Nationality Australia Country Australia | Residence Townsville, Queensland Sport Touch Football | |
Peter Shefford (born 1969) is an established Touch Football coach, with experience at regional, state, and World Cup level. He was assistant coach to the Australian Men's 40's Touch team that took out the 2015 World Cup title.
Contents
Personal
Peter Shefford was born in August 1969 in Albury, New South Wales. He currently resides in Townsville, North Queensland.
Shefford is a Mathematics and Health & Physical Education teacher and has taught at Kirwan State High School over the period 2011-now. He is a former Avionics Technician who worked for the Department of Defence on UH-1 Iroquois & Blackhawk helicopters at 5th Aviation Regiment.
Rugby League
Shefford played in the Riverina Schoolboys, Victorian Universities and Group 13 Rugby League representative sides, alongside stints with the Albury Roos, Corowa Cougars, University Saints, Upper Ross Rams, Coburg Lions, Northern Thunder, & the Bribie Island Warrigals clubs; and has coached Bribie Island, Wide Bay 18s, and the Qld Barbarian Women's Rugby League teams. In recent years Shefford has been involved in Masters Rugby League in Nth Qld.
Touch Football
Shefford's elite coaching experience in Touch Football includes State Cups, Regional & State Championships, National Youth Championships, State of Origins, National Championships, and World Cups.
Shefford was Assistant Coach to the Australian Mixed 18s, and Australian Senior Mixed, in the 2005 Youth World Cup and All Nations tournaments respectively. He was Assistant Coach of the Australian Mixed 20s at the 2009 International Youth Challenge and Trans Tasman event; as well as Assistant Coach to the 2015 World Cup winning Australian Men's 40s team.
In 1999 Shefford was head Coach of the England Women's 30s team. that won the first medal for a northern hemisphere team on the international stage; and was also Head Coach for England Touch at the 2007 World Cup in South Africa.
Shefford has also twice been a member of Touch Football Australia's National Selection Panel.
Over the years, interspersed with playing & coaching, Shefford has held the (Touch specific) role of Technical Director for the Australian University Games, Australian & NZ Police Games, Queensland Touch Football, and Touch Football Victoria. During a stint in the southern state, he was a Development Officer, Director of Selectors, Director of Coaching, Technical Director and President of Touch Football Victoria; before pursuing his career in the tropics and adopting volunteer roles as the Director of Selectors, and Assistant Technical & Coaching Director for the North Queensland Touch Association.
Shefford is the current Director of Coaching for the Townsville Castle Hill & North Queensland Touch Associations and Vice President of the locally based Sharks Touch Club.
Awards
Shefford was twice a finalist for the prestigious Eunice Gill Leadership in Sport Award, and is a recipient of the VicSport Volunteer Coach & Volunteer Administrator of the Year awards for his work with Touch Football in Victoria. He is an Honour Roll recipient for both Elwood Park Touch and the Victorian Touch Association; and in 2016 received an Australia Day Sports Administrator of the Year award for his work in Touch Football at local, regional, state & international levels.