Australian Rugby Union competition.
Coaching The Melbourne Rebels
After The Western Force team was removed, Joe Barakat moved to the east coast. He joined the coaching team for the Melbourne Rebels.
