Youth (U13 – U18 Girls & Boys)
What a spectacular week past watching our Youth teams train in the new kit for 2021/22. There was a real sense of pride as the players donned their new jerseys and completed their sessions with only two weeks before the first fixtures of the new season.
I am encouraged to share that coaches have arranged a number of friendly matches or combined training sessions this weekend with rival clubs to get the players into “game mode” for the beginning of the season.
During the season preparation stages before matches and tournaments are played, teams should ordinarily pass from:
- Stage 1 : Train to Train
- Stage 2 : Train to Play
- Stage 3 : Train to Compete
These stages will be incorporated in much finer detail in the seasons ahead. Currently, the players are now in the ‘Train to Compete’ phase and are preparing strongly for the league season beginning October 3rd. The Youth teams at Happy Valley are gearing up for their first fixtures and this can be seen in the coaching and activities they are undertaking. Team play is paramount at this stage of preparation. However, there can never be a reduction in focus on the basic core skills of the game. I will be encouraging coaches to maintain this focus as the season gets underway.
An exciting week of training awaits us as the excitement builds to the first round of the 21/22 Season.
Minis (U5 – U12 Girls & Boys)
As I travelled to all three training venues last Sunday, I witnessed the continuation of excellent work from the Mini coaches at HKIS and Aberdeen. The focus on the core skills and definitive coaching cues are becoming part of the coaching process as the first steps to consistency across the coaching spectrum for all teams.
Yours in Rugby,
Justin Carroll
Director of Rugby Valley Fort RFC
Reminders: here is the pitch schedule and the bus schedule for HKIS.