Stanford Recreation

Richard Ashfield enters his eighth season on The Farm.  Coaching with the USA Rugby Women’s National Team since 2013, Ashfield served as the Interim Head Coach of the Eagles from January to September 2023. 

Ashfield focused on building consistent decision making and harnessing the competitive instinct for Stanford Men’s Rugby as they went to USA Rugby College 7s National Championships in 2017 and 2019 and a Pac 12 top 4 appearance in 2022.

Ashfield has been integral in the continued success of Stanford Women’s Rugby as a national contender in USA Rugby Women’s Division 1. He mentored a dominant backline that led the Cardinal to the USA Rugby College Fifteens Final Four in 2017 as well as playoff appearances in each of his years at Stanford. In 2023, the women's team was runners up in the West Region and was named Stanford Club Sports Team of the Year.

Before he arrived on The Farm, Ashfield relocated to the Bay Area from the Northeast. He helped Providence College to the USA Rugby Women’s Division 2 National Championship in 2005. In the Women’s Premier League, Ashfield guided Beantown to seven consecutive National Top 4 finishes. Additionally, he held positions as an Assistant Coach for Brown University Men’s Rugby and head coach of the Providence Rugby Club. 

At the international level, Ashfield joined the USA Rugby Women’s Eagles staff in 2013. At Rugby World Cup 2017, Ashfield helped harness a talented Team USA backline that springboarded the Eagles to Fourth Place in Ireland.

As a player, Ashfield earned representative honors for playing for Ulster Juniors at age 23. He also worked for the Irish Rugby Football Union as a Rugby Development Coach, promoting the growth and development of rugby within his home province of Ulster.  

A 1999 graduate of the University of Dundee, Ashfield earned a bachelor's degree in Environmental Management. Ashfield is a Level 400 USA rugby coach.

A native of Hillsborough, Northern Ireland, Ashfield and his wife, Kelly, reside in San Mateo, CA with their three children: Oliver, Jack, and Owen.