ST. CATHARINES, Ont. - Brock Badgers men's rugby coach Les Gilson, will be leaving his post with the Badgers to take a position with Rugby Canada. Gilson will join Rugby Canada in the role of manager of High Performance after spending eight seasons with the Badgers including guiding the team to a 2007-08 Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championship and three OUA bronze medals.

“I'm thrilled Les has this chance,” said Brock University Athletic Director Chris Critelli. “We're sad to lose such a quality coach and great person, but we're also excited to see that his passion for rugby will become a full-time venture for him.”

Gilson joins Rugby Canada as part of an overall restructuring of the organization looking to improve the profile and skill level of the game in Canada in preparation for the inclusion of Sevens rugby in the 2016 Olympics. Born and raised in Lindsay, Ontario, Gilson has been involved in rugby for 25 years.

After receiving a Bachelor of Physical Education (Hons.) from Brock University and a Master of Arts in Exercise Physiology from East Tennessee State University, where he went on to work as a Strength & Conditioning Coach, Les returned to rugby in Ontario. With Strength & Conditioning his specialty, Gilson lectured at Brock while also acting as Head Coach for Ontario's U18 team.

His success in that role earned him the honour of becoming the Strength & Conditioning Coach for Canada's National U17 team then on to Assistant Coach with Canada East in the North America 4 competition. Gilson also served in the role of Director of Rugby for the Niagara Wasps RFC and appointed as the Ontario Blues Head Coach in 2009.

Gilson leaves Brock with a career coaching record of 51-13-1 including play-offs. The 2010 squad currently has a 3-0-1 record and sits in third place in the OUA.