leinster rugby easter camps expand

Transcription

2013
CONTENTS
Overview
4
Capital Investment
5
COMMUNITY RUGBY OFFICER PROFILES & CLUB COMMUNITY RUGBY OFFICER PROFILES
South East (Kilkenny, Wexford, Wicklow)
6
North Midlands (Kildare, Portlaoise)
30
North East (Meath, Louth)
46
Midlands (Longford, Offaly, Westmeath)
62
South Dublin
74
Fingal
80
Dunlaoghaire Rathdown
92
Dublin City
96
STATISTICS
South East
108
North Midlands
113
North East
115
Midlands
119
Metro
122
3
OVERVIEW
Interest in Leinster Rugby is continuing to grow and the Club Community Rugby Officer (CCRO)
Programme has once again been a key component in the promotion of the game.
Over 40 CCRO’s are involved over 30 weeks with Leinster Rugby, in all, 378 Primary Schools
– 16,000 boys & 11,000 girls; 115 Secondary Schools with 5,000 boys & 1,700 girls are
interacted with through this programme. This, allied to the promotional work conducted by the 6
Community Rugby Officers, is a key component in the expansion and development of the game
throughout the entire province. The continued increase in numbers at mini and youth rugby is a
good indicator of the progression of young players from “ball in hand” to participation within our
rugby clubs. The added resource of the “Play Rugby” programme through the IRFU is a valuable resource to support this
face to face interaction and all 130 packs were utilised this season gone.
Working with the club members both on and off field has continued to progress. With the added strings to the Welcoming
Clubs programme and the normal interaction with respect to all off field queries and support roles that Community Rugby
provides, Garda vetting, Club Excellence, Liaise with County Councils and Local Sports partnerships, 2012/ 2013 has
been a very busy year and we look forward to developing our support structures in the year ahead.
Our engagement with the on field support through coaching courses Mini (Stage 1) - 19 courses; Foundation (Stage 2)
- 10 Courses - and regular seminars and workshops, where our goal is to support the development of the young player
through adding as much guidance and support to the coach as possible, has continued to increase and we look forward
to adding more resources to that area over 2013/2014.
The Lotto reopened this year with over €1,000,000 being awarded to Leinster Rugby Clubs. In these supposed difficult
financial times, it is great to see the desire and action to invest in the continued development of facilities in the clubs, by
the clubs.
As always, huge thanks to all involved in rugby throughout the province, from ??? (which now number 6 in total) to
teachers, to players - thanks. A special welcome to our newest County Council partner Laois and a quick goodbye to Jack
Hanratty who has been a valued member of Leinster Community Rugby over the last five years.
Huge thanks to Mark Callanan for the articles throughout the year and even bigger thanks, if possible, to Caroline Keane
for putting together this report and trying to give some substance to what we do. I hope this document is of some interest.
The Summer Camp programme is in the off - School of Excellence for three weeks and 19 Herald Summer camps hosted
throughout the province.
Exciting times ahead ... look forward to seeing you over the summer and the season ahead.
4
CAPITAL INVESTMENT
As we hear so often these days about the difficult economic climate it was great to welcome back an old friend
to rugby clubs – Lottery Funding. After an absence of four years the Government re-opened the Capital Funding
Programme.
In all over 30 clubs applied for funding and with a vastly reduced pool of finance available from 2008 it was
always going to be a more challenging environment. Sixteen Leinster Rugby Clubs received funding allocation,
with a further 3 projects of a multi use facility being awarded funding. Over €1 million will be allocated to develop
rugby suitable facilities by the Department of Art Sports and Tourism which is hugely beneficial to supporting the
continued progression of sport in Leinster . Projects range from ladies dressing rooms; pitch improvements; match
quality floodlighting and all are geared around making our clubs a better place to play rugby for all.
Allied to this the IRFU has made a number of loans to clubs with respect to Capital Development and this access
to finance is another important tool in the Clubs Capital Spend.
It is important to mention and recognise the huge fundraising achievements and good financial management
by clubs. This will enable clubs to unlock the funding stream from the Lotto and raising finance through loans
from commercial banks and the IRFU. With €1,000,000 being awarded to Leinster Rugby Clubs through Lotto it
would be a reasonable assumption that clubs are putting €500,000 – €1,000,000 of their own monies.
A fantastic investment in the future.
Lotto Fund Total:€25,894,322
Leinster
ClubAwarded
Tullow€18,000
Coolmine€159,045
Malahide€190,378
Suttonians€92,650
Tallaght€23,018
Athy€100,000
NUIM Barnahll€129,000
Longford€10,700
Boyne€25,000
Ashbourne€100,000
Birr€32,000
Tullamore€7,000
Midland Warriors€6,000
Aughrim€3,500
Greystones€47,000
Wicklow€37,000
Total Leinster Rugby Clubs
€980,291
% of Total fund3.79%
National ‘ Rugby Take %’
6.42%
Mulit Sport Facilities.
North Kildare Club€90,000
Enniscorthy Town Council€150,000
Marlay Park All Weather€300,000
Total:€540,000
Total including multi sport€1,520.290
5
COMMUNITY RUGBY OFFICER
MAURICE LOGUE
Maurice Logue is the Community Rugby Officer for the South
East and North Midlands areas of Leinster. The CRO’s role
involves close liaison with the many Club Community Rugby
Officers in these geographical areas, as Maurice explains. “My
role as a CRO on the ground involves working with the CCROs,
interacting with them on a daily basis and helping them where
required and monitoring what’s been done by them as well. The
other side of it is running minis courses, informing clubs of any
initiatives that can support and help them.” The level of co-operation between the various
rugby officers is clearly beneficial and is something Maurice is keen to pay tribute to. “It’s
a very tight knit group between the CROs and the CCROs. The IRFU and Leinster Rugby
have a way they want the game to be coached and that’s the way we translate it to the
CCROs. It’s all bout the kids having fun.”
The implementation of rugby programs that focus on enjoyment is key to the success of the
CCRO program and Maurice believes that this fun approach coupled with an introduction
to playing a heads up, expansive brand of rugby is an integral facet of the initiative. “In
primary schools it’s all about tag because it’s so diverse a group. You’re dealing with
some kids who may have done it before and some who may have had no experience.
Handling, passing and spatial awareness are key. One of the biggest problems we have
is that years ago rugby was all about lateral handling drills, lateral games. Now it’s all
about spatial awareness. Play what’s in front of you and see what’s on. If you’re looking
sideways you can’t be doing that.”
Although Maurice has only been a Community Rugby Officer for three years, he is au
fait with the community rugby landscape for a long period of time, having been a youth
development officer over a decade ago. In this time Maurice has seen seismic changes in
how rugby is administered. “The CCRO program has improved way beyond recognition.
I was a Youth Development Officer a decade or so ago and you were very much left to
your own devices. It wasn’t treated like a job. It was treated as a hobby that fellas could
work around. You can see huge improvements in the structure and development of it.
There’s a structure and a plan in place. It’s grown way beyond our perception of it at the
beginning.”
In his time working in rugby, Maurice has seen a notable shift in the perception of rugby
throughout the province and he is quick to point to the work that has been undertaken to
ensure Leinster is a team of the province, for the province. “Leinster Rugby has become
a lot more accessible to a lot of clubs. Years ago Leinster would have been seen as a
D4 thing. People down the country would have said ‘what can we get out of it?’. They’re
getting loads out of it now. I’d say about ninety percent of the stigma of rugby as an elitist
sport is gone. Leinster is a province based team now, not a Dublin based team.”
While the general interest in rugby has exploded, skill levels have also risen in tandem and
the South-East/North Midlands CRO credits development programs such as the Shane
Horgan Cup as being a cornerstone of these rising playing standards in the club side of
the game. “With the development programs, you have parents coming down and they
see kids progress and they see that the system is open. There is a development process
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for everybody.” Although schools who train far more than clubs will have an advantage, Maurice believes initiatives such
as the Easter camp are essential in bridging the gap in contact time for clubs players. “Schools have access to that quality
training more often. A schools player will train five times a week, a club player only has five hours. The schools kids have
access to a high level of training a lot quicker. There are other initiatives that are going to help. Easter camps, schools of
excellence, all those give quality coaching to the players. If a guy goes to an Easter camp, they get an extra 20 hours of
quality coaching. Even though they have to pay for it, that benefits the players.”
Although Maurice has seen massive improvements both in terms of how the scheme is implemented and in playing numbers,
he is under no illusions about the need for constant self evaluation in order to progress. “All our monthly meetings are on
how we develop. They’re not on how we stay still. If we stay still, it gets stagnant. If anything gets stagnant, it just becomes
redundant. We try and create a better way of doing things. We’re always looking to improve.” This desire to strive for
greater heights bodes extremely well for the further development of rugby in the 12 counties.
LOGUE HOSTS NEW ROSS SESSION
Maurice Logue (CRO, South Leinster) visited New Ross RFC last Saturday morning as part of Leinster on-going commitment to help develop coaches
at Stage 1 of the Long Term Player Development Programme.
Maurice viewed the session and was impressed with the great numbers and the organised coaches. He helped with the Under-12’s and after the
session he held a workshop with the coaches.
The workshop consisted of handling, passing, decision making and tackling. To see these skills in action, a game was held between coaches and they
were coached through the game with the idea of helping them to understand how to do it during games with the underage players.
Some of the participants pictured in New Ross RFC
7
CLUB COMMUNITY RUGBY OFFICER
WEXFORD COUNTY COUNCIL
NOEL FERGUSON
Noel Ferguson is the Club Community Rugby Officer (CCRO)
for Wexford Wanderers RFC and has been involved in the role
in one guise or another for twelve years. In his time working first
as a youth development officer and then as a club community
rugby officer, Noel has seen a huge increase in both general
interest levels and participation rates in the area he is involved
with. Throughout the year the Wexford CCRO is involved with
17 primary schools and seven secondary schools. The use of
tag rugby to introduce kids to the game is something Noel believes works particularly
well. “The thing about tag is that it’s a great way for a kid to get involved in sport and it’s
brilliant. The basic stuff we do with kids through tag means when they go up to the club
the basic skills are there. The handling’s there and the basic awareness is there. Once they
start to get involved with the ball in the game they love it. It’s about getting them playing
heads up, aware rugby from the start.”
Placing such emphasis on making kids enjoy the game first and foremost is clearly paying
dividends and the youths numbers in Wexford RFC have been directly affected by the
CCRO program in the local schools. Through his work with the local schools, Noel has
seen a scarcely believable influx of numbers. “You wouldn’t believe how many guys
come up to the club from the schools I’ve been in. It’s not all about winning. We don’t
coach them that way. It’s all about getting involved and participating. We need to get
as many people involved in the sport as possible, that’s what it’s all about. There’s about
140 children or more up in the club coming from the schools I’m in. You’ve got to make
an athlete as comfortable as you can when they’re starting a game. You’ve got to make
things as easy as possible for them to make sure they get the most out of it.”
The partnership with Wexford County Council is something Noel feels works particularly
well and he is keen to pay tribute to the teamwork that exists between Leinster Rugby
and the council. “Now we’ve got the partnership with Wexford County Council which is
fantastic. It means we’re out even more in the community which is great.”
In his time involved with developing rugby in the area, Noel has seen a sea change in
attitudes regarding the game in what traditionally would have been predominately GAA
areas and the CCRO is keen to highlight the good relationships that exist between the
different sports in the locality. “That’s my job to try and promote rugby in areas where
there is none. I’m out in the real country, out-and-out GAA areas and it’s just blossoming.
I’ve never ever been refused from going into any school. I get on great with the guys on
the GAA side as well and there’s a good bit of banter between us.”
The tag blitzes Noel rubs throughout the year are something the CCRO believes works
particularly well and his introduction of a teacher’s tag competition during the summer is
another tactic he believes will have positive benefits for the sport in Wexford. “The blitzes
mean the kids can come and see the club and get a feel for it
“I also run teachers’ tag during the summer which is great. It makes it self sustaining
then when the teachers get involved. They take it on and that’s the way I want to do it.”
Progressive ideas such as this are why rugby is enjoying an unprecedented period of
success in the area and the hard work undertaken by Noel should ensure this continues to
be the case for the foreseeable future.
8
1st YEAR SECONDARY SCHOOL BLITZ
IN WEXFORD
Leinster Rugby / Wexford County Council
Community Rugby Partnership held a most
successful Rugby Blitz on Wednesday 5th
December in Wexford Wanderers RFC, Park
Lane, Wexford.
School teams from Good Counsel, Creagh
College, Carnew and Enniscorthy Vocational
College attended a great day’s sporting
occasion.
Playing 12 a side “running rugby” with full
contact was a first for many of the participants
with all rising to the occasion.
The idea is to get young players involved in
a running game while being coached by the
Partnership CCRO’s at the same time. Games
lasted 20 minutes with no scrums or lineouts
but involved each team member in expressing
their talents in a fast running game. No
pressure was on participants, standards
were high and the fun and competition was
excellent.
Almost 100 first years participated on the
day.
The plan is to run 2 more blitzes for 1st years
in the New Year, one in February and one
in late spring, to help develop these young
players into the “Full Game” involving set
pieces, with all qualified CCROs running the
events.
Thanks to Noel Ferguson and Ross Barbour
for organising the blitz and thanks to Niall
O’Loughlin from Creagh College who
refereed.
Thanks also to Wexford Wanderers RFC for
the use of the facilities.
9
CO CARLOW RFC
WESLEY WHITTEN
Since Wes Whitten began his role as a Club Community Rugby Officer five years ago, he
has seen an exponential shift in the profile of rugby in Carlow. The fact that every primary
school in Carlow is now involved in Tag rugby is representative of the sea change in
attitudes towards the sport in an area which culturally has held always enjoyed a close
bond with the G.A.A. The penetration Wes has enjoyed, particularly in primary schools,
indicates a prosperous future for the sport in the area with Wes involved personally with
twenty two primary and seven secondary schools, an achievement that deserves serious
recognition. While the CCROs role is undeniably vital for the expansion of rugby in
Leinster, the personal satisfaction involved for Wes is also a key part of the job for him. “I
enjoy it, if you don’t enjoy it you’re probably in the wrong job.”
Although Wes has enjoyed considerable success, he is determined to keep expanding the
game in the area but like all areas of Irish life, the effects of the economic crisis have been
felt keenly in Carlow. The well documented travails of the Irish economy have infiltrated
all aspects of society and sport in schools is no exception. The fact that some secondary
schools in the area were unable to afford transport for teams despite having more than
adequate playing numbers is a sad reflection on the current situation but unfortunately
this grim reality exists as Wes sympathetically attests to. “The secondary schools are on a
really tight budget. One of the schools I was involved simply couldn’t afford it and it had
to be dropped. That’s one of the toughest things in the job”.
Despite these struggles, Wes is understandably upbeat about the future of Carlow rugby.
This optimism is founded in large part due to the continuos growth of the sport throughout
the duration of his tenure. “We have more than doubled the number of schools we’re
involved in. Rugby was strong in the town of Carlow but it wasn’t in the outside surrounding
towns at all.”
Wes’ success in expanding the game is intrinsically linked to the success of Leinster in the
Heineken Cup and in particular the emergence of Carlow native Sean O’ Brien as the
CCRO readily admits. “It has pushed it onto another level, both in terms of media exposure
and the CCRO presence on the ground which links everything up. The youngsters see us
and then they see Sean O’ Brien, a local man, on the weekend and make the connection.”
This success has had a dramatic effect on provincial loyalties in the region. “Five or six
years ago it was probably 60/40 in favour of local kids supporting Munster. There wasn’t
really that association with the Leinster team and a lot of the kids wouldn’t have had
exposure to the game and Leinster Rugby.” The success of the first team and the sterling
work undertaken by Wes has ensured this is no longer the case. “There wouldn’t be that
many young kids wearing Munster jerseys anymore.” The future of rugby in Carlow is
bright, and increasingly blue!
10
CARLOW COYOTES MAKE THEMSELVES KNOWN
Reeling on last years success of winning the league, Carlow Coyotes
entered the new year on a high, with new players joining to make this
pack unstoppable. This team was definitely ready for the new season.
This year the Coyotes ladies have been out and about in the public of
Carlow making ourselves known. Kicking off this year with the Coyote
car wash. This raised much needed funds for the team. A sunny
Saturday morning saw the Coyotes out in their colours, short & wellies
ready to take on the opposition ahead, be it a Fiesta or a Landrover or
even a jcb. The ladies were not going to stand back from a challenge!
Team work and fast hands saw shining results. The locals of Carlow
really got behind the team. Tweets from people like Sean O Brien and
Irish Rugby helped to get the word around outside of the town.
Through all the success on and off the pitch it was time to look towards
some new calls. This has come in the form of the Coyote Cubs, an
under 15 girls team. Members of the womens team head down to the
club once a week to coach the girls. Numbers have been great and
there is huge enthusiasm for our Cubs coming through the ranks.
The Cubs have started to follow in the Coyotes footsteps putting in
great phases of play to score some amazing tries. They are learning
game by game and we cannot wait till this talent can join us on the
ladies team!
Pupils from St. Fiacs’s, Graiguecullen NS and Gael Scoil Cheartlach
who attended a primary school blitz in Co Carlow FC. This blitz was
organised by Leinster Rugby CCRO Wesley Whitten. The schools have
taken part in an eight week Tag Rugby Programme. St Fiacs’s teacher
Mr Padraig Bolton said “ the pupils had a great day out and really
enjoyed playing tag rugby at the school. Their handling and ball work
skills have really improved over the eight weeks.
11
TULLOW RFC
LARRY CANAVAN
Larry Canavan is in his first year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with Tullow RFC
and has thoroughly enjoyed the experience. “It’s brilliant. I love it to tell you the truth.”
Throughout the year Larry is involved with eighteen primary schools and two secondary
schools in Tullow and the surrounding hinterland and he believes the foundations are in
place so that Tullow RFC will benefit in the future. “In a year or two we’ll really see the
benefit in the club.”As part of this drive to reach potential future players Larry has been
spreading the game to areas which wouldn’t have had the opportunity to experience the
sport. “A lot of schools around the Carlow and Wicklow border, this year, it would have
been their first time experiencing it(rugby).”
Given the novice level of many of the kids being coached, Larry introduces rugby by
focussing on the building blocks of the game. “I start off by keeping it simple, two on
ones, then bring in the tags and start playing games. Foundation first and then build it up
from there.” Local hero Sean O’Brien has a powerful presence in the area and Larry credits his success
and helpful nature to a surge of interest in the club and game in general. “With Sean
playing, he’s brought some amount of players into the area, into the club. When you
go the schools with the Heineken Cup, it’s a massive thing for them to get.” He’s a great
ambassador to the club and to what I’m doing. He’s glad to help me out, if he’s free he
would, he’s that type of guy.”
While Sean O’Brien is a one of a kind player, Larry believes there is a lot more potential
out there but recognises the need for more than mere talent to make it to the top. “I do
think there are a lot of guys out there. They have to have the focus themselves though.
There’s only so much a coach can do. It’s all about will to do it. It’s like anything in life, it’s
all dedication and discipline. If local players do have the requisite components to make
a stab of playing professionally, Larry is confident they will have a fair shot at it. “I think
they’re getting a better chance when they get up there to representative level. It’s a lot
better than it was ten or seven years ago.”
The youths and minis section in Tullow are a reflection of the success of the club
and the club fields teams all the way up from under-6s to under-21s. Who’s to
say Tullow won’t soon produce another Sean O’ Brien?
12
TAG BLITZ IN TULLOW RFC
A Tag Blitz was held in Tullow RFC recently. 7 National
Schools participated with 160 children taking part.
Great fun was had by all!
Big thanks went to Antoinotte Nevin and Shauna for the
refreshments, and to Johnny Tobin, Andrew and Pookie
for refereeing the games.
Thanks to all who took part and made it such a great
success.
13
KILKENNY RFC
BARRY DALY
Barry Daly is the Club Community Rugby Officer with Kilkenny RFC and is in his third
year in the position. Upon starting as a CCRO, Barry made a specific effort to target
unchartered waters as he explains. “ The previous CCRO would have done a good few
schools. This is my third year doing it and in that time I’ve targeted a good few new schools.”
Throughout the year Barry works with sixteen primary and two secondary schools and
has seen a visible impact in the rugby club through his work in the schools. “There’s been
a massive improvement in interest overall, between coaching in the schools and then kids
are coming up to the club and boosting the numbers. There’s been a massive influx of
people for the club. The minis have over 200 kids every Sunday morning and that’s mostly
down to Leinster rugby and being in the schools myself.” While Barry introduces kids to
rugby through tag, he has no hesitation in directing the young beginners up to the club if
they have a desire for the more physical elements of the game. “You sometimes get the
question, ‘can you not tackle’ and the answer is you can do all the tackling you want up
in the rugby club.”
While Kilkenny is obviously a hurling mecca, Barry believes the skills of each sport are
mutually beneficial. “Rugby is obviously behind hurling but all the kids have the running
skills and the sidestep skills and all that. You find they’re very good so its about keeping
rugby in the forefront of their head. It’s just to keep rugby an option for them. A lot of good
hurlers are good rugby players, good all rounders. We try not to pressurise anybody and
see what path they take themselves.” The Kilkenny CCRO has encountered no resistance
from any schools to the work he is doing despite the area being dominated by hurling.
“I’ve never had any problem going into schools, even St. Patrick’s De La Salle, whose
principal is Brian Cody, had no problem at all. He can see the benefit of all sports and the
benefits of including everybody.”
As previously mentioned the minis section in Kilkenny RFC is booming but so to is the
youths system where Kilkenny field two teams at u-13, u-15 and u-17. Although u-19
has been a bit of an issue this year, this problem looks set to rectified next season giving
Kilkenny a full compliment of youth teams. Alongside the boost in playing numbers, Barry
is keen to pay tribute to the rise in the number of coaches as a key factor in the club’s
development. “All the coaches are qualified. There’s 30 qualified coaches out
there with the minis. The coach to player ratio is a lot higher and that benefits
the kids”. The sheer number of coaches are indicative of a powerful communal
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spirit in Kilkenny and Barry concurs that a sense of community is vital for the club. “We have a good volunteer spirit in the
club. We couldn’t run it without it. For parents who bring their kids out on winter’s mornings, the coffee dock is open so it’s
nice for parents to have somewhere to go to. Some of them would be coming from outside Kilkenny so its good for them.”
Barry believes that Leinster efforts to appeal to more people have paid off and thinks that the team are now perceived
as a team representative of the whole province thus having far more appeal to local kids. “Kids are looking at rugby as
a realistic option now. The kids understand that Sean O’Brien isn’t from the schools background. He’s only a normal fella
from Tullow and thats only twenty minutes up the road.”
Having played Leinster youths in 1991, Barry is well placed to see the difference in attitudes and coaching between then
and now and the changes have been staggering according to the CCRO. “It’s gone from ten man rugby to open rugby.
The difference in the coaching and skill levels, its unbelievable. Compare fifteen year olds and what they can do and what
I couldn’t do then.” Barry has witnessed rugby in Kilkenny come a long way and the progress shows no signs of stopping
yet.
KILKENNY HEINEKEN CUP LAUNCH DAY
It was a glorious November morning when the
Heineken Cup had it’s Kilkenny Trophy Tour launch
in St.Mary’s N.S Thomastown.
With the help of coaches from the club we had a very
enjoyable day. Between tag rugby, rugby drills and
rugby fun games all pupils had fun in the sunshine.
The highlight of the day for the kids was the
appearance of Leo the Lion with the Heineken Cup.
Leo entertained and handed out a few Leinster spot
prizes to the young Leinster supporters.
A big thank you to St Mary’s Principle Margaret
Walsh and her teaching staff and the Kilkenny Rugby
Club coaches for their help to make the launch day
a success.
Over the season, the Heineken Cup has been in over
20 schools in Kilkenny.
15
ENNISCORTHY RFC
ROSS BARBOUR
Ross Barbour is the Club Community Rugby Officer(CCRO) for Enniscorthy RFC and is
currently in his second year in the role. Every six to eight weeks Ross brings tag rugby
into a fresh batch of local schools and is constantly looking to bring rugby to schools that
have never experienced it before. “If you’re not already in schools you try and get into
them. You contact the teachers and try to get in and do some coaching.” The pleasure of
seeing kids who may not have excelled at other sports is a part of the job that Ross finds
particularly gratifying. “It’s rewarding in the way that you do have kids in some of the
schools who may not exactly be gifted in other sports but they take to rugby very well.
They start to see a sport they can get involved with and that’s quite rewarding.”
The enthusiasm of the local schools also plays an important part in the success of the
program as Ross points out. “I have never gone to a school and been refused entry
because they didn’t want rugby in. Every school I’ve gone to has been very keen to get
it in especially since rugby is growing so much as a sport.” The increased popularity of
the sport is also having a big impact. “The more coverage rugby has, the more kids learn
about it. The Heineken Cup tour has been very good. They get to see it up close and it
makes them that bit more curious to go out and find out what it’s all about.”
Ross is impressed with the levels of steeliness he sees in the young players. “It’s a bit of a
cliche but country lads seem to be a little bit tougher earlier on in life and that helps for
rugby.” While this toughness is a helpful attribute, the importance of coaching kids so
they’re technical skills are up scratch is something that Ross is keen to ensure. “The more
kids get coaching and the more involvement in the game, the more they improve. There
seems to be a lot of coaches who go to the coaching courses we run. You see a lot of them
up there who coach the minis up in the club.”
The raised standards of coaching can only help these young players’ development and
Ross believes there is plenty of talent out there still to be recognised. “With Sean O’Brien,
it kind of made people stand up and say there may be talent out there we were
forgetting.” Ross is out to make sure this won’t be the case.
16
17
GOREY RFC
PHILIP HORAN
Phil horan is in his second year as a CCRO with Gorey RFC and in his time has made a
specific effort to target ten schools that had never experienced rugby before. Throughout
the year Phil is in 21 primary schools and four secondary schools and has seen a direct
correlation between the work he undertakes in the schools and an increase in playing
numbers in the club. “Participation in the club has increased massively. The minis
coordinator said its remarkable the numbers that are starting to come into the club from
schools that would be traditionally GAA schools. Its a huge difference in the course of a
couple of years.”
While the increased numbers are a success, Phil also feels the standards and methods of
coaching have come along. “The clubs use the Leinster philosophy and the Leinster way
but the clubs put their own stamp on the style of rugby you’re trying to play. I’ve been
developing coaching workshops to push this and even though its only getting off the
ground a lot of coaches have gone to the workshops.”
One area of success Phil is keen to pay tribute to is the rise of women’s rugby in the club.
“We had our first ever ladies game last weekend. Nicola Doyle our first ever ladies coordinator, shes a fantastic girl, she brought 22 girls to the club last year. At the moment
they have 31 in the women’s set up and they have 22 in the under-15s set up.”
Having worked in the role for two years, Phil has been massively impressed by the
grassroots infrastructure at play and is impressed by the standard of players on show. “I
couldn’t believe the effort Leinster Rugby are putting in to develop Centres of Excellence.
The players that have potential get put forward to the centres in Carlow. Some of the
young guys who have come through the system are extremely good players.”
Looking forward, Phil is optimistic that the standard will continue to rise in the coming
years but is aware of the work that needs to be done to reach the level of schools players
who have more contact with rugby from an early age. “It’s the exposure that the school
players get to the game and the level of coaching they get. I reckon they’re probably six
or seven years ahead. If we look further at coach education I don’t see why as many
players in the academy can’t come as much from provincial clubs and schools as from
the current elite school system.” The enthusiasm is certainly there, nowhere more so than
Colaiste Naugha. Community Rugby Officer Maurice Logue has set up a secondary first
and second year tournament. The kids from Colaiste Naugha actually bought into it so
much they went and fundraised and bought their first set of school rugby jerseys. There’s
great interest down there. So much so that there’s now a girls team there as well, its taken
over a school that never had rugby or any interest in rugby or history in the
sport.”
18
GOREY
PRIMARY
SCHOOL
BLITZ
Gorey RFC ran the first of its seasonal primary schools’ tag
rugby blitz on Tuesday 23rd October. The weather, although
overcast, stayed dry for most of the day with 300 children
from 5th & 6th class giving a fantastic display of rugby at the
grassroots level from the Gorey region.
Twenty teams were present on the day with four teams each
from Gorey Central School, Star of the Sea Riverchapel
and Tara Hill NS. There were also two teams each from
Monaseed,Craanford, Ballythomas and Camolin National
Schools.
All teams made a big effort to participate in their school
colours and represented their schools proudly with good
discipline, teamwork and sportsman/womanship on the pitch
in some very good contested games!
Eight pitches were used with each team playing 4 games
each. A special thanks to referees Shane McDonald (Wicklow
CCRO), Bernard Hynes (Arklow CCRO), Yvonne Howard,
Anne McGivern, Ken Deacon, Ciaran Smith, Pablo Boyle,
Tommy Martin, Tommy O’Reilly and Paul Clince. A further
thanks to all the club personnel who helped organise teams
and refreshments throughout the event and cleaned up
afterwards.
Gorey RFC President John Breen noted “it is marvellous to see
so many young people involved in tag rugby in the rugby club
on a Tuesday morning from the schools in the area. This speaks
volumes about the work Leinster Rugby are doing throughout
the province, with a great foresight for the future success for
many more years to come.”
Gorey RFC CCRO Phil Horan would like to thank all school
children and teachers who took part in the first phase of tag
rugby for the year and to congratulate you all in a great
performance.
19
NEW ROSS RFC
NICK MURPHY
Nick Murphy has been a Club Community Rugby Officer for six years and in this time
period has seen significant changes in attitudes towards rugby in the New Ross area. “The
number of schools I’ve been involved with has increased massively since I started. I’ve
seen huge improvements in the last six years, both in terms of playing levels and the way
the CCRO scheme is implemented. We’re all on a learning curve to a certain extent.” This
curve appears to have a steep upward trajectory but Nick is keen to avoid complacency.
“I think it’s important we don’t get blasé about things. The only fear I have is that we get
blasé about it and think we’ve been successful and we’ll just sort of plod on happily
without pushing it on and taking it to the next level.”
Good coaching is vital to continued improvement and Nick is keen to pay homage to
the coaching techniques in place. “Coaching has changed. It’s all about ball handling
now and certain skills. It’s not about sticking the ball up the jumper and running with it.
Gone are the days when guys were just running around the field doing laps, it’s all rugby
specific now, core skills, passing and handling the ball. It was all about the physicality
game and there was nothing else taught outside of that so it has changed and changed
for the better.”
One of the most impressive aspects of the New Ross’ rise has been the increase in female
participation. The women’s first team competed in the AIL this year and Nick was keen to
capitalise on this success through his contact with local schools. “Our ladies team went AIL
this year and there was no feeder team for that. This year I went to the secondary schools
to try and get a girls underage team. We have 25 now for an u18 team. That wouldn’t
have happened without the contact through the schools.”
The increased popularity of the game is something Nick sees daily. “A few years ago
there were a lot of Munster jerseys whereas now every second kid is wearing a Leinster
jersey. Of course the success of Leinster has helped boost popularity massively. Leinster
aren’t seen any more as solely Dublin based. It’s seen more as something local now. It’s a
cool brand to be associated with.” Looking forward to the future, Nick is understandably optimistic about rugby’s prospects.
“The net has definitely gotten wider in terms of recognising players.
I think there will be as many kids coming through youths and non-traditional schools into
the Academy. I can only speak for what’s happening down here. We’re only a small
provincial club but we have more players on the development squad than we’ve ever
had. Obviously they’re not all going to the top level but I can only see that
improving.”
20
21
ARKLOW RFC
BARNEY HYNES
Arklow RFC Club Community Rugby Officer(CCRO) Barney Hynes is more than willing
to admit he is on a learning curve. As a second year CCRO, Barney feels he has picked
up considerable experience from his first year in the job. “The first year i put down as a
bit of a learning period for me and I’m learning from my mistakes. This year I’m learning
even more.” It is this constant improvement and progression that places Barney’s work
on a distinctly upward trajectory. Barney is responsible for bringing the game to eleven
schools in the area throughout the area and is truly embracing the role. “I’m enjoying what
I’m doing. The kids are fantastic. I’ve never met a bad kid yet. Every kid is so enthusiastic
and willing to learn.” The enthusiasm that Barney shares with the children he coaches
is infectious and it is little wonder that Arklow RFC are seeing major benefits from the
CCRO’s work. This year, for the first time ever, Arklow have fielded teams from under-7s
all the way up to under-19s and a significant amount of credit must go to Barney and the
success of the CCRO program. Increased levels of participation have been noticed across
the board but it is minis rugby that has seen one of the most dramatic rises. “ Our numbers
are increasing. Two years ago you’d only maybe have six cars for minis on a Saturday
morning. Now the car park is full. We probably have trebled our numbers in three years,
and it should keep getting better and better.”
Barney is in a unique position to judge the success of the CCRO program having
played rugby for a time period spanning a barely believable five decades. This wealth
of experience gained from playing the game for so many years is evident in Barney’s
approach to his work and the genuine enthusiasm he exudes is undoubtedly the result
of being a bona fide rugby lover who has won all that can be won at junior club level.
Barney’s enthusiasm is mirrored by many of the schools that he works with and he believes
the levels of excitement and involvement have risen in the past few years. “There’s lots of
enthusiasm especially in national schools for it. One school I was in had the haka learnt
off as Gaeilge which was fantastic. There’s a huge amount of enthusiasm out there from
both kids and teachers.”
Although Arklow RFC has experienced exponential growth across the board, it is the
growth of women’s rugby that Barney believes holds the key to future success and he is
unequivocal in his praise for these net contributors to the provincial rugby scene. “Getting
women involved is the key to success for provincial rugby clubs, they’re unbelievable.
They’re fantastic. They’re easier to coach. You explain something to them and bang!, done
and dusted. Fellas can tend to think they know everything but the girls learn so quickly.
They’re fantastic organisers, fantastic fundraisers, they’re brilliant.”
Despite enjoying considerable success in his implementation of the CCRO program, issues
still remain and as is the case in many parts of the country, the economic situation’s effects
have reverberated in the Arklow area. “It is going well but it’s tough with the economic
situation” notes Barney. In order to maximise the success of his efforts, the former Arklow
player is acutely aware of the problems that arise from the poor economic situation and
plans events accordingly. “Basically I try to get the blitzes within walking
distance of the school or I do internal ones. Teachers are aware of how hard
it is for parents and they don’t want to be asking for eight euros for busses
and such.” It is not only the schools that are struggling in the current climate
as Barney ruefully attests to. “I’d say we have a first team over in Australia, all
22
young lads. It’s a reality unfortunately.” Although these issues are by no means a trifling matter, there is still genuine cause
for optimism regarding the future direction of rugby in the area as Barney is keen to highlight. “I’d expect a big increase in
terms of players coming out of provincial clubs and schools into the professional system. For the first time ever, we had an
interprovincial youths player this year. We also had our first women’s interprovincial representative. That’s definitely a step
in the right direction.”
The future for rugby in the Arklow area looks undeniably bright and the work of Arklow RFC and Barney Hynes are essential
in ensuring this continued success. While Barney and Arklow RFC are key contributors to this explosion of popularity
ultimately much of the responsibility still rests with parents as Barney admits. “Parents have to get behind the child as well.
Some parents can take the easy option. They’ve got be enthusiastic and they’ve got to push the child.” Judging by the
dramatic increases in playing numbers at Arklow RFC, it appears that Barney’s enthusiasm is indeed being matched by
many parents as rugby continues to boost its popularity in an area traditionally dominated by soccer and G.A.A.
In ideal weather conditions 130 Transition Year students, comprising of 18 teams, from all secondary schools in Arklow
took part in a tag blitz. The day was a great success and was enjoyed by all. A big thank you to Noreen O Reilly from
Arklow CC for her help in organising the event, also to Arklow Town FC for the use of their all weather facilities. Thanks
also to all the referees.
23
GREYSTONES RFC
ALEX O’SULLIVAN
Alex O’Sullivan is the Club Community Rugby Officer for Greystones RFC and is in his first
year with the club having worked in the same position with Bective Rangers RFC last year.
Having been in the Leinster Academy and represented Leinster and Ireland at underage
level, Alex is well qualified to impart wisdom on the young rugby players he is involved
with. Upon beginning the role Alex was keen to understand what the club wanted out of
the program and tried to tailor the program to suit. As it was his first year with Greystones,
Alex sought to establish relationships with schools who previously had no experience
of the program while looking to build upon the work done with the previous CCRO in
the area. “Basically what I do is call into the school and talk to the principal or sporting
director or P.E teacher and explain what the program is about and try to work out a
timetable with them.”
While rugby in the area would not be the primary sport, Alex has seen an increase in the
game’s popularity. “Especially in the last two or three years, there is definitely more of
an interest and the awareness has been raised.” The job has been gratifying for Alex, so
much so that his future career path has been influenced by the experience. “I just enjoy it.
I’ve applied to do my H.dip next year on the back of doing this job. I enjoy going out and
getting the kids involved.”
While getting players up to the club can be struggle, Alex believes if even a small
percentile of those he reaches take up rugby in a more serious way then the program is
working. “At the end of the class you ask, ‘are you interested in going to the rugby club
on Saturday mornings’ and even if you get a successful strike rate of ten percent you’re
doing your job.” The minis section of the club is certainly not shy of numbers with one
hundred and twenty under-9s making regular appearances. The enthusiasm of the minis
players is mirrored by their coaches who have embraced the coaching workshops run by
the branch. “Greystones are all over the coaching courses. Guys are always asking me
down there ‘are any more going?’. We had one in October in Pres Bray. We expected
twenty and then fifty, sixty showed up which was great.”
The creation of a derby match between the senior teams of St.Gerard’s and Pres Bray
in the club was something Alex was particularly pleased with given that he was keen to
focus on generating numbers for the under-20’s. The match was also a big hit with the
roughly 400 spectators, who were treated to mince pies and mulled wine in keeping with
the festive season. The event was so successful Alex is hopeful that it will be become an
annual event and judging by the interest in the match, it looks set to be a fixture
on the calendar in future years.
24
GREYSTONES HOST 1st EVER
SCHOOLS CUP NIGHT
Greystones RFC hosted Presentation College Bray and St Gerards on Wednesday 19th December for a one off exhibition
cup match.
Alex O’ Sullivan the Leinster CCRO for Greystones and Director of Rugby Gary Brennan came up with the idea. They got
the ball rolling in early November for the game to go ahead. They helped set up the referee, lines men and sponsored
prizes and the Cup.
With the club putting on a spread of mince pies and mulled wine to try keep the chill away from supporters, the game lived
up to expectation.
The game was a highly physical game with bragging rights up for the remainder of the year on the line. At half time both
teams where dead locked at 6-6. St Gerards came out the stronger at the start of the seconded half, but it was Pres Bray
who kept their cool and scored a late try to steal the win with a well worked maul.
Overall, it was a very successful night for all parties involved and Greystones Club President Hubie Gallagher said the club
was delighted with the game and looks forward to the rematch the following season. Pres Bray’s name goes first on the cup
but one feels these two schools will be going dig for dig in years to come for this wonderful little trophy.
25
RATHDRUM RFC
JASON EMERY
Jason Emery is a veteran of the Club Community Rugby Officer having been in the role
for five years. Jason’s rugby pedigree is unquestionable. Not only does he hail from
New Zealand, he has also represented the Chief’s franchises of Waikato and Bay of
Plenty in the past along with the New Zealand Maori. Coming from the principal rugby
playing nation on the planet and having played the game at a high level, Jason is in a
unique position to judge the structures of the game in this country. “Structurally Leinster
and Ireland are miles ahead of New Zealand. They’re always trying to improve more
and more. The management structure in Ireland is second to none. I’ve worked in both
countries and Ireland is structurally very good. In five or maybe eight years I think Ireland
will be up there with the best. I think the gap is closing pretty quick, but the hardest thing
is belief and believing how good you can be. Australians and New Zealanders are very
confident even if they’re losing and that’s very hard to instill in players. It will come with
time but the never give up attitude needs belief in yourself.”
This year Jason has focused specifically on national schools to create the foundations
for the future of the club and strives to make the game as enjoyable as possible for the
schoolchildren he coaches. The emphasis has gone on enjoyment.
The main introduction is trying to get them involved first, just fun games and that gets them
in very quickly. They’re more likely to follow you to the rugby club if you make the drills
really enjoyable and frame them in a game situation.” This fun approach to introducing
the sport has paid dividends. “We are getting young kids up to the club from the schools
which has been great. It’s been great for Rathdrum which is still a small village. Kids are
travelling from Roundwood which is twenty five kilometres away to go to a local rugby
club. That’s a long way to travel.” The enthusiasm of the junior players to be involved is
also matched by their senior counterparts. “It’s amazing. We get players that travel back
from Tralee, Dublin, other places. I’d say we have a max of six guys who live in Rathdrum.
They come back from all over the place. It shows great commitment.”
The women’s side of the game has also seen an explosion in Rathdrum and Jason has
been impressed by what he has seen. “The involvement from the underage girls has been
amazing. I was recently involved in a blitz and there must have been 200 girls there. Their
enthusiasm is just incredible. They’re really thriving. The girls at the top of the game are
doing well and I guess they model themselves on that.”
While many aspects of the club are in rude health, issues still remain and the lack of a
youth system to feed the senior team is something that Jason and Rathdrum are focussing
on for next year. “The biggest problem we have is that we don’t have an u-15s, u17s
or u19s to feed the men senior side. The emphasis is going to be on those age groups
for the coming season. The main aim for next year is to get the youths system going. We
targeted only national schools this year because they were the only structures in the club
that were there.” Creating a strong and vibrant club is obviously the main aim but, there is
also personal satisfaction to be gained for Jason as he admits. “I think it’s great
to see someone I’ve coached go to a higher level and be rewarded for their
hard work.” Hard work undoubtedly deserves to be rewarded and Jason’s
dedication and enthusiasm look set to ensure this is the case not only for the
kids he coaches, but also for the club and himself.
26
27
WICKLOW RFC
SHANE McDONALD
Club Community Rugby Officer Shane McDonald has completed tag rugby programs
in twelve primary and three secondary schools in the period from August to March. It is
Shane’s first year as a CCRO with Wicklow RFC and he has placed particular emphasis
on women’s rugby this year, witnessing a dramatic improvement in playing numbers
through his work with the local schools in the area. “Ive focussed on the girls this year an
awful lot and we’ve got huge numbers playing in the club. There’s a direct link between
the work in the schools and the club. We have about 28 under14 girls playing tag. We
had sixteen girls playing rugby last year, there’s now forty playing under16 and under
18s and we now have a senior ladies team for the first time.”
Alongside the success Shane has enjoyed in growing women’s rugby, the minis side of
the game has also received a major boost. “Every Saturday morning theres about three
hundred kids playing. I’d say its one of the strongest minis sections in Leinster.
The blitzes work really well to get the kids up playing rugby. It’s usually fifth or sixth classes
that come up and then through playing in those blitzes they know where the rugby club is
and they then come and join teams.”
Despite the considerable successes Shane has enjoyed, issues still remain and the drop
off between under 17 and under 21s is problematic as the young players involved go
off to third level education. Education commitments alongside work commitments have
had an impact on playing numbers but there still remains serious cause for optimism,
particularly bearing in mind the rampant success of the minis section which should have a
direct impact on the older age brackets in the future.
While the numbers have improved, the level of coaching has also been raised and Shane
is keen to pay tribute to the role of coaching clinics in driving up standards.
“I think coaching has gotten better. There’s so many courses. Every couple of months
there’s coaching courses to go on. The game is constantly changing and it helps a lot to go
and refresh on these courses.” Higher standards of coaching are key to the development
of rugby players in provincial clubs and Shane believes that in order to bridge the gap
between club players and traditional schools players the levels of coaching must continue
to rise. More coaching courses and more screenings are key to raising the standard. With
more screenings you hit more players and more players by the law of averages mean
you’ll see more quality.” The message Shane is promoting is clear and judging
by the successes he has enjoyed in his first year with Wicklow RFC, the club
and surrounding area look set to continue to grow.
28
6 NATIONS YOUTH TAG LEAGUE
On the 10th March 2013, the 6 Nations Youth Tag
League was played in Wicklow Rugby Club. This
event was organised through a partnership with the
Wicklow County Council Sports Officer and Shane
McDonald, the club C.C.R.O.
On the day over forty players from the club’s Under15
boys, Under17 boys, Under15 girls, Under18 girls
and the Under19 boys teams participated in this
event. Ciaran Casey, who is the County Council
Sports Officer, supplied t-shirts for the players on
the day that represented the countries that they were
playing for. They advertised for this event and also
helped with the organisation and planning.
The teams on the day were very well matched and
there was some very exciting rugby on show. The
idea behind this event was to create a link between
the boys and girls teams in the youth section of the
club. Each team of 7 had at least 2 girls on the
team and it was brilliant to see the fun that was
had between the girls and boys while playing their
matches together. Each team played 5 matches on
the day and then all forty players, and their parents,
came back to the clubhouse where it was arranged
that pizza would be delivered to the clubhouse
before the Ireland v France match.
Each player that had participated in the blitz paid
€5 and received 2 slices of pizza, played their 5
tag matches and the t-shirt for their team/country.
There was a great atmosphere in the clubhouse for
the Ireland game with so many people in the club to
cheer on Ireland.
Credit has to go to all the players who participated
in the event as they cleaned up the pitches, dressing
rooms and the bar area.
I hope that with this event being such a huge success
and that there will be more of these events in the
near future.
A big thank you has to go to Ronan Griffey and Ciara
McConnell who are the coaches for the girl’s teams
in the club. They were a huge help in refereeing and
also organising before and on the day.
Students form the Holy Rosary NS in Wicklow Town on a Tag Rugby Blitz
day and visit of the Heineken Cup
29
ATHY RFC
JOE CARBERRY
Joe Carberry is the Club Community Rugby Officer for Athy RFC and works both with
local primary and secondary schools alongside working with the rugby club as he
explains. “With the CCRO role as well in the schools I’m working with the clubs, helping
the youths and minis coaches. Day to day I’m in primary schools and secondary schools
promoting rugby. I would be doing sixteen primary schools and three secondary schools
at the moment”. Although Joe has a heavy New Zealand lilt to his voice, he is in fact a
native son of Athy having been born there before moving to New Zealand when he was
a year old. Joe’s been back in Ireland and in the CCRO role for the past six years and has
thoroughly enjoyed the experience. “I adore woking with kids, I’ve got three of my own.
I’ve got a passion for rugby. I’ve grown up with it but the most rewarding part of the job
really is seeing kids get confident and developing into the game, helping those kids out.
Rugby tends to attract a lot of kids who don’t really fit into the GAA or soccer. It builds
their confidence. I love to see youngsters be part of a team where they work hard and get
reward for it. It gives them a sense of importance.”
Reaching children who have who are wholly unfamiliar with the game is a key facet of the
CCRO program, Joe believes. “A lot of these kids haven’t been exposed to rugby. That’s
the beauty of the CCRO program.
Although Joe has seen a marked improvement in playing numbers and the level of
coaching in his time in the position, he recognises there is still plenty of work to be done
in order to elevate the club side of the game to a position where the quality can match the
schools system. “What needs to happen is that the quality of rugby that is played at youth
levels in the clubs has to improve. That’s where the schools have it over the clubs. The boys
in the schools are playing quality opposition week in week out and although the under17s and under-19s competitions are quite strong in the clubs it’s not regular enough. Don’t
get me wrong, it’s improving but you might go two or three weeks without a game.”
While Joe is under no illusions about the challenges that lay ahead, he is optimistic about
the future for rugby in the area. “The CCRO role along with the media coverage will help
drag rugby into the mainstream of Irish society. A lot of these kids, when they
become parents, it’s not going to be the same as when they were growing up.”
30
Ard Scoil na Trionoide hosted CBS Naas in Athy RFC in the 1st
round of the McMullen Cup on Wednesday 14th November.
CBS Naas eventually ran out deserved winners 11 points to
3 in a closely contested game. The game was well refereed
and played in good spirit between two schools who have had
close games over the past few years.
Pictured is the Ard scoil Na Trionoide team in new jerseys
sponsored by Footsteps Childcare.
31
NUIM BARNHALL RFC
GARETH MURRAY
Gareth Murray is in his first as the Club Community Rugby Officer with Barnhall RFC
and has wholly enjoyed the experience so far. “It’s been really good. Im enjoying being
outside most of the time working away”. Gareth has enjoyed particular success introducing
rugby to three primary schools that had no previous experience of the program. “In my
area most of my schools are only starting out playing rugby. Ive done three new primary
schools this year that have never done rugby before. The new schools I go into have
probably been some of the best schools I’ve done. It’s new to them and they’re keener
to learn. They’re smaller schools that may have been overlooked before, its easier to get
stuff done with them.”
The work undertaken in these new schools is paying dividends in the club. “One of the
new schools I’ve gone into out of a class of fifteen seven or eight have come up to the
club.” The extra numbers from the work in local schools is boosting an already thriving
minis section in Barnhall RFC. “Minis is massive up in the club, there’s more than one team
for each age group because the numbers are so big. Minis is flying up there. There’s about
three coaches to each team. There’s a good volunteer spirit up in the club.”
General perceptions and attitudes to the sport have changed massively in the area and
as a Kildare native, Gareth is well placed to quantify this change. “I went to school in
Celbridge and you never played rugby or anything. Now it’s generally accepted that
rugby goes on in the schools. One person played rugby in my class apart from myself.
Now you’d get six or seven playing per class. The Leinster success has been massive,
every kid you see doing P.E is wearing a Leinster jersey. Nearly every kid has some
Leinster gear at this stage. It’s changed massively. I couldn’t believe what it’s like now
when I went into schools that had be doing it for a few years.
Despite enjoying a successful first year in the role, issues still remain particularly in relation
to the drop off in the youths section of the club, something Gareth and the club are keen to
address. “The club wanted a bit of push for the youths section so since Christmas I’ve been
kind of focussing on stuff to help the under14s and under18s. There is a drop off among
secondary school kids. I’ve organised a blitz for second years to try and help. There’ll be
ninety kids playing 15 man rugby from local schools.”
Gareth believes that while tag works extremely well in primary schools, it may not work
quite as well with older kids. “Secondary schools have to be willing to let you teach
rugby as a whole and not just as tag sessions for an hour. Tag doesn’t work in secondary
schools like it does in primary. It works great in primary. It needs to be split off in a
way in secondary schools where you can split the guys that won’t play contact.”
Although there is still plenty of work to be done, Gareth is enthused by his first
year in the job and the successes of introducing rugby in fresh schools shows
there is still plenty of untapped potential for NUIM Barnhall RFC.
32
On Friday 8 March, a tag blitz took place between Scoil Eoin Phoil & Scoil Mhuire in the school grounds of the Leixlip schools hosted by NUIM
Barnhall CCRO Gareth Murray.
The bad weather wasn’t enough to deter the schools in having a great (albeit very mucky) day of tag rugby. 180 students took part on the day and
showed great enthusiasm in the conditions along with the teachers, NUIM Barnhall CCRO Gareth Murray & six NUIM Barnhall members. Rugby
continues to go from strength to strength in the area.
On the 4th of February 2013, Primrose Hill National School, in Celbridge, received a play rugby pack from the CCRO for N.U.I.M Barnhall RFC,
Gareth Murray. This is in preparation for the arrival of tag rugby for the first time ever in the school. Everyone involved in the school is very excited
and it is hoped that the partnership between the school and N.U.I.M Barnhall RFC can flourish in the near future.
33
CILL DARA RFC
MILES MEDICOTT
Miles Medicott is in his first year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with Cill Dara
RFC and throughout the year has taught rugby courses primarily in junior schools in the
locality. The schools have been more than happy to be involved as Miles explains. “ All
the schools seem to be keen to play and they’re happy to to have rugby in.” Originally
from New Zealand and still playing with Cill Dara, Miles is well placed to compare Irish
rugby’s grassroots system to that of the most successful rugby union nation on the planet
and has been impressed by the structures in place. “It’s our number one sport but numbers
are dropping so I was wondering should I go back and try something like this in the
winter. I think the system’s pretty well covered now in terms of spotting players here.”
Miles’ biggest success of his first year in the role has been the introduction of rugby to
Kildare College secondary school which has established a competitive team for the
first time. “Kildare College has just started an under-15 team for after school. It’s only
a new school so I’m taking training. They’re gonna register for proper competition next
year. The highlight of the year would have been getting that high school team started.”
Unsurprisingly seeing this team rise from nothing has been extremely gratifying for Miles.
“There’s guys there in the high school who hadn’t played rugby before so it was extremely
satisfying to see them starting to play and enjoying it.”
While the establishment of rugby in Kildare College has been a major fillip for Miles,
things haven’t always worked smoothly with the infamous Irish weather often wreaking
havoc on the best laid plans. “The weather and stuff can make it tough to get kids on the
grass. When you’re stuck in smaller indoor areas, that would be one of the downsides. In
some schools their only court might be a basketball court which isn’t ideal.”
Although Cill Dara has a thriving minis and youths section, the club like so many others
in the province struggles to bridge the gap between youths and senior rugby as Miles
alludes to. “We have teams all the way up to under-17. We had a nineteens at the start
of the year but we had to pull them because we didn’t have the numbers. It’s a tough
age ‘cos the guys are going to uni and stuff.” Although Miles has encountered
some issues in his first year, his successes have outweighed the negatives and
the experience has been a positive one for the Kiwi.
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35
NAAS RFC
AUSTIN DOYLE
Club Community Rugby Officer Austin is in his first year in the role with Naas RFC and
is involved primarily with local primary schools alongside four secondary schools in the
area. He has seen a direct impact on playing number sin the club through the schools
program. “Twelve kids I know of have come up and asked me who to get in contact with
the club from the youths section from the schools I’ve been in.” The direct link between
the schools and the club is a major plus for Austin and the enthusiasm of the schools is
something he credits for giving kids a passion for the game. “The schools love rugby
coming in. The game has become a lot more popular over the last couple of years. I’ve
had schools calling the rugby club asking when I’m coming in. Even though the contract’s
up on March 22nd, I’ve been getting schools ringing me asking can I come after Easter,
they’re mad for it.” This general level of interest bodes well for the future and Austin is keen
to build on his work next year if given the opportunity.
Although it is only Austin’s first year as a CCRO he has previous experience of the
provincial rugby systems having been a Youth Development Officer five years ago. In
the period of time that has elapsed since then, Austin has seen dramatic improvement
sin the infrastructure of grassroots rugby and of the way the CCRO program is run. “The
infrastructure has improved massively .When I was a YDO five years ago I only would
have met my boss two or three times in the year and we didn’t have to do reports or
anything.” The attention to detail now displayed through is something Austin is keen
to emphasise and increasingly professional approaches have payed dividends when
working with local schools particularly Piper’s Hill who have entered the Junior and Senior
Development Cups for the first time this year. “We did some strength and conditioning
work with the junior cup team in Pipers Hill. They enjoyed it and felt a bit more professional
and when they took it onto the pitch they took the game a bit more seriously.”
Alongside his work with secondary schools playing full contact rugby, Austin also
implements rugby programs for the primary schools in order to give the children an unthreatening gateway into the sport and the success of a blitz that was run for local sixth
class children stands out as particularly successful in Austin’s mind. I had a first year blitz
with the local with all the secondary schools around and that was very successful and
competitive.” The combination of making the game as fun as possible while also adding
elements of professionalism to proceedings means that the kids of Naas RFC
and surrounding schools are experiencing the game in a manner that is likely
to ensure their enthusiasm will only grow for rugby.
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37
NEWBRIDGE RFC
BEN SWINDLEHURST
Ben Swindlehurst is a New Zealand native who has been a C.C.R.O for two seasons with
Newbridge R.F.C. Alongside his work with the club, he also is involved with ten schools in
the area. In order to spread the game in the area, Ben liaises with these schools on a day
to day basis taking training sessions with a strong emphasis on making the game fun and
accessible for the school children involved. In his two seasons involved as a C.C.R.O, he
has noticed a marked improvement in terms of the level of coaching. “In the underage
structure, I’d be doing quite a lot of coaching the coaches seminars, trying to up skill the
coaches so they’re not just doing a drill for the drill’s sake and in that regard I‘ve noticed
a big difference”
Being involved in a G.A.A dominated area presents its own specific challenges in terms
of attracting potential players to rugby as Ben readily admits. “It is quite tough to attract
players, there are some very talented kids out there who choose Gaelic.” The Kiwi also
is quick to point out that the vast majority of parents are happy to let their children play
as many sports as possible growing up. Despite the popularity of G.A.A in the area,
Ben is determined to spread rugby throughout his sphere of influence and has enjoyed
considerable success in this regard, particularly in bringing rugby to Patrician College
Newbridge, a school traditionally dominated by G.A.A and basketball. This year
Patrician Brothers Secondary School has entered the Junior Development Cup for the first
time, a significant achievement for the C.C.R.O and rugby in the area.
The game is growing in the area all the time and there appears to be a sea change in
attitude amongst local schools in the past couple of years as Ben acknowledges. “There
is a big change even from last year. In the past we might have had to plead with guys in
schools but now when we make contact with them, they’re over the moon.” The success of
Leinster on the field has also had a big impact on the popularity of rugby in Newbridge
and Ben believes the Heineken Cup successes and the sheer visibility of the trophy in
the schools through the trophy tour has made a powerful impression on local
schoolchildren. “Kids get a chance to see it(the trophy) and they all know the
stars now and want to be the next Brian O’Driscoll or whoever.”
38
Brannoxtown N.S pictured above, finished there six week rugby program with a Halloween blitz, with classes
from juniors up to 6th class.
Brannoxtown is a small community school on the outskirts of Kilcullen who have taken to rugby with both hands,
with a number of students arriving at the Newbridge RFC grounds.
39
NORTH KILDARE RFC
NIALL McCANN
Niall McCann is the Club Community Rugby Officer for North Kildare RFC and has been
in the role for two years. Although health issues have scuppered some of Niall’s plans for
this year, the Kildare native has still managed to implement the program with noticeable
success in the locality. This year Niall has placed particular emphasis on secondary
schools in the area in order to boost numbers in the youths section of North Kildare, an
age bracket that has been struggling a bit in recent times as Niall explains. “I’ve been
focussing on secondary schools. That age group at the club hasn’t been that strong so
I’ve been trying to increase numbers at that level.” Alongside his work with secondary
schools, Niall is also involved with seven primary schools in the area and is keen to
ensure these young players are given the foundations at an early age. “It’s about trying
to show them the correct skills and increase their skills. The younger age groups focus on
the basics. When they get a bit older we work on more technique based things, where to
place the ball in contact, which way to fall etc. There’s more of a focus on the skills aspect
as opposed to the physical aspect of the game.”
While it is one thing to reach kids in the local schools, it is quite another to get said kids
involved in North Kildare RFC and Niall believes a cohesive logistical approach is the key
to encouraging parents and their children to view rugby as a realistic option. “I printed
out flyers for the parents which was a big success. It’s about trying to get the kids’ foot in
the door. Things like having a bit of coffee for the parents in the clubhouse. It’s just a way
of getting them into the club.”
Having grown up in the area, Niall is well positioned to assess the ever
increasing popularity of rugby. “I don’t think there’s that Dublin, country divide
anymore. I can see a big progression there. Even in my old school Maynooth
40
it’s come on a lot. Last year they won the Development Cup.” The raised standards of rugby have in large part been down
to higher levels of coaching as Niall attests to. “We coach the coaches and they coach the kids. The levels of coaching
have improved and they’re all willing to listen.” Unsurprisingly the process of bringing complete novices into the game is a
gratifying one for Niall. “Absolutely it’s rewarding. You see some kids play tag in the school and then they come down and
play contact in the club and they’re actually pretty good which is great to see.” Rugby in North Kildare is on an upward
trajectory and looks set to continue in that vein thanks to the hard work of Niall and North Kildare RFC.
41
PORTARLINGTON RFC
ALEKSANDER MIHAJLOVIC
Not many primary schoolchildren have the opportunity to be coached by a current
international rugby player but that is exactly what seven primary schools in the
Portarlington area have experienced. Club Community Rugby Officer(CCRO) for
Portarlington R.F.C, Aleksander Mijahlovic is preparing to to make his international
comeback for Serbia next month after a lengthy hiatus. Although by no means are Serbia
a rugby superpower, international rugby is international rugby regardless and the game
of rugby in the Portarlington area can surely only benefit from the experience of a man
who has represented his country while also playing professionally in England. If the
success of the mini’s and women’s programs in the club are anything to go on, then rugby
is indeed benefitting from Mijahlovic’s experience. This year Portarlington R.F.C has seen
an invasion of young kids looking to experience the game for the first time with sixty new
arrivals in the minis’ age groups alone. Consider also that Portarlington brought 286 to
the Leinster, Clermont match in the Aviva and it is clear that rugby is somewhat booming
in the Laois town. Aleksander concurs. “We’ve had a massive influx of players over the
last 12 months. Our minis and youths sections have seriously boomed. It just shows you
for such a small place, what sort of level of interest for rugby is here.” These high levels
of interest are reflected by the establishment of a rugby side in Monasterevin secondary
school for the first time.
This new found enthusiasm is not merely confined to one side of the gender divide either
with Portarlington R.F.C fielding three new women’s sides for the first time this year.
Aleksander puts this improvement down to a lot of unsung work. “There’s a huge level
of enthusiasm with the people in the club, a lot of volunteers and a lot of people putting
in a lot of effort. They’re all working really hard not to leave anybody stuck. Things like
coaches setting up extra training sessions on their own initiative.”
The improved level and increased regularity of coaching can only have a positive impact
on the level of rugby been seen and the Serbian native is quick to highlight the positive
developments in this regard. “Absolutely the coaching standard has improved, the regular
meetings of coaches trying to get everybody to sing off the same sheet have helped a
lot. A lot of coaches have put in a lot of effort. Portarlington has two or three coaches for
each age grade now.”
The large number of coaches are certainly needed with Portarlington boasting over 250
youths and minis members. The influx of new members has presented its own problems
though, particularly regarding space. To cope with the extra demand another pitch had
to be procured for Saturday mornings. Hardly a catastrophic turn of events but a logistical
headache nonetheless. According to Aleksander, this boom in attendance would not
have been possible had it not been for the general increased profile the sport has enjoyed
in the province and the improvement in standards bought by quality filtering down from
higher levels. “There’s no two ways about it. Attitudes to rugby are changing an awful
lot. The difference from ten years ago. If you’d tried to fill the Aviva at provincial level,
people would have laughed at you. If you look at the lower levels now, the level
that is been filtered down. The knowledge and understanding of the game are a
lot lot higher than they were. It all filters through, the more coaching the guys get,
the more players that are coming back from playing at a higher level. They then go
back to the lower level clubs and raise the bar.”
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The bar appears to be rising ever higher and Aleksander is confident that the uniqueness of the CCRO program will
continue this upward trend. “I can tell you the majority of big rugby clubs in England wouldn’t have anywhere near the
level of involvement in grass roots rugby and community that Leinster has. The availability of the CCROs and Community
Rugby Officers(CRO)s is only going to push the levels higher.” Lofty ambitions indeed.
In the week before Halloween, 300 girls from Mountmellick and Portarlington had their first chance to participate in tag blitzes and their enjoyment
of the game is already reflecting in increased numbers of Portarlington RFC’s mini section.
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PORTLAOISE RFC
JOHN DELANEY
John Delaney is in his first year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with Portlaoise RFC.
Although it is his first year in the position, he has been involved with the club since its
inception in 1966, playing at first before turning to coaching along with a couple stints as
youth co-ordinator. A typical day for John involves dealing with a wide age variety of kids
as he explains. “Yesterday for example I was in Ballyfinn national school from half nine to
two o clock working up all the way from junior infants up to sixth class.”
Dealing with such young kids, John understandably focusses on the basics, a tactic that is
vital given the more sedentary nature of many of the kids’ lives in comparison with times
gone by. “With the young age groups I stand them side by side and get them to give
the ball to each other. The hand eye coordination now is zero compared to what it used
to be. I can remember at the ages some of these are at, the street would be in shock if
you dropped the ball. There were no computer games in my day so there’d be at least a
couple of different balls around. I try to add a bit of competition with the younger ones
and it increases the interest levels.”
Seeing kids develop from such humble beginnings into genuine players is a particularly
rewarding aspect for John. “There is satisfaction in the job, you’re trying to get it into their
heads’ to run with the ball in two hands. We were then playing a match and our under-11
outhalf in the club got the ball in the middle of the pitch and held the ball in both hands
and when he stopped to look around the defence just stopped and the gap opened up.
It was over before it began but the thrill I got was he didn’t even realise he was doing it.”
John’s work with St.Francis’ school for children with learning disabilities is also something
he finds particularly gratifying. “They just get so excited when they get their hands on the
ball. They’re beginning to get the hang out of it now.”
Although Portlaoise is G.A.A heartland, John can see a big increase in interest in rugby.
“Bringing the Heineken Cup was a great help in boosting the profile. That was tremendous.
It got a great reception. It was great. Kids are a lot more familiar with the players these
days.” The increased familiarity with the game bodes well for the future and John has
seen the development of a youth representative system that bears little resemblance to
its predecessors. “Years and years ago, there was probably a bit of a feeling
that the path into Leinster and Ireland rugby was a closed shop. I think that’s
becoming less and less the case.” Promising times in Portlaoise.
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45
STEVE COY
Steve Coy is the Community Rugby Officer for the Midlands/
North East area and has been in the role for two years. Before
becoming a CRO, Steve was a Youth Development Officer
from the year 2000 and is thus in a good position to judge the
improvements in the implementation of the system particularly in
relation to the standards of coaching. “The coaching end of it
has improved immensely. There’s a lot more coaches upskilling
on the courses. A lot more guys are attending workshops and
seminars and they’re doing the courses. It’s all game based and it’s about giving the skills
required. It’s important that everyone is aware of the capabilities of the age groups you’re
dealing with so you’re not overloading the kids.”
Introducing novices to the game through an enjoyable medium is key in establishing solid
foundations and tag rugby represents a form of the sport that is both accessible and fun as
Steve explains. “The tag is a good program. If you go into a lot of schools in the country,
it’s there first opportunity to experience rugby and a lot more kids are getting the ball in
their hands. The tag rugby is a great introduction and gives them the skill levels they need.
It’s there for all kids. It’s a great introduction to the handling end of it and the awareness
needed. All the kids buy into it and then they have all that basic work done when they
move up to the next level of contact rugby. The basic skills are all there in tag rugby.”
While tag rugby is undoubtedly helpful in introducing the game to children, the coaching
courses being run throughout the province are designed to ensure that when kids make the
transition to contact rugby, they are being coached in a professional, enjoyable manner.
“The coaching courses, the minis module and the foundation module are excellent
courses for people to have. There’s now a continuation from the courses onto seminars
and workshops. The majority of guys would follow on then and upskill further. Its about
getting more coaches on board and getting them to follow on and upskill.
Having been involved with youth development in the province for over a decade, Steve
is in a good position to judge the advances made and the former army officer has seen
major changes both in the depth of the program and in how it is implemented. “It has
changed completely. There’s opportunities there for all the young lads in all the clubs.
There’s an awful lot more there now to help guys get to the Leinster development squads
and that maybe was a bit more of a closed shop a few years ago. It’s more open now.
There’s more access now for guys to show their talents and be recognised and picked up
through all the screenings. The Shane Horgan is a very good competition. The way it’s
played and the screenings that are done are a great way for the guys to be picked up.”
Having served with the Defence Forces for three decades, Steve is well versed in the
benefits of discipline and can see the positive effects rugby has in this regard. “The
discipline end of it and the teamwork in it brings out the best in young kids. It gives them
life skills as well.” While introducing rugby to kids has important physical benefits, it also
has further reaching character effects and the values that rugby instils are of use not only
on the pitch but off it as well.
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CCRO IN-SERVICE TRAINING DAY
NAVAN RFC
Midlands and North East CCRO’s met in Navan RFC for their 3rd In-service training day of this season.
On the day they worked with the North East Under15’s Development squad which is made up of 44 boys from all youth
clubs in the North East Area.
The first part of the session involved going through all administration required from CCRO’s. The 2nd and main part of the
day consisted of 2 hours on-field coaching skills, the main content of which was Tackle Technique. This part was thoroughly
enjoyed by all. Coaches imparting a wealth of knowledge, and players learning and practicing rugby skills.
Sixteen CCRO’s took part on the day under the guidance of CRO’s Steve Coy and Gerry McCleery and CDO Colin
O’Hare. A thoroughly productive day was had by all.
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ASHBOURNE RFC
SCOTT BROUGHTON
Scott Broughton is the Club Community Rugby Officer for Ashbourne RFC. This is Scott’s
sixth year in the role. Originally from New Zealand, the CCRO has been living in Ireland
since 1999 having represented Bay of Plenty and New Zealand under-21s before moving to Ashbourne. In his time as a CCRO Scott has seen a large increase in interest levels
levels around rugby particularly amongst primary school children. Throughout the year
Scott is in thirteen primary and one secondary school and the Kiwi is keen to acknowledge the increased popularity rugby enjoys in the classroom now. “Ive seen big improvements in the interest levels. The interest in the tag rugby especially when we do the blitzes
is huge. The parents come down, the girls are involved. The kids love it. They’re always
asking when are we doing a blitz. The facilities in Ashbourne rugby club are great for the
blitzes as well.”
A lot of this increased interest stems from the success of the professional game in this country over the past five years and Scott acknowledges the role the elite side of the game has
played in spreading rugby’s popularity. “When you get the Heineken Cup or anything
like that it’s huge. When you bring those around the schools, that keeps a bit of interest
going. Anytime we can get a trophy or even the players around its a big boost and you
notice increased interest levels for the next few months. Even in this area, with a big gaelic
presence, all the kids want to be Johnny Sexton or whoever. There was one school there
a couple of years ago and it was the first time I’d ever been asked to leave rugby balls
behind ‘cos the kids wanted to play during their lunch break. The success of Irish rugby
does have an impact for sure.”
Alongside his work in local schools and Ashbourne Rugby Club, Scott is also involved
with the North-East development squad and believes that the infrastructure currently in
place will greatly benefit the transition of more players from the club youths side of the
game into the professional ranks. “I’m involved with the development program. I’m one
of the coaches of the North East. There’s a lot of strong clubs. Since I’ve been in the job
I think the club scene has come on a bit more and we’re getting a higher percentage of
guys onto the U-19’s. The clubs are getting a bit more of an influx in there and that’s down
to what we’re doing at grass roots level. It’s improved since I began the job so hopefully
if we keep going the way we are I can see it getting even better.”
The numbers at younger age levels would certainly seem to indicate the program at a
grass roots level is paying dividends as Scott attests to. “Ive seen a lot of improvement in
the numbers coming up to the rugby club. We’re always looking to improve and the numbers are growing all the time so it’s going pretty well here. We have a team at every age
group so there’s a flow there that you’ll always get coming through. Then once
they go up to the adults, they start dropping off unfortunately.” Although Scott
believes there is still plenty of room to improve, the powerful youth structures
already in place mean the future for rugby in Ashbourne looks bright indeed.
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TAG BLITZ
The Ashbourne and districts primary school tag rugby
blitz was held recently at the Ashbourne rugby club.
The blitz was a culmination of a six week programme
delivered by Leinster C.C.R.O Scott Broughton.
Ther were four schools attending comprising of 115 primary school boys and girls.
Each team played four matches. All matches were played
with great energy and enthusiasm but also with great
spirit and sportsmanship.
C.C.R.O Scott Broughton was delighted with the day’s
events. These kids have shown great attitude and application over the last numbers of weeks and it has resulted in
some brilliant tag rugby action today.
Scott would like to thank all the school for their attendance and teachers for their help over the last few weeks.
At the end of the day all children were presented with
Leinster Rugby merchandise and all left with a smile on
their faces.
School Attended:
St Mary’s, Custionstown, St Declan’s, Gael Scoil Na
Cilhe.
49
ATHBOY RFC
FERGUS O’BOYLE
Fergus O’Boyle is the Club Community Rugby Officer with Athboy RFC and has just
completed his fourth year in the role. In his time as a CCRO, Fergus has witnessed rugby
take hold in the local schools and the successes of Boyne Community school were
something Fergus was keen to pay tribute to. “It’s the second year for Boyne Community
school playing rugby and the junior team there are a team that I’m delighted to be involved
with. You can see when there’s a little bit of success there, it cheers you up and I’ve gone
in to give extra sessions on my own time to give them a little bit more ‘cos i want to see
those guys succeed as much as you’d like to see yourself getting to a final or a semifinal
of a junior cup. I’m delighted to say that all those guys are going to play with the senior
squad next year so we’ll end up with three teams out of there next year. We’ve gone in
there as the fourth sport and its great to say to the school that we’re in a semi final in only
the second year of development.”
The other secondary school Fergus is involved with are also relative newcomers to
competitive rugby. Athboy Community school have only been playing competitively for
years but already can boast a junior and senior team alongside a first and second year
team that plays in the North-East development league. Unsurprisingly Fergus finds the
process of developing these players from scratch a gratifying one. “It is rewarding, two
guys that I was coaching are going to join in with the senior panel in the club after the
midterm break. I would have coached those guys for the last four years so its great to see
them evolve. I’m still playing as well so all of a sudden you’ve gone from coaching them
to being their teammate.”
Fergus is involved with thirteen primary schools alongside the two secondary schools
he is in and according to the CCRO the way to get the schools interested is to “get the
foot in the door in early September and start and try and work out times.” The work in
the primary schools is paying off judging by the success of the minis program which has
come on in leaps and bounds in the space of a few short years and the enthusiasm of the
kids Fergus encounters in the schools is backed up by the development of youth structures
at the club. “I’ve definitely seen an improvement in playing standards and numbers in the
area. At the time I started we didn’t have any system for minis in the rugby club. The guys
we’ve taken and developed in the schools and the club, they’ve come on a huge amount.
Last year we didn’t have one kid going for the north east squad, this year we’ve had five
and they holding their own out there. I think its been ten or twelve years since we’ve had
anyone on the squad.”
This success is down to careful planning and Fergus keeps a close tab on the actual
numbers involved. “I have a full database of every kid and every school they’ve come out
of so i can say ‘that kid’s under-9 next year, he’s in that school’. I’ve just built it up over the
last couple of years, its great to have cos you can program and forecast in advance.” This
logistical approach appear to be paying dividends for both Fergus and rugby in the area.
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ATHBOY COMMUNITY SCHOOL
JUNIOR RUGBY
Athboy Community School Junior Team pictured with the Heineken Cup on the 18th December, 2012.
(Not in photo - School Coach Miss Ruth Fitzgerald and Leinster’s CCRO Fergus O Boyle (Athboy RFC))
Rugby Schools News
Athboy CS Junior Team are currently starting their 2012/13 Leinster Junior Development Shield, and are awaiting St Mels Longford in the first round
in Athboy RFC in early January. Follow an early exit in the Cup Athboy CS are hoping to take home advantage together with the weekly training
sessions with CCRO Fergus O Boyle they are a much improved side and are looking forward to an extended Shield run.
ATHBOY COMMUNITY SCHOOL
SENIOR RUGBY
Athboy Community School Senior Team pictured with the Heineken Cup on the 18th December, 2012.
(Not in photo - School Coach Miss Ruth Fitzgearld and Leinster’s CCRO Fergus O’Boyle (Athboy RFC).)
Rugby Schools News
Athboy Community School Senior Team are currently awaiting their 2012/13 Leinster Senior Development Shield 2nd round opponents,
St Josephs Drogheda, in early January. Athboy Community School were unluckily in the first round of the Cup, narrowly beaten by a
very strong and rugby experienced Ratoath CS. They entered the Shield to gain vital rugby experience and games. The majority of the
players are in transition year and 5th year and these players will form part of next year’s Senior School team. The players are training
each week with CCRO Fergus O’Boyle. They are a much improved side and are looking forward to a extended Shield run.
51
NAVAN RFC
BRIAN FLANAGAN
Brian Flanagan is in his first year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with Navan RFC
and although its his first year in the role he knows the club well having played for the club
from the age of twelve, bowing out from first team action after claiming the Towns Cup
against Ashbourne in 1999. Over the course of the school year Brian has visited over
thirty schools in Navan and the surrounding area as he explains.
“Day to day its about promoting rugby and getting the kids involved and making sure
they know the skills. It’s about getting kids involved who wouldn’t normally get a chance
to experience rugby. I’ve been in over thirty schools in the Navan area since September.”
There has been a direct impact on playing numbers as a result of Brian’s work with the
schools and there appears to be a genuine enthusiasm amongst the kids. “The amount of
kids who ask me ‘when’s training, where’s it on’. After meeting them in the schools, there’s
been a huge influx into the club. You wouldn’t believe Saturday morning in Navan RFC
you might have three hundred or four hundred kids up there. Every blade of grass is taken
up.” Brian places the success seen as largely down to the excellent structures in the club
that appears to keep numbers booming.
Brian has seen massive changes in the perception of and popularity of rugby in the area
over a period of time. “I was remember when I was playing rugby in Navan there were
maybe three of four different carloads of parents. You wouldn’t see a rugby ball on the
local green at all. Just looking out there now most of the kids are throwing a rugby ball
around.”
While Brian has witnessed both anecdotal and numerical evidence that rugby has
exploded in popularity, he is under no illusions that work is still to be done in the area.
He mentions the St.Pat’s Navan team who recently tasted defeat to Leinster Schools Cup
winners Blackrock. “That step up was just huge. They were so well organised. Now we’ve
got a great group of lads they’re gonna be stars of the future. They just got us on the
backfoot and ran in tries.” A chastening experience but the gap will surely close if the
minis and youths sections continue to grow in Navan RFC.
52
Navan RFC welcomed Rob Kearney & Johnny Sexton to the Club. Navan is an established Meath Rugby Club which proudly supports Leinster Rugby
and was honoured by the visit of two legendary Leinster Rugby players who took time out from their Irish Training Camp in Carton House to visit. They
were accompanied on their visit by Irish Team Manager, Michael Kearney. The assembled fans included Navan RFC players from Under 6’s to the
Senior XV, mens, ladies, boys and girls teams, along with rugby supporters from the wider Navan community who were welcomed to the Club on the
night for the visit. They gathered on the floodlit pitches, terrace and in the Clubhouse to meet and greet the famous Leinster Rugby players!
The rugby heroes signed hundreds of blue Leinster and Navan jerseys on the night and made themselves available for photos with the fans, delighting
the energised crowd who gathered in advance of the visit. The visiting trio also met the Navan club dignitories and presented a signed Irish Rugby
Jersey to the Club. The Club were honoured by the visit and the display of such a huge number of welcoming supporters will demonstrate the
appreciation by the Navan rugby community of the visit and will buoy up the rugby spirit on the pitches of all Navan RFC players.
53
RATOATH RFC
DARREN KENNA
Darren is in his second year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with Ratoath RFC and has
enjoyed considerable success since taking on the post. Notably he has introduced rugby
into four schools that had never previously played the game. This success in spreading the
game throughout the schools has had knock on effects in Ratoath Rugby club as Darren
alludes to. “I’ve definitely seen more players coming up to the club from the schools I’m
involved with.” Understandably this fostering a love of the sport amongst children can be
rewarding. “When you go into the schools and there’s a guy there who’s never played
rugby before and then loves it. Then he’s up at the club. It’s extremely rewarding to see.”
To ensure kids do love the game, it is essential to make it as fun as possible. “There’s a
huge enjoyment factor around rugby and that’s the main thing. If the kids enjoy they’ll
keep coming back to it.”
Improving the standards of coaching is paramount to continued progression and Darren
is firmly of the opinion that the right structures are in place to encourage optimism. “ A lot
goes into improving the standards of coaching and coaching the Leinster way, trying to
encourage the kids to make mistakes and then they learn from it. If you’re shouting and
roaring at them the whole time, they don’t learn from it.” Through giving kids access to
good coaching from an early age, Darren is confident that the club and youths side of
the underage game will continue to get stronger. “Before, the elite rugby schools were
the only places that rugby was played at a high level whereas now the coaches are
developing themselves a lot more in the clubs. Kids in rural area are starting to play rugby
from a young age. If they’re getting coached at a good standard from a young age
they’ve got every chance to go all the way.”
The success of the CCRO program and Darren’s work is encapsulated by the success in
increasing women’s participation and he is understandably proud of the progress made.
“The biggest success I’ve had is getting girls rugby into a secondary school and this
year they’ve got a junior and senior team. There’s an u-16 team in the club and without
the numbers from that school, it wouldn’t exist. Women’s rugby is definitely a growth
area. You’d think there’d be a stigma around it but there isn’t. The lads are very good at
supporting them as well. It’s great!”
The growth the game has enjoyed has ran in parallel with the success of Leinster in recent
years and Darren believes the increased geographical size of the playing pool has helped
immeasurably in spreading the game throughout the province. “I think the expansion of
where the players on the first team are coming from has made a big difference. People
down here can relate much better to guys like Sean O’ Brien. It makes it an easy sell
for me, when the team are as successful as they are. It’s easy to promote when its going
well.” Alongside the impact of players like Sean O’Brien have had on the local rugby
playing population, Darren is keen to point to the infrastructure that is in place when it
comes to identifying talent. “There’s so many Club Community Rugby Officers, Coaching
Development Officers and Community Rugby Officers. With the resources that Leinster
are putting into it, if a kid’s got talent he’ll spotted somewhere along the line.” Darren
is understandably optimistic about the future of rugby in the Ratoath area and
judging by the successes the sport has had in the area, rugby looks set to keep
on growing.
54
RATOATH COLLEGE RUGBY
Ratoath College is a relatively new school having first opened its doors in 2005 but in its brief history the success of Rugby
in the school has seen a swift and meteoric rise!
Rugby was first introduced in the school in 2006 in the form of Tag rugby and with some short modules in the P.E. curriculum.
In the years that followed rugby became a mainstay in the extra-curricular programme. With the help of the local CCRO’s
over the years, rugby has developed into a hugely popular sport for the school and the school has the support of the local
rugby club Ratoath RFC at all times which has contributed greatly to the recent successes. The school has a large sports hall
and state of the art gymnasium also. The senior team take 1 hour gym sessions in the mornings before school and use the
hall for short fitness sessions with their fitness & conditioning coach.
The school play in the Leinster Junior & Senior Development Cups and over the years the school has climbed the ladder
in these competitions and cemented it’s place as a serious contender in both competitions. The success has been gradual
and steady over the years. In 2010, the Senior Rugby team reached the Leinster quarter-final and in 2011 reached the
Semi-final. This year the Senior team have gone one step further and have reached the Leinster final. Along the way they
have played and beaten, Dunboyne College, Athboy C.S, Drogheda Grammar school, Malahide CS and St. Colmcille’s
in the Semi-final. They played Wexford CBS in the final before Christmas.
This year the schools’ Junior team reached the Semi-final of the Leinster Development Cup losing narrowly to Moyne C.S.
but they too, have risen up through the competition. Reaching the quarters and semi-finals over the last 4 years. Success
is imminent for this team with an enthusiastic and hardworking bunch of 1st and 2nd years already eagerly awaiting their
Northeast tournament which began after Christmas.
Girls competitive and full contact rugby began this year and they remain unbeaten in their respective Leinster competition.
Interest from the girls in the school is massive with a squad of 35 girls competing for places on the team.
Massive credit goes to the small team of teachers who have worked tirelessly on developing rugby within the school Dave
Nelson, Ivor Keane, Mohammad Nassar and Nicola Kearney over the past few years and also to the local CCRO Darren
Kenna.
55
ARDEE RFC
LIAM MULLANE
Liam Mullane is in his third season as a club community rugby officer for Ardee R.F.C and
is involved with sixteen primary schools as well as three secondary schools in the area.
The changes Liam has overseen have been remarkable in the space of a few short years.
“When I started in Ardee there was no youth structure at all. You might have had kids
playing under-10 one week, under-12 the next and under-14 the next. In the three years
since I’ve been involved with the program we’ve managed to start under-8s, under-10s,
under-12s, under-13, under-14s, under-15s, under-16s and under17s as well as sharing
an under-19 side with Boyne R.F.C.”
The difference in playing numbers is representative of CCROs’ progress across the
province and Liam has not only seen numbers improve exponentially but has also seen
playing standards improve dramatically in his time as a CCRO. This increase in playing
numbers and standards is linked directly to the work Liam undertakes in schools on a
daily basis as he notes. “You only go into a school for one day and then the next training
session at the club you get a full crew down form the school.”
The success of the first team in recent years has had a dramatic impact on the popularity
of rugby in Ardee and the surrounding area as Liam attests to. “A few years ago it was
more of a central Dublin thing whereas now it’s more of a team for the whole province.
You’d go into a school in the area and it would be all soccer and GA.A jersey whereas
now you go into a school and a significant percentage of the kids are in their Leinster and
Ireland rugby gear. It’s a a pretty surprising shift in a small amount of time. I think it’s great.
Everyone across the board, young and old is embracing the game.”
Liam is in a unique position to measure the success of the program since its inception in
Ardee given that he has played for the club all the way up from under-14s, captaining
the firsts for a number of years. Discipline is something he is keen to highlight as a major
selling point of the game. “One of the things the parents are most impressed with is the
discipline the kids get out of the game. If the ref asks you do something you do it. In a
rugby match if you win, lose or draw you shake hands, we try and get that into them. The
character building aspect to it is a big draw, its a major selling point for the game.”
The sheer growth of the underage structure in Ardee is testament to the hard work been
undertaken throughout the province and judging by Liam’s and the CCRO program’s
success in the past three year, the future for Ardee R.F.C looks exceedingly
bright.
56
57
BOYNE RFC
JAMES FAYE
Boyne RFC Club Community Rugby Officer(CCRO), James Fey is a relative veteran of
the CCRO program, having been involved for the past five years. In this time, he has
seen dramatic changes in the rugby landscape. “In five years, I’ve seen rugby become
a sport that’s on everyone’s lips. Kids now associate with Leinster a lot more than five
years ago. Back then it was very much a case of being soccer orientated in the area.” The
increased awareness of all things rugby in the Boyne area has led to some spectacular
gains at Boyne RFC. Boyne now field two sides from under-13 to under-17 and James
believes the increase in youths and minis numbers are directly attributable to the work
being undertaken in the local schools through the CCRO program. “I’ve definitely noticed
a direct link between increased numbers playing in the club from the work in the schools.”
This increased participation is thanks in large part to the contact time James spends with
local schoolchildren. The former Boyne RFC player interacts with twelve primary schools
and three secondary schools throughout the course of the year and has seen significant
progress in the past couple of years. James only sees the trend continuing. “ Rugby is
absolutely still growing as a sport. Now I’m getting phone calls trying to get me into
schools. Word of mouth helps a lot. One school hears about another doing it and they
want you to come into them.”
James’ success in spreading the game throughout the area is a result not only of his hard
work but also of a general changing of attitudes towards the game. “We’re slowly losing
the stigma of rugby being a rough sport. The Leinster brand, through the Heineken Cup has
really raised the profile. Even this year, the kids were far more aware of the cup than last
year. A lot of that comes from the Leinster branch pushing the sport through the schools.”
The difference in attitudes is perfectly highlighted by the fact some local schoolchildren are
now choosing their secondary school based on the level rugby expertise being offered,
something according to James that “would have been unheard of in the area before.”
Progress is certainly being made and the Boyne RFC CCRO takes particular pride in
establishing a love of rugby amongst kids who had no previous experience of the sport.
“Last year we started up full contact rugby for fifth and sixth class across the primary
schools. We picked four schools who had the facilities to do it. We went in and coached
them the basics of tackling rucking and mauling and then had a blitz which was extremely
successful. Seeing these guys within the schools and then up at the club is fantastic. The
most rewarding thing is seeing a guy who had no clue how to play rugby two years ago
playing well up in the club.”
Despite enjoying considerable success, James is keen to not rest on any laurels and
although there is much work still to be done, there is a sense that the club and youth
representative structures in place will reap rich rewards in the future. “The structure is in
place to make sure less players slip through the net who might have the potential
to go all the way. I think the right systems are in place. Guys go into the northeast
structure far earlier now than they used. The players in smaller towns and clubs
58
are getting a better chance to make that step up. The net has been cast far wider.”
Through these improvements in structures, James believes that the days of a handful of elite schools providing the vast
majority of professional players may be coming to an end. “I think there will be a lot more kids coming through the youth
system in future years. Hopefully going forward we get a couple of schools outside the Dublin area into the top level of the
senior cup.” While understandably optimistic regarding the future, bridging the gap to top level rugby schools will be no
easy process as James readily admits. “One of the biggest hurdles to achieving this is the lack of contact time. It’s been a
big problem trying to get more time with the lads.
The schools would probably only train once a week. Its tough to get teachers in the schools to take it up. In terms of the
success of Leinster, this helps in the likelihood of having a teacher in the school who is willing to take it on.”
Although there are clearly still many obstacles ahead, the success enjoyed by the club in the past few years cannot be
deemed merely a flash in the pan and through the hard work of James and others, the game looks set for a bright future in
the Boyne area.
Boyne
RFC 6th
Class
Boys
& Girls
Blitz
On 7th of November Boys and
Girls from St.Josephs, Le Cheile
and Tullydonnell Schools took part
in a 6th Class Tag Rugby Blitz in
Drogheda Leisure Park. As part
of the Leinster Branch Play Rugby
Programme, CCRO James Fay has
been coaching Tag Rugby in the
Schools for the last 6 weeks.
On the day all the children got
to participate and have fun.
Hopefully some of the children
will choose to take up the sport by
joining their local Club.
Thanks to the support from the Des
Smyth Foundation it was possible
to hold the Blitz in the Leisure Park
Facilities. Thanks to Boyne RFC’s 1st
team players Kevin Prendagast and
Chris Pusi and also Coach Craig
Mc Grath who refereed on the day.
If you are interested in having
Rugby in your School or maybe in
joining Boyne RFC please contact
087 4161611 or visit to www.
boynerfc.ie
59
DUNDALK RFC
TELEA FAATAU
Telea Faatau is in his first year as the Club Community Rugby Officer for Dundalk RFC.
Originally from New Zealand Telea has only been in Ireland a matter of months but
has seen some serious improvements in the kids he has had contact with. “There is an
improvement. At the start they’d be throwing the ball forward and by the end they get a
good idea of how to play the game. I ran a blitz there a few weeks ago and you could
see the improvements the kids have made.
Throughout the the year Telea has been in fifteen primary schools and five secondary
schools who have all been delighted to have rugby make an appearance. “Most of the
schools, it’s their first time experiencing it. They’ve never had someone come in and teach
rugby. The schools are very happy. They just want to get the kids out there running with
the ball.”
Through his work with local schools Telea has also seen an impact in Dundalk RFC. “I can
see the direct link between the work in the schools and the rugby club. There a good few
girls up there now playing tag. Also the numbers have grown for the boys in the club as
well.” Rugby in Dundalk seems to be growing regardless of gender, surely a healthy sign
for the sport in the area.
60
61
LONGFORD RFC
STEPHEN COY
CCRO for Longford Stephen Coy has been a CCRO for the past three years and has
seen year on year improvements as a result of his work in the local schools of which
eighteen are primary. “You can see the difference every year in terms of getting players
up to the club through the program in the schools. From our under-13s up to our under19s we get great benefit for the club in terms of playing numbers.” These increased levels
of participation are down to the enthusiasm towards the game shown by both Stephen
and the schools he is involved with. This enthusiasm is a particularly rewarding aspect of
the job as Stephen notes.”Kids love it. All shapes and sizes can play together. They get a
good buzz out of it.”
This year has seen both Lainsborough Community College and Ballymahon Convent take
their first tentative steps into competitive rugby with players from both schools making
appearances at club training sessions as well. Throw in Moyne’s victory in the under-16
development cup victory last year and it is easy to see that rugby in Longford is thriving.
Stephen believes the level of skill on display has increased generally and believes that
the infrastructure is now in place to ensure that anyone with the requisite talent has the
opportunity to be spotted. “The players now have a lot more chances to be seen in the
smaller clubs and they’re getting that chance to get that bit of extra and more professional
coaching from the Community Rugby Officer(CCRO) and the Club Community Rugby
Officers in the area.” Stephen is in a unique position to assess the improvements in
infrastructure having played for the Leinster Youths himself. “When I played Leinster
youths, your club sent you up. you played one or two games and they picked from that.
That couple of games, if you didn’t have a good game you wouldn’t get seen. Now
the players are seen in all aspects of being a potential professional. They’re seen in the
training sessions, the club games, in the gym. The net has been cast far wider now.”
The local club relationships that have been established are testament to this improved
infrastructure as Stephen alludes to. “It’s definitely moving in the right direction in Longford.
The likes of the programs we’re doing now, the under15s counties program through which
we bring players from Longford and Westmeath once a month to coach them at under14s
and under15s. They’re getting to play in a counties league before they play in an area
league.” Between the establishment of rugby in schools that have never played and the
increased numbers playing in Longford RFC, it appears the future is positive for
Longford rugby.
62
MOYNE COMMUNITY SCHOOL REACH LEINSTER
JUNIOR RUGBY DEVELOPMENT CUP FINAL
Moyne Community School reached the Leinster Junior
Rugby Development Cup Final following a well deserved
victory over Co Meath opponents Ratoath College at
Longford RFC, on Thursday last. This is a great achievement
for the North Longford School coached by CCRO Stephen
Coy Jnr and teacher Brian Reilly.
The visitors managed to turn around a nine-point deficit
back to just a two-point game with four minutes remaining.
But Moyne’s towering full back Ryan McGahern then put
the game beyond all doubt when he cut through the tough
Ratoath rearguard and touched down near the corner flag
for a try to clinch the victory.
Moyne got off to a fabulous start when they got their first
try inside five minutes. Ratoath lost possession and Paul
Donnelly was in the right place to capitalise on this costly
error and Mark Hughes landed the conversion.
But their seven-point advantage was quickly reduced back
to two when Ratoath’s physical strength yielded a try as they
got right back into contention.
In the second half, Moyne were put under severe pressure
but defended their lines bravely and while Ratoath closed
the gap they were unable to salvage the situation with the
well engineered late try from Ryan McGahern making sure
of the Moyne win.
LONGFORD RFC SKILLS SESSIONS
Longford Rugby Club in conjunction with Stephen Coy jnr (CCRO) are currently running skills sessions for kids from the age of 13-18 on Monday
nights.
This inititave set up by Stephen is to give players and coaches alike the chance to get extra coaching and tips on the basic skill areas of the game
which sometimes can be overlooked in squad trainings. It is aimed at helping new players to the club but also to improve the skill set of any player
willing to learn in the club or surrounding areas. It started last monday with 15 players attending and seems set to grow into a very important
fortnightly event in Longford RFC calender.
63
EDENDERRY RFC
PATSY GORMAN
Patsy Gorman has been working as a Club Community Rugby Officer for three years with
Edenderry RFC. This year Patsy has been involved with fifteen primary and two secondary
schools in the area. Getting rugby into schools that had never previously before is a
key success of the program as Patsy acknowledges. “In my second year as a CCRO
we managed to get rugby into Oatlands Community College which would have been
a big G.A.A. school so it was great to get a breakthrough there. That was one of the big
rewarding points at the time”
Through his work with the local schools Patsy has seen a direct increase in attendances at
Edenderry RFC particularly in the minis section where a new under-6s side has boosted
the numbers attending to one hundred and twenty. He credits the introduction of the
sport to novices through the medium of non-contact tag as vital in easing those with no
experience into the game. “What the tag does is it gives them a little bit of confidence and
it introduces them to the sport. If you haven’t been involved in the sport and you watch
Leinster or Ireland play you might think every hit is going to be like being hit by Sean O
Brien. When you start to play tag and you show kids the basic skills of rugby and they get
a bit of confidence, then you can start introducing them to the full sport.”
Women’s rugby is another area Patsy is keen to promote and expand. “In my first year
we set up a senior ladies team in the club. It’s been really successful. This year we’ve
fielded our first teenage girls team which was good for the club.” The popularity of rugby
across the board is something that Patsy has seen increase notably. “Absolutely it’s a more
mainstream sport now. My approach to introducing rugby in the schools would be based
around how all sports can help each other. What I’ve noticed is that with the success of
Leinster, parents are a lot more open to trying rugby now.”
64
OAKLANDS COMMUNITY
RUGBY SEASON BEGINS
COLLEGE
SCHOOL
Oaklands Community College Edenderry began their first full rugby season last week with a challenge match away to Wilsons Hospital Mullingar.
Full rugby was introduced to Oaklands last season through Edenderry RFC CCRO Patsy Gorman and a first/second year school team was put
together which played some challenge matches late in the season. This year the players from last season began training when the first school term
started and have received sponsorship from Edenderry Credit Union for jerseys and kit.
Gorman has been in the school again this year coaching the players and has managed to add some new first years to the team. Rugby is a very new
sport to the school and is still finding its niche within the school sports programme, but with the heavy support received from principal Gerry Connolly
it is doing very well. The team had its first match outing of the season last term against Wilsons Hospital, in a game that went very well for both sides,
Oaklands managed to win by a tight margin, which was a great boost of confidence to these relatively inexperienced players. The team has affiliated
with Leinster Rugby and is looking forward to participating in Branch competition. It is a credit to the work done between the partnership of the school,
Edenderry RFC and the CCRO that these young players are enjoying rugby as part of secondary school life now in an area where they are the only
secondary school doing so.
CADAMSTOWN
NATIONAL SCHOOL,
PLAY RUGBY
There was a nice post Christmas surprise for the pupils of
Cadamstown National School, Broadford, Co. Kildare.
Edenderry’s Club Community Rugby Officer Patsy Gorman
through Leinster Rugby supplied teacher Ms Mary Malone and
the pupils of the school with a Play Rugby pack. CCRO Gorman
has been coaching Tag Rugby in the school for the past three
seasons and this season teacher Ms Mary Malone has agreed to
participate in the Play Rugby programme with the schools pupils.
This means that Ms Malone will be teaching rugby skills and Tag
Rugby to pupils in the school from first to sixth class boys and
girls on days when the CCRO is not in the school. This ensures all
pupils in the school will now have the opportunity to participate
in rugby as a PE sport.
Earlier this season the 2nd and 3rd class pupils in Cadamstown
school won the younger section of a school Tag Blitz ran by CCRO Gorman in Edenderry RFC, so the enthusiasm of the pupils for rugby has now been
supported by the school and Ms Malone in the implementation of the Play Rugby Programme. CCRO Patsy Gorman said that “in the current climate of
recession and cut backs in the public sector including in education, to have the ability through Leinster Rugby to supply free of charge qualified rugby
Coaching plus a Play Rugby kit containing balls, cones, tags and bibs is a huge asset in supporting schools to implement rugby, it helps maintain a
constant link between the sport and the school”.
65
TULLAMORE RFC
PATRICK DUNNE
Patrick Dunne is the Club Community Rugby Officer for Tullamore RFC and is currently in
his second year in the role while also playing himself for Tullamore. Throughout the year
Patrick is involved with sixteen schools in the locality and can see genuine improvements
amongst the kids he has done sessions with. “Even in the schools you go into in September,
there’s kids who are just watching on the sidelines. Give them two or three weeks and
they’re getting involved, looking for the ball and stuff and then you have young lads
asking when training in the club is, so you pick up some numbers that way.”
Introducing rugby to novices through tag is an excellent way to ease kids into the sport
and Patrick believes that this gentle introduction helps dispel some of the fears relating to
rugby as a physical game. “Parents can sometimes hold back their kids ‘cos they might
think the sport is too rough. When they’re in the school playing a bit of tag they get a bit
of confidence and they go back to their parents saying ‘I love this’ and then they’re out at
the club playing physical rugby. There’s been two or three cases like that here.”
The general levels of interest in the game have grown notably in Patrick’s time in the job.
“It’s definitely more popular. The kids are all going around with the jerseys on. They’ll
be going on about the match over the weekend on Monday morning when I see them.
There’s genuine enthusiasm amongst the kids. When we had the Heineken Cup down, the
kids were hopping out of their chairs to answer questions about Leinster.”
While many of the children in the area have now had an experience of playing the game
there is still plenty of unearthed prospects out there as Patrick attests to. “I do think there’s
a lot of talent out there that hasn’t been seen. From sixth class all the way up to college
there’s a lot of lads who have potential.” Transforming this latent potential into a larger
rugby playing pool is something Patrick strives to achieve and the receptiveness of schools
in the area towards rugby should mean that no stone is left unturned in the search for
potential players.
66
The 2012-13 season has proved to be a very positive one for rugby in the schools and in turn for youth rugby in Tullamore
R.F.C. In total 21 schools took part in the CCRO tag programme with Scoil Mhuire girls taking part for the first time. The tag
rugby sessions were very enthusiastically enjoyed and the numbers of minis and youth players in the club have benefited
from this link and continue to be very healthy.
A total of three tag blitzs were held one in November and two in March with a future blitz to be held in the summer term
due to some schools having too many other commitments leading up to Easter. The blitzs give the club a great opportunity
to show the kids what facilities the club have to offer and it always proves to be a fun day out for all. 19 of the primary
schools visited in Tullamore and schools within a ten mile radius are taking part in the blitzs.
Apart from the primary schools, four secondary schools are involved in the programme. Mercy Kilbeggan transition years
and Coláiste Choilm transition and 5th years participate. Tullamore College field both a Junior and Senior team in Leinster
Branch competition and indeed won the shield trophy at Senior level with the Junior team currently in the Shield semi- final.
The Sacred Heart girls school are in their third year of tag rugby with a number of classes taking part. To date there has
been no pathway for these girls to play full ladies rugby but moves are afoot to start a ladies team in the club with a very
healthy list of girls and ladies expressing an interest at a meeting attended by Niamh Kavanagh, a recent Grand Slammer
winner.
During the year the Heineken Cup visited the area and many schools including a number who had not had it before
enjoyed the occasion. Many thanks to Elma for all her help in bringing the trophy to so many schools.
Youth rugby has had a successful year so far with the Under 13’s and Under 17’s being in a league semi-final and final
respectively and the Under 15’s and Under 19’s currently in the semi-final of their cups. The importance of youth rugby has
never been so strikingly evident as in the success of the 1st xv who have won the 1A Leinster league and all Ireland Junior
cup with the backbone of the team being made up with players who came through the underage system. Much praise must
be directed at the mini and youth co-ordinators Ray Quinn and Jimmy Martin who have both put a huge amount of work
into their jobs.
Another aspect of the work of the ccros Paddy Dunne and John Burns is participation in the Midland Masterclass for u15’s
with the Offaly session taking place once a month in Tullamore R.F.C. These sessions aim to develop Under 15 players in
the area with a few games organised and a final trial match in Navan R.F.C. which sought to identify the players with the
most potential to attend a Summer programme and ultimately represent the midlands in the Shane Horgan cup at Under16
level next season.
In conclusion the CCRO programme forms an essential link between the community and Tullamore R.F.C. and results in a
large boost to numbers of players within the club. It also helps promote the Leinster brand as kids very much associate with
Leinster due to the presence of the CCROs.
67
TULLAMORE RFC
JOHN BURNS
John Burns is in his fifth year as a CCRO with Tullamore RFC and between himself and
Patrick Dunne the two CCROs cover twenty two primary schools and four secondary
schools in Tullamore and the surrounding area. In that time John has seen big improvements
in playing numbers at the club. “In terms of numbers in the rugby club they’re growing,
especially the minis. A lot of the work I do would be primary schools to make sure kids
come up through the minis and filter through into the youths system”. The benefit to the
youths system from this approach is becoming apparent already. “We’re in a position
to put out under-14 and under-15 team teams this year as well as having an under 13 a
and b team. Before we would have been only able to put out one team that covered the
two age groups. It’s working its way up. At seventeens we wouldn’t have that yet with
them but hopefully the guys will stay at it. In terms of the numbers there has been a big
improvement.”
The openness of the local schools to rugby and the accessibility of tag have enabled John
to introduce rugby to the vast majority of kids in the area. “The kids and schools are very
positive and they love it. Even in some of the areas that would be very GAA dominated,
they’re very enthusiastic about it. The thing they like about it is, the kids that sometimes that
are not great at other sports seem to like the tag. I suppose because of the non-contact
element of it, the inclusiveness of it, the fact that we don’t put any emphasis on what the
score is. It’s more about enjoyment and I think that’s a positive thing. Sometimes parents
might be apprehensive if it’s full contact but tag gives them an introduction and then they
might come up to the rugby club and see what it’s about.”
John believes the level of coaching across the province has improved dramatically in
his time as a CCRO and highlights how both coach development and a far reaching
infrastructure are vital for the health of rugby in the country. “The standards of youth rugby
and coaching have improved. Because Leinster are trawling now further down they’re
going to get more players. It’d be a retrograde step if we weren’t looking at the guys
down the country. There is talent there. All it takes is one or two of them coming through
and it saves you having to go to Australia or wherever and buy someone. Definitely I
think Leinster have their hands on the pulse in terms of the development and spotting of
young talent. It’s raising the standard generally and the standard of coaching. There’s
more emphasis now on coaching the coaches which is great because to improve players
you need to improve the coaching and I think thats happening.
John is particularly impressed by the development of the Shane Horgan Cup competition
which he sees as a vital stepping stone for potentially promising players. “I think a
huge positive has been the introduction of the Shane Horgan development cup and the
masterclasses. I would have been involved with the development team for a couple years
and the work thats been done there with those young lads is top class. It helps raise the
standard of the players but it’s also asking questions of the coaches and a lot of coaches
are coming to watch those sessions and there’s a good few workshops they can do as
well and that raises the bar of coaching generally.”
While John has enjoyed considerable success in his time as a CCRO he is determined
to ensure the progress doesn’t stop. “Each year it seems to be a search for something to
improve the program further and we’ll keep raising the bar higher!”
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MIDLAND WARRIORS RFC
CIAN GLENNON
Cian Glennon is in his first year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with Midland Warriors RFC. Cian also plays for the
first team with Tullamore RFC having grown up playing for the club. Midland warriors are a new club, only six years old
and Cian is keen to help the club to establish itself in the area through his work with local schoolchildren. “It’s a small area,
there’s only six primary schools that feed into the club so I’m in them doing tag rugby and stuff, just getting them interested
into the game.” So far he has been impressed by the progress some of the kids have made. “It takes them a while to get
used to the skills but you see a big improvement in their understanding of the skills and their understanding of the game.
Once they learn the rules the understanding grows.”
Given that Midland Warriors are such a new club immersed in a predominately G.A.A area, it is impressive that the club’s
consistently generates enough playing numbers in its minis section to regularly partake in blitzes across the midlands. It is
also understandable how the club has no youths teams especially considering rugby has been introduced into the local
secondary school for the first time this year. the school embraced the idea as Cian explains. “They were happy to let us in.
They were open to it.” Although only in its infancy, Midland Warriors appear to be on the right track.
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MULLINGAR RFC
BARRY COADE
Mullingar RFC are a club that have gone from strength to strength over recent years
and Club Community Rugby Officer Barry Coade believes the foundations are set to
ensure that this improvement continues apace over the the coming seasons. “At this stage
Mullingar would be right up there as one of the strongest provincial clubs. The future is
looking is extremely bright even though it hasn’t really transferred to the first team yet
but in the next two to three years hopefully you’ll see Mullingar climbing the ranks very
quickly.”
There is genuine cause for this optimism. The Westmeath based club provided ten of the
starting team that won the Shane Horgan cup last year as well as having five starters
with the Leinster Youths side. This success at higher levels has undoubtedly been brought
about by the hard work undertaken by Barry and the club. The unseen work undertaken
by volunteers is something Barry is keen to pay tribute to. “There’s a lot of good fellas
down here in Mullingar RFC, a lot of hard workers who you don’t hear too much about
who just put their shoulders to the wheel and they don’t want their name mentioned.
That makes my work a lot easier because of the hard work that’s done in the club.” The
aformentioned hard work is paying off. Proof can be seen any Saturday morning when
over 400 children throng to the club.
While such participation levels are a fantastic achievement, the sheer amount of kids
seeking to access the game has thrown up its own issues. “Most Saturdays we have over
400 kids playing. It’s so busy space is at a serious premium. I’m going around talking
to schools seeing if we can use their pitches. Wilson’s Hospital school is putting two all
weather rugby pitches in and that shows the commitment they have to rugby. Putting
two pitches in is a big expenditure in this day and age. They should be ready for next
season and it’ll be a great facility.” The actions of Wilson’s Hospital are representative
of a changing of attitudes towards the game in the area as the Westmeath Examiners
recognition of the club’s under-17 side as team of the year further proves. “The u17s won
the team of the year there with the Westmeath Examiner. That was against the Olympic
boxers which was massive considering the lads had two Olympians beside them.”
While boosting playing numbers is a key facet of Barry’s mandate, equally important
is making sure the game is played in the right manner and Barry believes the requisite
infrastructure is in place to ensure player learn the game in a manner befitting the skills
based, heads up Leinster rugby philosophy. “Its taken a long time to get people think in the
Leinster way, not the old country way of bish bash bosh up the middle. It’s about getting
coaches to come in and coach a different style of rugby. “We had a games development
committee there through which we spent a lot of time and effort to ensure the coaches
know how to coach properly along with getting all the younger coaches involved. On the
first Monday of every month the Community Rugby Officer, the Coaching Development
Officer and the local CCROs go in and we coach all the u-15. We try and make sure
all the coaches watch that. They come and watch what we do for that two hours and
then they go back to the training paddocks and bring it to the kids and you can see them
almost copying what they saw us doing.”
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The higher levels of coaching are paying dividends and Barry is in no doubt as to the potential effects of these better
standards. “ I think it can definitely get to the stage where as many kids come through the youths and club set up as the
traditional school system. I would have come down here fourteen years ago thinking there’d be no chance in hell of that
happening. You might have gotten one in a blue moon. There’s no reason in the next three or four years there can’t be as
many going through the academy from the youths and provincial clubs.”
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WEST OFFALY
DAVE FARRELLY
Dave Farrelly is the Club Community Rugby Officer for the West
Offaly area and is currently in his second year in the role. He
has previous experience of being involved in the provincial club
set up having been a youth development officer in 2000. The
difference between then and now is night and day and Dave has
seen a massive increase in interest levels in the area. “I’ve seen a
huge swell of numbers in that time. At youth level and mini level
there’s been a huge increase in numbers.” Dave is in a whopping
twenty four primary schools and three secondary schools in the area and believes that the
work undertaken in the schools has had a tangible benefit in terms of playing numbers in
the club. “There’s no question the increase in numbers in minis have come from the work
done in the schools. They absolutely love it. Theres a completely different perspective
towards rugby here now.”
Alongside the club side of the game, Dave believes the advent of the Schools Development
Cup system has had a hugely positive impact on the rugby landscape and the CCRO
has seen the competitions grow in stature and popularity over time. “Secondary schools
in development cups now are lucky to get into it. Schools are ringing me now saying
how do we get into this which is brilliant. Before you had to knock on the door tentatively
and sort of say I’m available to coach rugby in the school free of charge. Some of then
would say ‘we’re grand we are’ and some would say ‘come in and we’ll see how it goes.’
When they see it done on a professional basis, teachers love it. More and more schools
are getting involved the development cup and they learn how to compete. Some of them
who would have been involved a few years ago are now in Section A and they’re very
competitive so its great to see.”
In order to capitalise on an ever increasing playing pool, it is essential that high standards
of coaching exists and the coaching workshops Dave is involved with have been successful
in getting not only more coaches but ensuring a higher standard across the board. “I’m
involved doing coaching workshops throughout the area, there’s a good uptake on that.
They guys who come up are actually learning a lot about the game.”
Given the increased playing numbers and superior infrastructure now in place, Dave is
understandably optimistic looking forward. “There’s a massive sea of kids around to be
got. In the past Irish rugby was almost exclusively schools based. All over the country now
rugby is becoming a much more popular sport. In the past it was unheard of a player who
didn’t play for a (traditional) school playing for Ireland. You’re going to see a lot more of
that now. The Leinster Youths are quite close to the Leinster Schools and they’d be able to
give them a good run out of it.”
Even bearing in mind the upward trajectory of rugby in the province, Dave is aware that
flexibility remains kay in schools where rugby is not the number one sport. “You have to
flexible as a secondary sport in a school. you cant go in and say this is how it is be, they’ll
tell you to get lost.” This pragmatism aligned with the successes Dave has presided over
point to a continued growth of the game in the West Offaly area.
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FERBANE BLITZ
Dave Farrelly C.R.O. for West Offaly held a
blitz for schools in the Ferbane area. Despite the
inclement bad weather there was a great turnout,
with seven of ten local schools attending. These
were Clonmacnoise, Boher, Pullough, Ferbane,
Broughall, Ballinahown and High St, Belmont.
All the games were played in great spirit with
particular emphasis on fair play and skills. Each
school played 7 matches. At the end of the games
all the kids got drinks and fruit kindly sponsored by
West Offaly Lions R.F.C.
The club also put up a Cup for the best team. Marks
were awarded for how the teams performed
showing respect for opponents and the referees.
Also taken into consideration were playing within
the rules and skilful play. Because of the overall
high quality it took a long discussion by the
referees to pick a winner. Eventually white smoke
rose and Pullough were declared winners.
Peter Mooney West Offaly Lions President who
attended the blitz was hugely impressed with the
number kids and quality of play; he also presented
the Cup to the winning team.
Many thanks to Brian O’Carroll, Club Chairman,
for his help in organising referees and snacks for
the children.
BIRR BLITZ
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NIALL NEVILLE
Niall Neville is the Community Rugby Officer for South Dublin
County Council. In the area, there are 235,000 people and four
rugby clubs. Niall’s mandate as a CRO is broad as he explains.
“My role is to deliver tag and contact rugby programs in primary
and secondary schools and also to work with the clubs and help
their development and get them players and coach development
through minis seminars and coaching courses. There’s a hundred
primary schools and my aim is to engage with the vast majority
of those schools who are willing to engage.” With so many schools in the area, it is no
surprise that Niall believes a self sustaining approach is the most beneficial in the long
term. “We have seen a big increase in the number of kids who have an interest in playing
especially in secondary schools. There’s an awful lot of schools so we can’t spoon feed
them. We don’t go in and deliver programs for the sake of it in secondary schools. We
want to leave something sustainable. We work with teachers and students in schools to
create teams within schools who are run on an after school basis and which then compete
in Leinster and local area competitions.”
Niall and the CCROs in the area have had considerable success in spreading the game in
secondary schools in the area and the re-emergence of the South Dublin Cup has given
these schools a chance to test themselves against teams at similar ability levels. “As a
result of the work of the CCROs, myself and Tom McKeown, we rebranded a competition
that was known as the Tallaght Cup into the South Dublin Cup two years ago. The finals
were in Donybrook the first year. Last year they were in Tallaght Stadium. The council
have been very helpful again this year and we held the final in Tallaght Stadium again in
March. The cup helps developing schools cope with demand in the schools. What would
have happened before was that some of those schools might only play two games in a
year if they get knocked out of the development cup and the shield, so it helps develop
schools and gives them a better opportunity for the following season. It also helps the
keep the interest of the kids who are going up to training.”
Understandably, the process of introducing complete novices to rugby is a gratifying one
for Niall and the CRO has seen an impact on behaviour from rugby. “It’s brilliant to see.
When you speak to the teachers and there’s a lad who may be a bit rowdy in class then
they play rugby and they get a chance to express themselves. In our secondary school
programs the kids have to want to do it themselves. They’re playing because they want to
get involved. There’s no one forcing them to do anything.” As in many other parts of the province, rugby has grown hugely in terms of both popularity
and playing numbers in a relatively short time period as Niall explains. “More and more
kids are playing in the area. They’re far more aware of it. The programs we run in the
schools have made it far more accessible. It’s not seen as much of an elitist sport as it
would have been perceived previously. When I first started and I brought the Heineken
Cup around in 2009, the kids weren’t aware of it or even what it was. The second time
there was far more knowledge of it.”
Given that so many more kids have the opportunity to experience the game, Niall is
confident that the club and youths system are only going to get stronger in the future and
74
he believes the structures are now in place to ensure that anyone with the requisite talent is spotted at an early age. “There
has to be an increase in the number of guys coming through the club system because of the programs that have been run
by the coach development department. The player identification program has to benefit the kids involved. There’s clearly
defined channels for the kids now. The guys are working with the kids on the ground. They’re aware of the screenings
sessions. There’s a really good catchment area out there now. The net’s been put out to allow players to be seen, to give
them opportunities where before they might have been missed.”
Although Niall and the CCRO’s in the area have enjoyed considerable success, there is no time get complacent and Niall
is keen to continue to push things forward. “I think we have a really good on the ground presence throughout the season.
I think it’s a matter of identifying what we do and how we do it and then trying to make it better. i think the program as it is
is a really worthwhile program. It puts the ball in a lot of boys and girls hands and gives them a really good taste of what
rugby is like. It’s just a case of always improving. There’s always a couple of things we can sharpen up on about getting
that transfer from the schools into the club so they continue to play.” The desire to continually strive for improvements points
to a promising future for rugby in the South Dublin County Council.
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY GIRLS TAG RUGBY BLITZ
On Wednesday 24th April Clondalkin RFC played host to the last of the South Dublin County Girls Tag Rugby Blitzes.
Niall Neville, the Community Rugby Officer for SDCC, has been running tag blitzes for girls in the county for the last four years.
Each year has seen a rise in the interest within the schools to become involved and this showed in Clondalkin RFC with 9 schools, 20 teams and
over 250 girls participating on the day. Both the Heineken Cup and the Women’s Six Nations trophies were on show but it was most definitely the
Womens Six Nations that caused the biggest stir.
Nora Stapelton, the IRFU Girls and Womens Development Manager, brought the trophy out for the girls to see. Nora, who herself plays for both
Leinster and Ireland Women’s teams, was there to talk to the girls about getting involved and continuing the interest showed in school to a club level.
Community Rugby Officer Niall Neville said: “Girls rugby in South Dublin has been growing steadily over the last number of years. The fact that
Nora herself plays for Leinster and won the trophy with Ireland is brilliant for the girls as she can speak to them about her experience within rugby. It
is great that the girls recognised both Nora and the trophy from all the coverage that the Women’s team has received on their success and hopefully
some of these girls will be inspired.”
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SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
TOM McKEOWN
Tom McKeowan is a Community Rugby Officer(CRO) for the
South Dublin County Council and is in his first year in the position.
Tom works closely with CRO Niall Neville in order to boost
participation and awareness of rugby in the locality. Tom has
enjoyed considerable success in spreading the game in schools
that traditionally would have had little if any experience of rugby.
“The kids love the programs. You’re going into schools which if
you were looking in from the outside you’d think there’d be no
chance they’re gonna be into rugby. The schools themselves are keen and then the kids
seem to really grasp it.”
The introduction of the South Dublin Cup has had a powerful impact on rugby in the area
and Tom is keen to pay tribute to the role the competition can play in the coming years. “It’s
been a big hit. It has gone from strength to strength. You don’t want teams getting hosed
and hammered and turning away from the game. The matches in the cup are generally
very competitive. You have guys coming from a soccer background they adopt the values
of rugby pretty quickly. It’s a good competition now and it’s growing every year.”
Rugby has enjoyed increased levels of interest and participation in recent times and Tom
believes that Leinster are now seen as a team representative of the entire province. “From
an observational point of view you see a lot of guys going around in Leinster gear. There’s
massive interest there. Having a bit of rugby in Tallaght stadium is a massive thing. Leinster
played a friendly there and it was great. Playing games in Tallaght gives a link to Leinster
for local guys.”
Attitudes to the game have changed in the past few years and Tom is of the opinion that
this openness towards rugby is only going to further improve in the future on the back
of more players coming from areas that wouldn’t be considered traditional hot-beds of
rugby talent. “We haven’t really had that professional player come from a real nontradiitonal area like Tallaght. That idea of non traditional area is changing. People are
so aware. If you get a local player from here like Sean O’Brien it helps massively. That’s
the influence a world class player can have if he comes from your area. I think it’s only a
matter of time before we see more guys coming through the clubs. At least we have the
infrastructure now to talent spot a guy and keep him interested. There’s probably still a bit
of a stigma there but at the same time when guys play the sport they think how can this be
elitist because it’s so physical and difficult compared to other sports. Once we have guys
on the ground who are reaching areas that haven’t had the exposure hopefully the case
will be it will continue to grow.”
Leinster work closely with South Dublin County Council and Tom is eager to acknowledge
the level of partnership that exists between the two institutions. “Our relationship with the
council is fantastic. Anything we ask of them they genuinely try and help us do it. They’re
always very positive and interested in what numbers we reach and what schools were in.”
Although the two Community Rugby Officers have enjoyed considerable success in
promoting rugby in the area, Tom believes there is still much to do to ensure the continued
growth of the sport. “We’re nowhere near the stage where we can be resting on our laurels.
There’s a lot of work to do. A lot of work has gone into Tallaght and it’s thriving. You’ve still
got to work hard to promote the game and increase teachers interest and hopefully it will
just continue to grow.” With such dedication and determination to continually evolve, it
appears that the CRO’s work in the locality will continue to bear fruit.
76
ST KILIAN’S 3rd & 4th CLASSES EXCEL IN
PLAY RUGBY PROGRAMME
St Kilian’s National School, Kingswood, Tallaght celebrated
their ‘play rugby’ programme with 3rd and 4th class boys and
girls. Each one of the children really enjoyed their experience of
rugby games and look forward to improving their skills further
in the future! The schools 5th and 6th classes have already
participated in rugby fundays and blitzes this school year.
All of the children received a Leinster Rugby prize for their
participation and they were a credit to their school displaying
excellent behaviour and rugby skills!
Any schools or community groups looking to introduce rugby
to children in the South Dublin area, should contact Leinster
Rugby Community Officer Tom McKeown on 0879705671 or
[email protected].
SOUTH DUBLIN CUP
JUNIOR & SENIOR FINALS
The South Dublin Cup finals took place in St Mary’s College RFC on Friday, 12th April. The
Junior section was contested between Salesian’s College from Celbridge and Holy family
of Rathcoole, while in the Senior section Tallaght Community School locked horns with St
Colmcilles of Knocklyon.
This competition has always been a springboard for non-traditional rugby schools to
compete against one-another and expose unearthed talent to showcase their skills. Year on
year this is the case. We have found very few of these players are affiliated to clubs so our
aim is to direct players with an appetite for the game to the nearest club. The pool of talent
is quite unbelievable. The boys are tough, talented and passionate about representing their
schools and these principles really shone through last Friday.
The conditions were perfect for rugby with nearly no wind and a nice firm pitch. The junior
section kicked off at 11.30am and it was Salesian’s who took the early initiative going into
the lead from the restart following a Rathcoole handling error, scoring in the corner through
scrumhalf Gavin O Reilly. Talented fly-half Malo O Connor failed with the extras from out
wide. Despite the Celbridge School’s dominance they yielded no further scores and Holy
Family levelled the match shortly before half time through Darren Madden who had a superb game from start to finish. 5-5 at half time.
Salesian’s centres were dangerous throughout with Cian O Reilly showed blistering pace and an eye for a gap. Rathcoole were scrapping all the
way however, with Ivan Steritt, Aaron Donnelly, Aaron Kelly and Kalob Crone excellent. Malo O Connor struck a good penalty for 8-5 and then
showed patience and skill by putting the abrasive Stefan Harding in the corner for a brilliant try late on - sparking huge celebrations. Young openside Daire Martin was an old head on young shoulder’s charging his way around the pitch all day. It was a tough, fair game and the coaches and
schools should be very proud of their teams. Salesian’s are well coached by teacher Eoin O Sullivan and Leinster CCRO Gareth Murray, so special
credit to them for their outstanding commitment. Commiserations to teachers Charlie Hill and Des O Connor who have previously tasted success in
the SD Cups and continue to organise and enthuse the boys to get stuck in.
The Senior section did not disappoint either. Colmcilles and TCS brought their ‘A games’ culminating in a dramatic finale to round off a thoroughly
enjoyable day of rugby. Colmcilles scored first to open a 7-0 through a fine try after sustained pressure, scoring close to the posts. Colmcilles
displayed a willingness to move the ball across the pitch and attempt to tire a big, strong TCS team. Mark Dolan was unparalleled in the lineout,
securing possession at every opportunity. Dolan’s backrow colleague number 8 Darragh Maguire was immense throughout with his powerful running
lines. Colmcilles also had influential performances from out-half Darragh Gogan and centre partnership Daire McCormack and Luke Byrne.
The match was levelled by TCS to 7-7 but when the Knocklyon School again took the lead thanks to another 7 pointer it seemed over. Write off the
Tallaght School at your peril as after sustained pressure and a string of penalties they levelled again at 14-14. The cup appeared destined to be
shared until St Colmcilles’ Darragh Maguire burst through to finish from 35 metres with an unstoppable run diving beside the post to settle the match. It
rounded off an epic battle from two really good sides. Tallaght Community School can be proud of their entire team with backrowers Gareth McGinn,
Eoghan Farrell and captain Adam Notaro aggressive in defence.Conor Stewart made some blistering line breaks and was a constant threat. It is truly
difficult to have a losing team in such a well contested final.
Leinster Rugby would like to congratulate all teams and coaches/teachers who participated in the 2012-13 South Dublin Cup. Also, without a
fantastic venue it would not be possible so thanks to Marie Hammond and St Mary’s College RFC for hosting, to South Dublin County Council for
all their support in funding various aspects of the competition and to our referees and touch judges on the day. It really is a great tournament that will
hopefully open the door to these talented players to continue to play the sport. They are all a great credit to their schools – win, lose
or draw.
We are already looking forward to next year’s battle for titles.
77
ST MARY’S COLLEGE RFC
DARA O’KELLY
Dara O Kelly is in his fifth year in the role as Club Community Rugby Officer for St.Mary’s
RFC. Having represented Ireland under-20s and St.Mary’s, Dara gave up playing after
dislocating his shoulder playing rugby league in England. In his five years in the position
Dara has witnessed a marked change in attitudes towards the sport in his locality. “What
I do find surprising is how popular the sport has become. In the likes of Tallaght when I
first started off it wasn’t as popular as it is now. It still would have been looked upon as
a posh sport whereas now it’s just a popular sport to play. I think that stigma about it has
gone. I think its more open to everyone now.” The increased popularity has been boosted
by the success of Irish rugby in recent times as Dara alludes to. “It wouldn’t have taken off
without the success of Leinster and the Irish team.”
The increased interest in the game has been reflected by the number of new schools who
have taken up the game in the area. “A good few schools have started since I’ve began
the role. They’d be taking part in the South Dublin Development Cup and there are plenty
of schools taking part in it that would have never played before or would have never had
the opportunity before. It’s great for the club ‘cos we get the pick of those players coming
up and guys are encouraging their friends to come down as well.”
Unsurprisingly Dara finds the process of guiding players through from the beginning
of their playing careers to be extremely gratifying. “It’s brilliant. It’s definitely the most
rewarding thing, seeing players you’ve helped come on. Even guys I’ve had since first
year who are playing Leinster schools now. It’s nice to see that they had commitment and
you could show them the way.” Bearing in mind the leaps and bounds rugby has made in the past few years, Dara is
optimistic about the future of the game in clubs and less traditional rugby areas. “It’s great
that they have the development programs I find ‘cos its getting lads that might fly under
the radar. It will take time but you’ll definitely get more guys coming through. Down the
country as well they run their clubs quite well and they’ve got a big base of players. You
see guys who are coming through non rugby schools and they could easily get away with
playing for Blackrock or whatever.”
While it is well and good to have more players coming through, the structures must be
in place to recognise this talent and Dara firmly believes this is the case. “Leinster have
put down a foundation now so that those players wont really be missed out on so they’ll
have that chance and opportunity .The infrastructure has gotten massively better. I know
myself going through schools trials, we had a decent team and we won the league with
Templeogue but selectors would have never bothered with you. They would have looked
at the bigger schools. I’m quite proud of the way it’s changed with Leinster. The benefits
will pay back for them as well doing that.”
Although times are economically difficult Dara has witnessed a flip side to the financial
difficulties experienced by many. “I’ve found in the last couple of years with the recession
you do get a lot dads and former schools players coming down to help out, giving back
‘cos they have time to spare. That’s become much much more popular in the past coupe
of years.” This sort of volunteer, community based spirit should ensure the future for rugby
in the club and surrounding catchment area continues to look extremely promising.
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TEMPLEOGUE COLLEGE THROUGH TO
THIRD ROUND OF THE PLATE
Templeogue College hung on for a win in their second round plate match against Naas.
The visitors came out all guns blazing in the second half and forced two great scores to narrow the first half margain of two
converted tries to just four points.
The last ten minutes saw a great effort from both sides on a heavy pitch. Templeogue’s midfield held strong and the pack
forced a surge from the Naas forwards into touch from five yards out.
Templeogue went through to the next round 14-10
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GER McCLEERY
Ger McCleary is the Community Rugby Officer for the Fingal
County County Council area and is in his second year in the
role. Ger’s position involves not only working with a myriad of
local schools in the area but also includes liaising closely with
the rugby clubs in the area. “I do seven club visits a year and
do minis workshops, foundation workshops and seminars. For
instance in Skerries last month I did a tackling workshop. I used
the under-9s and I had about ten or twelve coaches there. Rather
than coach individual teams I do more coaching the coaches.”
Coaching is one area that Ger is particularly keen to work on and the CRO believes
there is plenty of room to improve in this regard. “Rugby is a complex game and a lot of
coaches haven’t played the game so they can struggle with some of the fundamentals
and very often what happens is they coach drills as distinct of skills. I’m a great believer in
coach the skills not the drills. You’ve got to put everything into a match situation. Not only
are we increasing numbers but the coaching ability has gone up year on year and I’ve
seen a huge improvement in my time in the role.”
The earlier kids are exposed to the game, the better chance they have of fostering a love
of the sport and Ger believes getting into schools as early as possible is vital in winning
over the hearts and minds of the schoolchildren being reached by the program. “In some
of the schools we were fortunate enough to get in in first year and I think that’s the way to
go. If you go in in first year and they’ve got no sport of choice then you can make inroads
with the rugby. In the likes of Castleknock Community College and Hartstown Community
School we’ve got good numbers in first year.”
While the standards of coaching have improved dramatically, the numbers playing the
game have also increased in tandem. “There’s no doubt rugby is getting bigger. Malahide
have over 250 minis and youths. Skerries have over 300. Balbriggan are starting to lay
solid foundations. We’re all working on the plan that if we get them into the kids in sixth
class then we can get them in first year and introduce them to contact rugby. We still
believe there’s a place for fun tag but what we’re trying to do is get teachers on board
who will run with the tag element and then we can take ten or twelve off and give them
experience of the contact. At that stage it’s up to the clubs to get volunteers interested and
make the connect from the schools to the clubs.”
Ger is dedicated to improving the standard of club players throughout his jurisdiction and
the CRO believes the gap between the club game and the top of the schools game is
smaller than many imagine. “My burning ambition is for Leinster youths to have as many
if not more in the academy level as the schools. I’m hoping we’ll chip away at it. The one
thing the schools have over us is the conditioning programs. They have guys in the gym
at seven in the morning. With our gym program you’re dependant on the lads doing it in
the evening time and some are more dedicated than others. I genuinely believe the guys
playing Leinster youths rugby have a bit more wit about them. They’ve got a bit more
imagination, they’re not robotic. The schools players can be a bit over coached. Some of
the imagination has gone out of them. That’s something we in Leinster pride ourselves on.
It’s about trying to play what’s in front of you. We try to encourage the kids to challenge
the contact not just rumble up and take it on.” Given the dramatic improvements in both
playing numbers and coaching standards in the Fingal area, it would appear that Ger’s
burning ambition has every chance of turning into reality.
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LEINSTER RUGBY EASTER CAMPS EXPAND
Following the success of the initial experiment of trying to replicate Community Rugby’s School of Excellence through an Easter Camp the scheme was
expanded outside Dublin into the county. In line with their vision to deliver rugby the ‘Leinster Way’, 3 camps were delivered this year, Railway Union,
Cill Dara and Ashbourne. In all, the camps attracted an attendance of over 100 children. As with the School of Excellence (visit www.leinsterrugby.
ie/camps for details) the Easter Camps are heavily skill based and presented by Leinster Rugby qualified coaches.
COOLMINE CUP GATHERS MOMENTUM
Thanks to the collective efforts of teachers Jeremy Kerr and Darran Breathnach, plus assistance from coaches attached to Coolmine RFC and
Westmanstown/Garda RFC the highly prized Coolmine Cup is attracting significantly increased participants from the two schools.
The contest is currently played at 1st year and Under 16 level. This year’s event featured 80 players from the participant schools. Gerry McCleery,
Fingal County Council Leinster Rugby Coaching Officer, and Daniel Pitcher who referred the matches at each level were highly impressed. ‘The
matches contained high skill levels, were intensely competitive but, true to the rugby ethos, were played in very sporting manner’ was their view
afterwards.
Gerry believes that with the concerted assistance of all currently involved these schools could in the next three years transcend Leinster Rugby’s School
Development stage. For the record Hartstown Community School retained the Cup but only on aggregate scores.
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BALBRIGGAN RFC
BILLY PHELAN
Billy Phelan is the Club Community Rugby Officer for Balbriggan RFC and is in his first
year with the club having previously undertaken a similar internship role in Finglas and
Glasnevin last year. Throughout the year Billy is involved with eight primary schools and
two secondary with the specific aim of boosting numbers in the club and as he explains,
the program has been successful in this regard. “It’s going well. There’s a big uptake on
the minis. We’re basically trying to implement a five year plan in Balbriggan. The youths
have sort of dwindled over the last few years and we’ve earmarked the minis coming
through as the new youths of the future. Numbers are on the increase the whole time. We
had the Heineken Cup out in the schools one day and that evening the minis coordinator
had four new phone calls about guys wanting to start playing in the club. It’s just about
getting the message across that we’re a direct link between the schools and the club.”
Alongside his work in local schools, Billy helps out in the club two evenings a week. “Two
evenings a week I’m in the club helping out with the coaches. The youths training on
Wednesdays and the minis training on Thursdays. I go down not really to take the session
but in a coaching the coaches role. I ask them what they’re lacking whether its tackling or
passing, set up a fifteen minute exercise for them, show it to them then leave them to work
for the forty five minutes stepping in and out to get a bit of feedback from them.”
Rugby’s prominence in the area has grown exponentially in recent times and Billy believes
things are moving in the right direction. “There’s a huge link between the popularity of
Leinster rugby and you can see the enthusiasm that’s there. Jamie Hagan is from the area
as well. The kids can see the direct link. He’s a local lad and he’s come through. They can
be that person. It’s not just limited to the traditional rugby schools.”
The popularity of rugby in Ardgillan Community College has taken off and Billy is keen
to highlight the school’s involvement with the game. “They’re a young secondary school.
They’re only four years old so they’re only at fourth year. This year we’ve managed to put
together an under13, under14 and under15 team there so there’s three teams in a school
thats only four years old. The success from my end is that these guys are filtering down to
the rugby club too.”
Billy is optimistic about the future of rugby in the area and believes the structures are in place
to ensure a conveyor belt of rugby talent is coming down the line as he explains. “Without
a doubt there’ll be more guys coming into the professional ranks form untraditional areas.
At the end of the year we do a north east development team and we’d be looking at
players throughout the whole area and you can see there’s a huge amount of talent there.
There’s a lot more eyes out there, whether it’s me in my capacity as a CCRO or another
guy in Skerries or Navan. We’re all talking and we all sing off the same hymn sheet in
regards to coaching.” The singularity of mindset Billy alludes to is proof that the there is a
cohesion of purpose that bodes well for rugby in the Balbriggan locality.
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ST. MOLAGA’S
PLAY RUGBY
NS,
The 6th class students of St. Molaga’s NS, Balbriggan
recently completed their six week “Play Rugby”
programme which concluded with an inter-class tag
rugby blitz. With over 120 boys and girls taking part
each week and each one enjoying their experience
in learning new rugby skills, much fun was had by all.
Much anticipation led up to the blitz with the students
picking out their team names and as the teams made
there way to the pitches, the sun decided it would join
us too. Over the next two hours each team played
out their matches in great spirit and everyone had a
fantastic time displaying all the new skills they had
gained over previous six weeks.
Many thanks to all who made the morning a great
success, especially Ms De Faoite for facilitating the
programme and Gerry McCleery and Michael
Woods for their help in refereeing on the day.
If any other schools, colleges or community groups
in the Balbriggan area wish to participate in a similar
“Play Rugby” programmes please contact Billy
Phelan (CCRO Balbriggan RFC) on 086 8688314 or
ARDGILLAN TAKE TO
THE PITCH FOR 1st TIME
At a recently held rugby blitz in Malahide RFC, the Ardgillan CC
1st Year rugby team took the field for the first time. Many of the
students involved had never played the game before but after just
finishing their six week “Play Rugby” programme, where they had
experienced the game through tag rugby, the time had come to
play for real. Their first match pitted them against Malahide CS
where they took to pitch with a mixture of excitement and nerves,
these were soon forgotten as both teams got into the game
and showed the skills they had learnt over the previous weeks.
Portmarnock CS were up next and again the Ardgillan students
acquitted themselves well against a more experienced team. Every
one the students thoroughly enjoyed the experience and can’t wait to get more matches under their belts and with each one asking when the Youths
training was on in their local club, Balbriggan RFC, the future looks bright for rugby in the area.
Gerry McCleery, the Leinster Rugby CRO for Fingal, who refereed both the games was very impressed with the level that they had achieved from
scratch and added that he was very impressed with their skill level, commitment, and team work all round.
Ardgillan CC teacher and coach, Mr. Shields, was delighted with his teams first outing and hopes for more of the same to come. He also thanked Billy
Phelan, CCRO Balbriggan RFC, for the work and training over the past number of months.
The morning was a great success for all the teams involved and a big thanks to Brendan Carpenter (CCRO Malahide RFC), Gerry McCleery (CRO
Leinster Rugby) and Malahide RFC for making it so.
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MALAHIDE RFC
BRENDAN CARPENTER
Brendan Carpenter is the Club Community Rugby Officer for Malahide RFC and is in
his first year in the role. Brenadan is a former member of the Connacht academy and
is currently playing with Malahide. After liaising with the club, a decision was made to
focus attention on the under-thirteens and under-fourteens age brackets which had been
struggling as Brendan explains. “The big one for Malahide was the secondaries with first
years and second years in particular so we kinda hit them quite hard this year and we
seemed to have got a lot out of two those age groups in the club with the u13s an u14s.
There seems to have been a big impact on the numbers.”
Brendan’s success in targeting the early secondary school years is evidenced by his work
with Malahide Community College. “The first year programme we did this year has been
very good in Malahide Community College which is quite big. All the classes did an eight
week module and then we did three blitzes with one hundred and fifty kids at the last one
which was quite a success and obviously that’s impacted on the numbers back at the club
with the thirteens and fourteen.”
Alongside his work with first and second year groups, Brendan is also involved with
two primary schools with whom he does one class per term before holding an internal
blitz at the end of each term. Overall Brendan has found the secondary schools slightly
more productive in terms of getting his message across. “I tend to get more done in the
secondaries. There’s just lads in the class so you get a lot more out of it rugbywise. I’ve
found that age group has been more productive than the younger kids. The primary
schools can be quite tough. Obviously there’s girls in the class and they don’t aways take
to it as well as the lads. They don’t always get involved as much as you’d like.” Despite
enduring the occasional struggle Brendan still feels the program is working well.
A key part of ensuring rugby continues to grow stronger is coach education and Brendan
works closely with the rugby club in this regard. “There’s quite a good tie in with most of
the coaches. Most of them give me a ring to do a session here, there and everywhere.
They seem to be on board with all that. Just with the simplicity of some the drills you do
they wouldn’t even think of doing. They take it aboard and bring it back to their sessions
then.”
Brendan is optimistic about the future of the sport but recognises the need to constantly
adapt to stay ahead of the game. “We’re heading in the right direction anyway. It’s just
about finding out is what is working and what’s not and using a bit of trial and error.”
Undoubtedly a sensible approach to take.
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MALAHIDE C.S. SHOWN THE PATHWAY TO
SUCCESS
Jack Hanratty (Leinster Community Rugby Officer) addresses pupils from Malahide Community School
Malahide Community School’s senior rugby team benefitted from a visit from Leinster C.R.O. Jack Hanratty who gave the
students a presentation on how to combine academic studies and training.
The hour long visit focused on giving the players the tools needed for self appraisal, goal setting and developing themselves
as individuals.
Hanratty, who is also working on various programmes at Dublin City University, explained the various pathways that
were available to players that come out of schools like Malahide Community College, including scholarships that did not
necessarily have to go to the next Brian O’Driscoll.
The Malahide lads, including those participating in the school’s inaugural transition year programme, came away from
the seminar with a clearer view in mind on what was needed to obtain a better balance for themselves and some good
information on a number of different pathways their rugby could take them.
85
SKERRIES RFC
MICHAEL WOODS
Michael Woods is in his second year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with Skerries
RFC and through his work as a CCRO has ran six week introductory rugby courses for
eleven schools in the area. Overall it has been an extremely positive experience for
Woods. “I think the reception of me going into the schools is very encouraging. It’s open
arms in fact. A lot of parents have come over to me and said their kids look forward to
the rugby more so than anything else these days. It’s very encouraging around here at
the moment.” The enthusiasm for rugby is not divided along gender lines and the interest
of girls in the sport has been particularly impressive in the Skerries area. “I held a rugby
open day for girls last week. I was expecting maybe fifteen girls down but I got fifty five
girls showing up for rugby
The girls have really taken it on board and the teachers in the all the schools helped me
push that as well which was good.”
Through his work with local primary schools, Michael has seen an already impressive minis
section at Skerries RFC grow further, so much so that pitch space is becoming a legitimate
issue. While the minis is booming, the dropoff of playing numbers after secondary schools
is something that Michael and Skerries RFC are keen to tackle. “What we’re working
on now is how to bring players from secondary schools back to the club without losing
them through the net. We’ve developed a program where we’re holding the coaches
with a team the whole way through to keep familiarity so when they come back from
playing senior cup in school the same faces are there form before.” This sense of collective
purpose is symptomatic of a rugby club who as Michael notes exists to serve its members.
“Its a family club. The first thing the president says is ‘its not our club, its your club’. We’re
a community club, everyone’s more than welcome into the club. If someone has trouble
getting gear or whatever, we do all we can to make sure they have boots or jumpers or
whatever.”
One thing that has undoubtedly helped drive this sense of collective spirit is the running
of coaching programs as Michael highlights. “Any chance I get I jump on any coaching
course that are going on. You would want to see the amount of fathers down the club after
doing the courses. You might have 20 coaches available.”
Despite the considerable successes Michael has enjoyed in a relatively short time period,
he readily admits to being on a learning curve to a certain extent and recognises the
improvements he himself has made since beginning the job. “Last year I was finding my
feet a bit but this years gone really really well. I worked things in myself and adapted
things.” If the coming years prove to follow this upward trajectory, then the game of rugby
in Skerries looks set to enjoy a prosperous period.
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SKERRIES RFC WELCOMES GIRLS RUGBY
In a year when Irish Women’s rugby took a huge step forward, Skerries RFC embarked on its first steps towards a fully
functional Girls rugby section.
Thanks in the main to the Club CCRO, Michael Woods, a large turnout of over 50 girls attended the Clubs first all-girls blitz.
“We were somewhat surprised by the numbers but hopefully it reflects the interest in the game amongst girls and thankfully
a number of the Clubs youth coaches were in attendance and we were able to run a well-integrated session”, said Woods.
The girls took part in some warm up and handling exercises, then divided into six teams, playing two matches each initially,
whereupon some correctional drills were done and the session finished with a final game. The feedback from the girls was
overwhelmingly positive.
Incoming President, Pascal Byrne, expressed his delight with the event. ‘We are very much a community Club, and not just
for Skerries but also catering for the localities of Rush, Lusk and surrounding areas, and as such, are keen to encourage
girl’s rugby through to full women’s rugby. However, space is at a premium, with over 300 youths using the two pitches,
and we are in desperate need of further playing and training facilities. If the appropriate authorities could allocate us pitch
space we would deliver rugby to all who wish to play’.
Part of the success of the blitz was its timing. Run prior to the Club’s All Ireland League match versus Clonakilty and similar
plans are afoot to run another blitz on the day of the 1st Team’s last home AIL fixture against Sligo RFC on Saturday, 23rd
March.
87
SUTTONIANS RFC
PHILLIPUS STEFANUS VAN GRUTING
Stephan van Gruting is in his first year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with Suttonians
RFC. The New Zealand native is only over in Ireland for a year and has combined his
CCRO role with playing for the first team in Suttonians. Throughout the course of the year,
Stephan has ran courses for six primary schools and one secondary school and although
he is only in contact with the kids for six weeks at a time, he has seen major improvements
in their skill levels. “The kids have loved it. The teachers have helped out a lot and when
the course is finished they’re sad to see you go. I’d definitely notice a big improvement
from the first session to the last. At the start they don’t know any of the rules and then at
the end they can pretty much play a tag game”. The improvement of the kids is down to
making rugby fun and accessible as the Kiwi explains. “I tend not to go into too much
decision making stuff in the schools. It’s just about getting the basics of running, catching
and passing which are the most important for me, just to get them used to that.”
In order to make the experience as enjoyable as possible for the schoolchildren, Stephan
is aware of the need for organisation on his end to ensure things run smoothly. “Having a
plan was pretty important for me this year, knowing what I had done previously with the
class was a big help so I could get straight into the session.”
This simple approach to enjoying the game has bore fruit and Stephan regularly sees
kids he has coached in the local schools supporting the Suttonians first team on weekend
mornings. While there has been a direct correlation between the program in the schools
and a boost in numbers in the minis section of the club, Suttonians have further sought
to boost numbers by offering trial memberships free of charge to parents so their kids
can experience training and game until the end of the season without having to pay
membership subs. This sort of thinking outside the box is precisely what is needed to
continue to expand the game and Suttonians and Stephan appear to be on the right track
in that regard.
88
BURROW N.S. RELISH LONDON TRIP
Burrow National School, Sutton have always been stalwart supporters of the Fingal County Council/Leinster Rugby Tag
programme, especially teachers Ciara Blennerhassett and Kim Harris - and many of their pupils - have gone on to play for
Suttonians RFC at minis and youth level.
Their embracement of the game was duly recognized when the school was invited to partake in a tournament held in
Chase Bridge Primary School, London comprising 12 teams, including representatives from Wales and Italy. The 12 pupils
selected to represent their school did so admirably winning 6 of their 8 matches, only losing to the eventual winners 5-4.
The players were treated to a tour of Twickenham, home of English rugby, and also took in an English Premiership match
at the Stoop and met some players from the home team, Harlequins.
‘We really enjoyed the trip and would love to go again with the whole class. It was an amazing experience’, was the
team’s verdict, showing admirable solidarity.
The school hope to reciprocate the hospitality received and have issued an invite for their hosts to visit Sutton in June when
Suttonians RFC and Leinster Rugby will arrange a competitive event.
As the competition limited squads to 12 players Leinster Rugby arranged a visit of the Heineken Cup to the school as some
compensation and the pupils who missed out got some ‘Blue Magic’ mementos courtesy of Fingal County Council Rugby
Development Officer Gerry McCleery.
89
SWORDS RFC
SIMON LEAR
Simon Lear is in his first year as a full time CCRO having previously worked in an intern
capacity with Leinster rugby. Originally from Wales, Simon studied sports science and
education following an injury at youth level and has been coaching rugby for the last four
years. This background in performance analysis subsequently led Simon into coaching.
Throughout the year, Simon is involved with three schools and many of the kids the CCRO
has taught had never previously experienced the game. “It’s most of the schools’ first time
and probably only a handful would have played rugby, maybe only four or five would
have played. We start with the basics, take everybody from the basic level and progress
it each week and then get them to play tag rugby in six sessions. It depends on a class’
ability and their skill levels but generally they take to it pretty well.” Simon has been in Ireland for the past seven years and in his time here has noticed a
significant change in the perception of rugby as a sport. “I think the stigma of it as an elitist
sport is gone. I think rugby is enjoyed by the whole rather than just a few now”. Simon and
Swords RFC are seeking to capitalise on this popularity by starting a minis section in the
club and much of the work Simon does is geared towards creating potential players for
the future. “We’re striving to set up a mins section but it hasn’t happened yet. We had an
after school sessions for one of the schools so there are guys who are interested enough
out there.”
While most of the kids Simon introduces the game to are more than willing to learn, those
who don’t want to get involved can be problematic for the CCRO. “What I find difficult
is that kids who have no interest in the rugby can be disruptive. If there’s none of them it
makes the experience a lot more enjoyable for everyone. When you get them all paying
attention and having fun it’s so enjoyable but sometimes you can spend more time giving
out to kids than coaching them.” Despite these occasional trying moments, the enjoyment
of the majority of the kids makes the process worthwhile for Simon. “I’m enjoying it
overall.”
90
91
STEPHEN GORE
Stephen Gore is the Community Rugby Officer for the Dun
Laoighre Rathdown area and has been in the role for three
years. Prior to starting in DunLaoighre-Rathdown, Stephen
occupied a similar role in the Tallaght area for nine years and
consequentially is in a strong position to assess the strengths,
successes, weaknesses and issues of the community rugby
program. Day to day Stephen is involved in promoting rugby
through a myriad of programs aimed at schools in the area.
“Day to day is the delivery of rugby programs. It can vary between tag in a primary
school to tag rugby in a girls’ school or developing rugby in a development cup school,
just trying to help them develop as a school team. We do have a good infrastructure there.
We’d be delivering about twelve to thirteen different programs within our workload.”
The successful implementation of these programs is reliant on the clubs participation
and Stephen is happy with the relationships that have been fostered between individual
clubs and the province. “Everybody buys in, that’s the most important thing, that the Club
Community Rugby Officers and the coaches buy in. If they don’t believe in it and they
don’t believe in what we’re trying to do then they won’t attend our seminars, our courses.
We do have very good relationships with our clubs and they do believe in what we’re
trying to push and that’s not just on the field stuff but also marketing and other things. If
we want to do something and we put our name to it, a lot of the clubs will do what we’re
preaching. We’re trying to make them the best clubs that we can.”
The development of coaching standards is a key part of the role and the improvement
seen in this regard has had a knock on effect on players abilities. “Raising coaching
standards is a big part of the job, we do it through coaching courses. Also we do it
through workshops which we deliver to our clubs and our schools, to assist these coaches
from what we call a leprechaun standard(non-contact) up to an under18 standard. The
attitude and the skill level has improved a lot in the three years. Our coaching education
has a direct knock on effect on the kids. From the games drills and the advice we’d give
coaches, it has a direct impact on the kids level of play.”
The style and method of coaching is important to Stephen and he lays out the philosophy
behind Leinster’s approach throughout the province. “What we’re trying to really
encourage is a form of coaching called hold, part, hold. We’re coaching through game
situations. We don’t start our sessions with a basic warm up. We’ll start off with a quick
dynamic warm up, followed by a quick game straight away. If we’re going to work on
passing in the session, we’ll have a quick game of touch or light contact. We see how their
hands are going after about ten minutes then put them into a drill, work the drill and then
put them back in the game and see how the drill has improved them. You can’t recreate
match conditions in any drill so we do it through a game, then put them in a drill and see
if theres any improvement.”
Having been involved with the program for a prolonged period of time, Stephen believes
that the province have transitioned from a team that was mainly made up of south Dublin
based players, to a team that is representative of the entire province and the CRO believes
the standard of rugby outside the elite schools system has come on immeasurably. “What
we’re trying to really do is to make sure it’s a twelve county province. For us it’s trying to
92
recognise good players. If we see a good player in the development cup schools system, we let the Coaching Development
Officers(CDO) know there’s players there and then those kids go into the representative area teams. “A lot of the CDOs
would say that a lot of the youths players have as good if not better basic skills than the schools players but the schools
players are better conditioned. In fairness to the elite player officers and the CDOs, they are recognising these players and
they’re pushing them through.”
Schemes such as the club excellence scheme alongside the numerous coaching workshops that are put on have undoubtedly
helped the club game develop as Stephen explains. “The club excellence program is something I’m a big believer in. It’s a
program the IRFU developed two and a half years ago. They set out 54 criteria a club needs to get the excellence award.
Those criteria vary from insurance to onfield stuff, garda vetting, volunteer recruitment and retention, player recruitment
and retention and clubhouse facilities.” This commitment to excellence can only be a positive and schemes such as this,
combined with the dedication shown by Stephen and others in the field should mean the development of the game continues
a pace throughout the twelve counties.
BLACKROCK HOST COACHING SEMINAR
Blackrock College RFC recently hosted a Mini Stage 1 and 2 coaching course which was delivered by Stephen Gore
(Community Rugby Officer, Leinster Rugby) which featured topics such as Decision Making and Game Awareness.
The aim of the Seminar is to provide advice and assistance to the coaches from Blackrock College RFC to allow them to
develop their coaching skills.
Leinster Rugby will continue to deliver any seminar to any rugby club that seeks to develop their coaching skills.
Stephen Gore pictured in Blackrock College RFC
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DLSP RFC
VICTOR BALL
Victor Ball is in his first year as a Club Community Rugby Officer with De La Salle
Palmerstown and has thoroughly embraced the role. “Im really enjoying it. No two days
are the same. The kids love it, they’re enthusiastic. The energy they bring to it, it’s rewarding
when you see the improvement.” The schools have also embraced the concept as Victor
attests to. “All the schools have been great. They’ve been really welcoming and they’re
happy to have me in. All the schools 100 percent want it back for next year.” “We sat
down at the start of the year and said we’d target schools we hadn’t been in before and
as I said they were absolutely delighted to have us in.”
Although Victor has seen mass enthusiasm in the schools he is involved with, there are still
challenges in ensuring that those who have experienced rugby in the schools keep up the
game. “The real yardstick will be whether the kids stick with it. They”re certainly enjoying
it anyway so hopefully when they leave primary school they’ll keep playing.” In Victor’s
view there has been a direct impact on an already booming minis section. I definitely
recognise a few new faces in the club from the schools I’ve been in.” “The minis is buzzing
up there. Every Sunday the whole place is just jammed with kids and parents. It’s great to
see. I’d say DLSP has one of the strongest minis and youths section in the province. “We
just had the Karen Burke under 7s rugby festival there a few weeks ago and there were
thousands up there. An absolutely huge turnout.”
While the sheer number playing the game at underage level is extremely impressive, the
importance of improving the level of coaching is also vital in ensuring playing standards
continue to rise as Victor alludes to. “A big part of it is coaching the coaches. We got
about fifteen of the mini and youth coaches, myself and Stephen Gore (Community
Rugby Officer Dun Laoighre Rathdown) and had a coaching clinic spread through all the
different elements of the game. Not to tell them how to go about coaching but just to give
them ideas how to structure sessions and different drills. Some stuff they might have seen
before, some stuff might have been new to them or just refreshing their memories.”
Rising standards of coaching allied with monstrous playing numbers should mean the
future of rugby in the DLSP vicinity continues to look bright. Victor is equally optimistic
looking forward. “It’s only the first year but I think we’re on the right track. The building
blocks are there now and we’ve got to try and keep improving.”
To see the improvement over six weeks from when i first get in there to the end, its pretty
rewarding
Handling is one thing you defintely notice in the six weeks
The challenge is once they finish high school is getting them to try and stick with it and go
back to the club
Its just about getting them enjoying it. Spreading the word about the club and telling guys
how they can join the club
They all know about Leinster and they just cant wait to get their hands on a rugby ball.
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DLSP SPECIAL NEEDS BLITZ A SUCCESS ALL ROUND
Sport, as the old adage goes, is all about taking part. Unfortunately
the desire to win can sometimes corrupt and get in the way of this
underpinning principle.
This accusation could not be levelled at the participants of the De
La Salle special needs rugby blitz whose actions and behaviour
served to highlight the true transcendental nature of sport as results
took a back seat to fun, inclusivity and participation.
The pure enjoyment of sport for sport’s sake was evident for all
to see as special needs teams from DLSP, Seapoint, Greystones,
Westmanstown as well as the Ulster based Newforge Dragons
battled it out in a tag rugby extravaganza. While a deep desire to
win was evident, it was a sense of collective community that was
the overriding feeling at the foot of the Dublin mountains as bursts
of laughter rang through the crisp spring air. Win, lose or draw, all the teams clapped each other off and acknowledged one another’s efforts in a
show of sportsmanship that was a credit to the players involved.
Parents, volunteers and coaches thronged the sidelines to bring a real sense of occasion to proceedings as the teams engaged in games that were
both quick and lacking no little amount of skill. It was a common occurrence to see players, with an O’Driscoll-esque shimmy of the hips, ghost through
gaps with unerring ease and balance, much to the delight of the watching crowd, not to mention the coaches who stalked the sidelines doling out
instructions and offering encouragement.
DLSP Eagles coach, David Hicks was one of those prowling the whitewash with gusto and despite the competitive nature of the games, the rapport
between David and his players was consistently one founded on camaraderie, banter and respect. Hicks is truly a gregarious character and his
charisma and passion were a key component in establishing the blitz in DLSP.
Whether imploring his charges to run straight or offering boisterous encouragement from the sidelines, the noise of David’s voice consistently pierced
the still mountain air. He was not alone in creating the sort of atmosphere that will live long in the memory as the myriad of coaching staff, parents and
volunteers left nobody in any doubt as to who was supporting what team.
Judging by the success of Sunday’s blitz, it looks sure to become a regular event in the calendar and the sense of involvement at all levels was
encapsulated by the presence of DLSP president Karl Burke on the sideline for the duration of proceedings. The participation of the Newforge Dragons
also added a national dimension to proceedings and although “Stand up for the Ulster men” could be heard on more than one occasion, this mortal
sin was overlooked in the spirit of the day!
Once the dust had settled after a frenetic afternoon of rugby and group photos were taken on the DLSP steps, it was the collective sense of community
that once again shone through like a beacon as the battles fought on the pitch were swiftly forgotten amidst a sea of smiling faces.
BALLINTEER BLITZ
On Friday 16th November, St. Attracta’s National
School and Our Lady’s National Boys School took
part in a Tag Blitz at Dundrum FC.
120 boys and girls participated in the Blitz.
This Blitz was the conclusion of the Leinster Tag Rugby
programme that both schools participated in over 6
weeks in term 1.
As recognition of their participation, the children from
both schools all received certificates from Leinster
Rugby and mini Leinster Rugby balls.
95
JACK HANRATTY
Jack Hanratty is the Community Rugby Officer for the Dublin
City Council area, overseeing the promotion of rugby in primary
schools, secondary schools and third level educational institutions
in the area. Having been in the role for five years, Jack has seen
big strides made both in the implementation of the program and
in general playing standards. The success of Irish rugby in recent
years has played a massive part in bringing rugby to the masses
as Jack is keen to emphasise. “The development process has
really been improved over the years but also the knowledge of rugby around has really
improved. That level of interest is the biggest thing. Rugby used to be seen as a private
school southside game but in the last few years with the growth of Leinster and the success
of the Irish team rugby has become anybody’s sport and everyone wants to give it a go. I
think the stigma of it as an elitist sport is gone. There’ll always be a few people who think
that way but in my mind it’s gone. People want to play the game because it’s an enjoyable
game because it’s physical and skilful.” The spread of the game to areas that traditionally would not have experienced a great
deal of rugby has been welcomed with open arms and Jack believes the life skills these
young kids learn from rugby can be invaluable in their development. “In untraditional
areas role models, youth leaders and teachers want to see the sport grow due in large
part to the great disciplinary record. It’s a great way to teach kids how to behave a bit
better.” One revolutionary scheme that was implemented revolved around intrinsically
linking discipline and rugby as Jack explains. “The ‘tackle education’ initiative was a big
positive. In a school in Finglas, detention was on the same time as rugby training and the
guys couldn’t train if they got detention. That was something that stuck in the head and
hopefully turned a couple of lads into good rugby players.”
Growing the sport into areas that previously would have had no experience of playing
the game is a priority for Jack and the development of rugby in urban areas represents
a cohesive tactic undertaken by Leinster in partnership with Dublin City Council and the
development of rugby in urban centres is something Jack is particularly proud of. “Liberty
Saints are going well, they’re a new club in the Liberties and we’re also working on the
development of rugby hubs, not necessarily clubs but just somewhere people can come
and learn about the game, guys from a very, very untraditional rugby background some
of whom may have had difficult upbringings. They’ve seen the game of rugby as hopefully
something that can inspire them. The council over the last two years have come on board
with Leinster. There was really good work done last year and this year we’re running the
first ever Dublin City Council rugby team where we’re trying to get people from non rugby
playing backgrounds to come and play and wear the blue not just of Leinster but also of
Dublin. We’ve had one training session which has gone extremely well.”
The hard work undertaken is beginning to pay dividends and looking forward, Jack
believes the structures are in place to ensure this progress continues apace. “The youth
structure for nonrugby playing schools is a massive positive. Guys can play representative
rugby and can be from anywhere in Leinster its not just Blackrock or Belvedere. These
players are from anywhere, they go and have a screening session if we feel there’s some
potential there.” Seeing players come through the system is understandably gratifying and
Jack believes more and more young players view rugby as a legitimate option regardless
96
of background. “From my point of view, in ten years time, I’d love to see a guy from a non traditional rugby playing area
putting the blue of Leinster on at any age group. People often dream about playing soccer for Ireland or GAA for Dublin
in these areas. They’ve never really thought about playing in the blue for Leinster and that’s something I think has changed
in the last few years and in the future there’s definitely guys who will genuinely want to give it a go. They see professional
rugby as a career path.” Although Jack is moving onto pastures new, the work he has undertaken in the past five years has helped ensure a bright
future for the sport in the province and the Nova Scotia bound CRO believes the foundations have been laid for the future.
“I think we’ve had an extremely good year of development. Now it’s just trying to put that bit of structure in place to make
sure the good work is cemented down and continued.” If the next incumbent displays the same sort of passion and tenacity
as Jack, then the rapid progression of rugby in the Dublin area should indeed continue.
OLD WESLEY CONDUCT COACHING SEMINAR
Earlier this week Leinster Rugby CRO Jack Hanratty conducted a seminar in Old Wesley RFC on the Topic “Goal Setting
for the Season ahead”.
The seminar, the first of its kind, went through session plans, difficulties of last season and setting realistic targets for the
season ahead.
Jack Hanratty (CRO for Dublin City Council region) said: “This was a pilot seminar, one that I will be trying to run in many
clubs in my area. The greatest part of this seminar is having an open forum of club coaches and creating communication
between them all.”
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DUBLIN CITY COUNTY COUNCIL
COLM FINNEGAN
Colm Finnegan is the Community Rugby Officer for the Ballymun
Regeneration area and has been in the role for two years. In
his post, Colm liaises closely with Ballymun Regeneration Ltd. to
implement programs that not only seek to boost rugby but also
seek to implement a beneficial social agenda as Colm explains.
“It’s a close partnership. We set up a rugby scholarship in Trinity
Comprehensive secondary school. It was aimed at keeping
kids in school and getting them an extra bit of school time when
they’re there. We do extra rugby coaching with them. They get a
coaching course, work experience and they get an extra couple of hours study time after
school. It’s to give them the best chance of going to college afterwards. We take them
to all the colleges to give them first hand experience and give them a tour around in the
college and a rugby training session from the local coaches in the college. It’s just one of
the ways we’re trying to increase the profile of third level education in the area. Ballymun
has one of the worst percentages of schools in the whole of Ireland for going onto third
level education. The program is only in its first year but it definitely seems to be having
the desired effect. We have ten kids in it at the minute and over the next five years we’re
planning on taking fifteen kids in first year every year so it will build up to seventy five or
ninety kids.”
The enthusiasm displayed by teachers in Trinity Comprehensive is reflective of attitudes
throughout Ballymun and Colm is keen to pay tribute to the work that has been put in by
staff in the twelve primary and four secondary schools he has been involved with so far
this year. “It’s great to be able to establish relationships with teachers. The fact that you’ve
been in the area for so long means people know you and having a profile in the rugby
club helps. There’s never been any resistance from schools. They’re all more than happy
to get rugby in because it teaches the kids life skills as well.”
While the development of the game in local schools is admirable in its own right, it has
also helped push the club forward as Colm explains. “When I arrived we had seven
under-17s and that was the only youths in the club. Now there’s minis, twenty six under17s, development teams at 13s and 14s, two mens team as opposed to one before and
a womens team as well, so the whole thing is growing out. The minis have developed
massively. There’s thirty kids there the whole time. Before there was literally one child
coming down. Every week now we’re getting more and more kids. It’s ever growing. It’s
probably the biggest success that we’ve had to date. Once you get the kids in minis then
they develop through the club system and it becomes a conveyor belt of talent.”
While Ballymun would not traditionally be considered a hot bed of rugby talent, Colm
believes that this is changing and highlights how the stigma around the game has been
eroded over the past few years on the back of both the success of Irish rugby and the
implementation of the community rugby program. “It would still be a very nontraditional
area in regard to rugby so you’re constantly developing ideas and putting forward the
whole ethos of rugby in the area. I’ve never encountered a stigma regarding rugby
in Ballymun. There’s really just a great enthusiasm for the sport. The stigma isn’t there
anymore. The rugby stars now are some of the most recognisable starts in any sport. A lot
of it is down to how Leinster have marketed themselves over the last few years.”
98
NORTH DUBLIN CUP BLITZ
There was plenty of action to be seen recently in the DCC pitches at Clontarf Road where four local schools were taking
part in a North Dublin Blitz.
The players were from Coolmine Community Comprehensive, St Vincent’s Glasnevin, Trinity Comprehensive Ballymun and
the eventual winners, St Kevin’s Finglas. Some of the rugby on show belied the supposed inexperience of the teams.
There were representatives from Unidare, Clontarf and Coolmine rugby clubs on show between the schools and all of the
players were a credit to their teams. Each team played three matches and there was an appearance of the Heineken Cup
which caused great excitement.
In what was an even competition, all schools had spells of dominance in matches, and what struck spectators was the
organisation and structure that all played with.
CRO with Fingal County Council, Gerry McCleery, also spoke of it, “you always get strong individual players in any team
but whats been great to see is the progress of the schools into structured play and how they attack space and bring other
players into the game.”
The teachers who coach the teams have really put in the work on the training pitch and its clear to see that their players
have been taking on board the advice. The development of all schools over the past two years has been marked and is
testament to the effort of everyone.
For any more information on Projects in the North Dublin area you can contact Colm Finnegan, CRO for the Ballymun area
on 0877692257 or on [email protected].
99
BECTIVE RANGERS FC
BRAD ALLAM
Brad Allam has been in his role as a Club Community Rugby Officer (CCRO) with Bective
RFC for two years and through his work with local primary and secondary schools has
seen a marked increase in numbers in the minis and youths section in Bective. By running
internal tag blitzes in the schools he is involved with, Brad believes the children involved
get a good introduction to the game. “The blitzes in particular are really good days.
Tag is a good way of introducing kids to the game gently.””On a few occasions this
year I’ve been down with the under-12s and kids have rocked up from Sandford Parish
or somewhere like that. They don’t normally come by themselves. They bring a buddy
which is a good thing. It’s just good to see them getting involved.” Understandably this
noticeable impact makes the job a rewarding one. “Seeing guys taking up the game,
it’s definitely rewarding especially ‘cos Bective don’t have a feeder school. Through the
CCRO program schools like Sandford Parish, Conleth’s and a couple of others are starting
to feed into Bective. It’s starting to happen so hopefully we can build on that.”
Brad is the overseas player for Bective this year and his New Zealand upbringing puts
him in a unique position to judge the success of the program given that he hails form the
premier rugby playing nation on the planet. Also qualified in sports management, Brad
is unequivocally impressed by the structures in place throughout the province. “I think the
system is great, I think the way Leinster have the system set up is excellent. I would go as
far as to say that going back to New Zealand one day, I’d be using this as a template.”
“We’re going into schools that normally wouldn’t get someone with rugby expertise in
them so we are another set of eyes on the ground. There is young talent that I’ve notice just
playing tag and encouraged them to come along and next thing they’re down in Bective
playing away. We’re trying to increase the range of players and tap into different areas
and it wouldn’t happen without the infrastructure in place.”
Like many other CCROs, Brad has seen an explosion in interest amongst the women’s
game and is particularly blown away by the success of tag.
100
BECTIVE BLITZ
120 children from both Kildare Place Primary & Sandford Parish National School descended upon Bective Rangers FC to
put into practice their recently acquired Tag Rugby skills.
Both schools had been eagerly anticipating the Bective blitz in which many of them would be playing against their buddies,
and we all know a little bit of rivalry never goes astray!
The blitz ran from 11am through to 2pm with every player participating in at least 1 entire hour of tag rugby, in the form of
six, ten minute matches with some great skills on display throughout.
The rugby was played at a very good standard proving just how much these kids have improved in a short amount of time,
in particular their knowledge and adherence to the rules of the game.
At the conclusion of the matches Leinster handed out some small goodies and memorabilia to the great appreciation of the
budding tag rugby players.
All in all it truly was an excellent day and great craic was had by all involved, including the teachers and the Leinster
Referees!
101
CLONTARF FC
STEPHEN MAHER
Club Community Rugby Officer for Clontarf RFC Stephen Maher has been in the role for
seven years and has witnessed substantial benefits in that time particularly in the minis
section where Stephen’s work with local primary schools is paying dividends. “Minis at
the moment in Clontarf, numbers wise is the highest its been in years, so much so we’re
now struggling to get coaches in. The numbers are just growing and growing and growing
in the club.” The booming numbers in Clontarf minis are, in Stephen’s view, down to
making rugby as fun as possible from the outset. “It’s just about getting the kids with the
rugby ball in their hands. If they enjoy it we’ll see them down in the rugby club. If not at
least we gave them a taste of it.” This approach has borne considerable success in the
eight primary schools that have experienced the program this year.
The increasing numbers have also being allied with better playing standards and
Stephen can see a visible link between introduction to the sport in primary schools and
the beginnings of the representative system. “Through the sheer numbers I have had in
primary schools who are now going through the youths system. Personally I’ve seen the
progress from guys starting rugby in the national schools, bringing it into the secondary
schools and up to the club then.”
The lost summer months are something the CCRO laments and believes the summer camps
are invaluable in ensuring kids have an opportunity to not lay idle for the duration of
the holidays. “The more camps we can get out there the better. There are times over the
summer holidays when kids wouldn’t touch a rugby ball until they go back training again
after summer. The more kids we can get in the camps the better.”
The creation of a infrastructure where young talent is recognised and rewarded through
clubs has played a big part in making the realm of professional rugby seem more
accessible as Stephen attests to. “I think the Metro side and the Shane Horgan Cup is a
massive thing for them. There is that link there for guys who play in the club, They can see
the connection to Leinster.”
Along with the structures in place, Maher is keen to emphasise the positive impact the
success of Irish rugby at the highest level has had. “Success on the pitch links into what
we’re doing. It makes my job a lot easier. Kids want to be playing rugby now. When I
started you might go in and a kid would say no I don’t play rugby, I’m a soccer player.
Now they’re calling themselves Tommy Bowe and Jonathan Sexton. Guys see players
lifting trophies and think yeah I’ll give that a go.” It appears more and more kids are
willing to “give it a go” in Clontarf.
102
Tag blitz for Mount Temple
Over 150 first year students from Mount Temple Comprehensive took part in an inter-class Tag Rugby blitz. Each form
class entered two teams (1 girls and 1 boys) to be played in a league type format with every side playing five matches.
The blitz took place on the school grounds and was a very successful and fun afternoon with some fantastic tries and
excellent skills, definitely some Leinster stars for the future on show.
Clontarf CCRO Stephen Maher would like to thank PE Dept at the school for all there help and enthusiasm with the Tag
Rugby programme
Clontarf Coaches Seminar
Freezing cold conditions didn’t keep the Clontarf mini rugby coaches away as a very successful tackling seminar with
Leinster Rugby CRO Jack Hanratty and Clontarf CCRO Stephen Maher took place.
The seminar went through all aspects of the tackle through the key factors to drills and fun games for the young player to
improve his or her tackling.
Heineken Cup vists Clontarf
The Heineken Cup had a whirlwind tour of the primary schools in Clontarf area. Students from Howth Road NS, Springdale
NS, Greenalnes NS, Belgrove, St. Brigids and Scoil Chiaran all got to see the trophy up close.
As always, the schools provided a great welcome for the Heineken Cup. The excitement around the schools was great to
see with students getting to hold the trophy with aspirations of one day playing in the Leinster blue and once again lifting
the Heineken Cup.
Photos were taken over the two day visit and have been posted on Leinster Rugby Trophy Tour page on Facebook where
students can go on and check the photos for themselves.
TAG
IN
CABRA
Children from the age of 8-16
years have been taking part
in Tag Rugby session every
Monday evening in Cabra
Parkside, Community Sports
Centre.
The sessions lasts for 1 hour from
6pm-7pm every week and are
run by Billy Phelan and Stephen
Maher of Leinster Rugby in
conjunction with Dublin City
Council.
Sessions consists of skill based
games with the emphasis on fun
and inclusion.
103
TERENURE COLLEGE RFC
JOHN ENGLISH
John English is the Club Community Rugby Officer for Terenure RFC and is involved with
seven schools in the area, visiting three primary and four secondary throughout the year
to promote the game of rugby. It is his first year in the role and the CCRO has already
noticed an impact from his work in the schools. “There’s definitely more kids coming along
from schools that you normally wouldn’t associate with the club. I notice them on a Sunday
morning and a good few have joined the club since I’ve been involved with the schools.
There’s a good few coming outside of Terenure College.”
The increase in numbers would not be possible without the enthusiasm of the schools
and John is keen to pay tribute to those schools he is involved with. “Most schools the
teachers and the principals are more than happy to welcome new sports and rugby’s
pretty popular at the moment. There is a bit of breaking down some of the barriers but I
find most of the schools very welcoming and happy to have us involved.”
John’s primary aim when introducing rugby to kids is to make the game as fun as possible
as he explains. “The focus is on heads up running rugby, trying to get away from the
kicking and the old school mentality. It’s about trying to make it more enjoyable. That’s
how you sell it to the kids. The sessions start off with warming up and shuttles. Then I go into
handling drills. Then we get the tags on and get into playing a bit, doing tag games and
stuff like bulldog. I round off the session with some tag games which they seem to love.”
Although john is only in his first year in the role, he is extremely impressed by the structures
in place but is keen not rest on any laurels looking forward. “I think the work is really good
at the moment. The branch are doing a really good job. We’ve gotta try to kick on another
ten percent next year going in the same direction and things will be in good nick.”
The dedication of schools that traditionally would not be associated with rugby is testament
to the work John is doing and schools such as St.Colmcille’s field competitive junior and
senior teams while also providing players to both Terenure RFC and St.Mary’s RFC. With
kids coming up to the club from so many previously untapped sources, the game can
surely only get stronger in the area.
104
ST. JOSEPH’S BOYS SCHOOL AND
BALLYROAN BOYS SCHOOL TAG BLITZES
St. Joseph’s Boys School and Ballyroan Boys School Tag Blitzes took place on Friday 26th October 2012, the last day of school before the Halloween
break. This seemed to add to the boys’ general excitement and they were a right lively bunch throughout the day!
The first blitz involving Ballyroan Boys 4th classes took place in the wonderful surroundings of Sancta Maria on their all-weather pitch. Approximately
sixty-five boys and five or six teachers led by principal Des Morris and Games Master Damian McDonald presided over the action, which carried
onto well over an hour and a half.
Six teams took part with all standards and levels mixing together. The skill level amongst the boys has improved dramatically in the six short weeks I
have been there, and it was great to see such enthusiasm from a mostly non-playing bunch, I even had to break up a bit of ‘handbags’ after a hotly
disputed try!!
Thanks to everyone involved, especially to Mr. Morris and Damian for all their help during the last weeks.
The second blitz of the day involved St. Joseph’s Boys of Terenure, who relocated to the hallowed turf of “Lakelands” to battle it out in the afternoon.
Again, sixty plus boys turned out. Their teacher, Mr. Tom Brennan had expertly divided the teams into evenly matched opponents. This led to a very
competitive competition, which was won by “Australia”, with a last minute try in the final! This try was hotly disputed and the ref. (yours truly) received
some good natured banter about the standard of my eyesight! This blitz lasted two hours and was hugely enjoyed by everyone.
Thanks to all the teachers who helped out, especially Tom, who was a great help keeping the lads on the straight and narrow!
All in all about one hundred and thirty kids participated during the day. I hope they all enjoyed it as much as I did and from what I have seen, the
future of Leinster rugby is in good shape.
105
DIT
COLM ROCHE
Colm Roche is the Rugby Devlopment Officer for the many colleges of Dublin Institute of
Technology. He is currently in his second year in the position and as a RDO tries to boost
interest across a wide range of ability levels. “My main job is to increase the participation
rate across the board, mens’, womens’, tag. There’s a huge variety in terms of playing
standards. You would get guys who had never played before all the way up to AIL
standard. We’ve six on the scholarship program and the minimum standard for them is
training with and playing AIL every weekend. It’s about trying to increase the exposure
of the club both within and outside the college, increasing the numbers of teams we have
and developing a structure for non rugby playing students if they’re pushing towards
contact and if not we have tag rugby teams for them.”
Because DIT is such a spread out institution, the benefit of having a Rugby Development
Officer co-ordinating strategy is undeniable. Colm develops key logistical building blocks
to ensure the teams in DIT are as successful as possible.
“A big part of my role with DIT, because it’s such a spread out college across the city, is
trying to sort out facilities, get sponsorship set up, the likes of hiring coaches and structuring
training sessions.” The spread out nature of the college has proved to be particularly
problematic but proactive steps have been taken to ensure this is as minimal an issue
as possible. “It is quite difficult to get students out because we don’t have any on site
facilities. Still it’s just been growing and growing. Even since Christmas there’s been a
huge increase in numbers at the games and training. I put out a survey to all students over
Christmas to get feedback to understand why people were playing at the start of the year
and not anymore. On the back of that we’ve changed our facilities to an all weather pitch
off O’Connell Street. Obviously it’s not ideal for contact but it is ideal in terms of getting
the lads up to go through skills and develop those skills. It has worked. The numbers have
increased but it’s still not ideal”.
While getting students to training is half the battle, it is important that the training sessions
then benefit both the players and the coaches and a skills based approach is something
Colm is keen to push. “We would try and use training sessions to improve skills. If there’s
an area in their game that they wouldn’t be 100 percent happy with then we use our
training sessions to pretty much develop their skills and abilities in that area. So instead of
fitness training on monday, we concentrate on the skills.”
Making the rugby club as visible as possible in the many different campuses is something
Colm believes is vital in boosting awareness of the club and the sport in general and
even something as innocuous as players wearing DIT rugby gear has had an effect in
this regard. “We brought Kukri on board this year. I would have got a bit of feedback
at the start of the season about how the lads love wearing the gear, so giving them the
opportunity to wear the gear and represent the club around the colleges has been a
huge thing.” Approaches such as this appear to be working across the board and Colm
points to the resumption of a ladies team in the college for the first time in over a decade
as a sign of the increased interest. DIT are also sending two mens side and one ladies
to the upcoming intervarsities event in Queens University and despite the difficulties in
implementing a cohesive policy across such a large geographical area, rugby in DIT
looks to be moving in the right direction.
106
DUBLIN CITY UNIVERSITY RFC
PHIL DE BARRA
Philip De Barra is the Rugby Development Officer for Dublin City University and is in his first year in the position. So far
the RDO has thoroughly embraced the experience. “It’s my first year at it but I’ve really enjoyed it to be honest with you.
Everyone’s just very friendly and if there’s anything I need help with they’re great.” Upon entering the university, Philip
immediately set about putting in place the foundations to ensure a successful season. The first port of calls for Philip were
amending the scholarship program and the hiring of a fresh batch of coaches. “The first thing I did throughout the year was
sorting out the scholarship program out here. We wanted to amend it a little bit so we connected with the college a little
better. Then I set about getting a good coaching staff in. We hired five new coaches. I work quite closely with the rugby
committee which are a student body and they’re quite well set up. Most of the feedback from last year was regarding the
scholarships and the coaching.”
Although rugby is by no means the number one sport in DCU, the college still manages to field three mens teams and one
ladies team and Philip believes the popularity of the sport is continuing to grow. “Rugby wouldn’t be top of the sporting
tree in DCU. The major sport out here is gaelic. We’re probably the best university at Gaelic football and that comes first
in terms of playing numbers and grants. Rugby out here is growing though. It was non existent till about five years ago
and we’re looking at four teams now. We actually get quite high participation numbers, we’ve got 150 student members.”
With that many players, it is unsurprising that a wide spectrum of playing ability exists in DCU and Philip notes the difference
in standards that exists. “It’s all kinds of levels. The guys on the firsts would all be playing club rugby, some of them would
be AIL or junior rugby. What I’d like to do next year is get a few more AIL players playing ‘cos the commitment isn’t really
that large. It’s only five to seven game every year. The second team would be guys who just really want to play social rugby
and then you have your complete beginners as well. About half the girls are complete beginners. To see how far the girls
have come in one year is pretty remarkable. If we can keep going on that sort of curve, I’m going to try and bring in some
scholarships for them next year.”
Bearing in mind the wide variety of sports DCU offers, it is a constant battle for hearts and minds and Philip believes the
rugby club have gone the extra mile in their dedication to find new recruits. “The rugby club has always gone the extra
yard to recruit people at the start of college. They’ve hired a marquee and a DJ. They try their best to stand out. In terms of
recruitment we’re constantly running things. Things like tag leagues and an end of year celebrity banisteoir which is a one
day big tag tournament involving staff and anyone in the college. What we try to do at those things is really try to get new
recruits into the club.”
While Philip has enjoyed a successful first year in the role, his playing career has endured a horror season, first succumbing to a
hamstring issue before breaking his leg upon his return to competitive action with De La Salle Palmerstown. Understandably
Philip is pleased with the progress made but is under no illusions regarding the continual need for improvement. “There’s
been a lot of learning for me this year to kind of find out how specifically to go about getting things done. I’m really looking
forward to next year. I’m happy with the way everything’s gone but theres always the possibility of doing better. You can
always grow the numbers further.”
107
STATISTICS
SOUTH EAST REGION
Club
Enniscorthy
(PLEASE NOTE THAT NOT ALL CCRO CONTRACTS ARE SAME LENGTH)
Primary School
Class
Boys
Girls
Total
Monageer
4-6 class
29
16
45
Marshalstown
3-6 class
33
29
62
St. Aidans
5-6 class
55
59
114
St Senans
4-5 class
40
34
74
St Marys
5-6 class
17
10
27
Gaelscoil inis Corthaidh
4-6 class
22
32
54
Oylgare NS
2-6 class
44
46
90
Carrigduff NS
4-6 class
12
10
22
Caine NS
5-6 class
9 primary schools
15
12
27
267
248
515
15
35
Secondary School
Adamstown
U19
20
CBS Enniscorthy
U16- U19
50
50
Enniscorthy VEC
U 16
40
40
3 secondary
New Ross
110
15
125
3-6 class
54
65
124
CBS
3-4 class
60
The Rower
4-6 class
41
22
63
155
87
242
St Cannice
3 primary
60
Secondary school
CBS New Ross
u14
St Marys
U19
Good Counsel College
U14- U 18
61
Ramsgrange
U 15- U 19
45
49
Holy Faith
U 16- U19
45
45
141
151
292
5 secondary
Kilkenny
St Patricks
3-4 class
60
Model School
5 class
8
12
47
45
45
61
94
60
12
20
60
60
St John of God
3+ 4 class
CBS
3 + 6 class
62
Scoil an Chroi Ro Naofa
6 class
12
6
18
Scoil Naisunta Naomh Ciaran
5-6 class
15
16
31
62
St Marys Thomastown
3-6 class
74
84
158
Kilkenny School Project
6 class
17
13
30
Presentation
6 class
28
28
Johnswell NS
3-6 class
10
15
25
25
60
Bennetsbridge NS
5-6 class
35
St Patrcicks De La Salle
3-4 class
60
Kilkenny Model School
4 class
18
12
30
371
271
642
13 primary schools
Secondary
108
35
60
CBS
U 19
25
St Marys Thomastown
U19
18
11
29
43
11
54
2 secondary
Wicklow
25
St Patricks NS
jnr inf- 6 class
181
181
St Ernans NS
5-6 class
58
58
Wicklow Montesorri
jnr- snr inf
54
16
70
Brittas Bay NS
1-6 class
35
25
60
Holy Rosary
1-4 class
222
222
St Joseph GNS
3-6 class
55
55
Glebe NS
jnr inf- 6 class
155
32
187
Ashford NS
1 - 6 class
153
27
180
Glenealy NS
4-6 class
47
16
63
Wicklow Educate Together
4-6 class
50
11
61
Nuns Cross NS
jnr inf - 6 class
39
13
52
Gaeilscoil Wicklow
4-6 class
78
12
90
850
429
1279
12 Primary Schools
Secondary School
Colaiste Cill Mhairtin
U13- U129
81
16
97
East Glendalough
U 13
33
30
63
Dominican Convent
U 15- U19
65
65
114
111
225
3 secondary
Rathdrum
Scoil Eoin
3- 6 class
25
12
37
St Saviour
2-6 class
14
21
35
Rathdrum
3-6 class
68
Moneystown NS
3-6 class
25
32
68
57
St Laurence
5-6 class
42
25
67
Our Lady NS
3-4 class
35
35
St John NS
2-6 class
25
12
37
199
137
336
4-6 class
16
13
29
Scoil Naomh Padraig
5-6 class
58
Grange
5-6 class
14
11
25
SN Fointain Naofa
2-6 class
7
9
16
St Columbus NS
1-6 class
23
28
51
7 primary
Secondary School
Tullow
Ardattan NS
58
Tynock
4-6 class
6
13
19
Shillelagh
jnr inf - 6 class
18
16
34
Rathcoyle NS
4- 6 class
6
9
15
talbortstown NS
4-6 class
14
14
28
Rathoe NS
5-6 class
20
23
43
Kildavin NS
3-4 class
7
13
20
St Patricks NS
5-6 class
29
30
59
Schoil Mhuire Lourdes
6 class
25
25
Myshall
5-6 class
19
12
31
Kiltegan NS
jnr inf - 6 class
7
15
22
244
231
475
15 primary
109
Secondary School
Tullow Community School
U16- U19
Colaiste Eoin
U 19
2 secondary
Carlow
50
26
76
10
7
17
60
33
93
St Finians
2-6 class
8
8
16
St Fiaca
4-6 class
94
97
191
66
Gael Scoil
5-6 class
55
Bishop Foley NS
4-6 class
168
St Marys Bagnelstown
jnr inf - 6 class
43
St Brigids Bagnelstown
5-6 class
54
121
168
33
76
54
Killeshin
4-6 class
45
43
88
Ballinabranna
3-6 class
29
35
64
Old Leighlin
3-6 class
33
35
68
Leighlinn Bridge
4-6 class
44
38
82
Tinryland NS
5-6 class
22
19
41
Carlow NS
4-6 class
37
17
61
Bennekerry NS
3-6 class
99
58
157
St Abbans Killeen
4-6 class
14
12
26
Arles NS
3-6 class
22
24
Askea Boys
3-4 class
127
16 primary schools
46
127
894
485
1386
32
60
Secondary School
Borris Vocationa;
U 16
28
PDLS Bagnelstown
U 15- U19
60
60
Scoil Chonglais
U 15- U19
60
60
Gael Cholaiste Carlow
U 16
30
30
4 secondary
Arklow
178
32
210
Arklow BNS
3-4 class
56
56
St Peters
1 class
39
39
Gaelscoil
2-4 class
70
11
81
St Josephs
3 class
66
85
151
St Marys
5 class
26
22
48
Carysfort NS
5-6 class
22
17
29
Scoil Eoin
5-6 class
50
7 primary
50
329
135
454
28
9
37
12
12
Secondary School
Arklow CBS
U 14
St Marys
U18
Gaelcholaiste Na Mara
U 15
12
9
21
Arkow Community College
U16
8
1
15
48
31
85
5-6 class
18
6
24
4 secondary
Gorey
110
Camdin NS
St Kevins
5-6 class
35
32
67
St Patrick NS
5-6 class
13
14
27
Ballythomas NS
5-6 class
11
15
26
Star of the Sea
5-6 class
47
45
92
Monaseed NS
5-6 class
7
17
24
Gorey Central NS
5-6 class
17
St Joseph Primary school
5-6 class
49
23
40
49
Gorey Educate Together
6 class
16
12
28
SN Naomh Eoin
5-6 class
13
13
26
Gaelsoil Moshiolog
5-6 class
17
22
39
Scoil Ghormair
5-6 class
17
8
25
St Joeseph NS
4-6 class
15
10
25
Ballyellis NS
5-6 class
10
10
20
Ballyfad NS
3-6 class
9
10
19
Scoil Ioasagain NS
5-6 class
13
6
19
12
Kilanerin NS
5-6 class
Bunscoil Loretto
5 -6 c lass
St Marys NS Ballygarrett
5-6 class
Ballycanew NS
4-6 class
20 primary
8
20
30
30
26
20
46
30
25
55
375
326
701
35
132
Secondary school
Gorey Community School
U 13- U19
97
Creagh Community College
U 13
18
Coaliste an Agtha
U 29
21
21
Colaiste Bhride
U 15
40
40
4 secondary
Greystones
Delgany NS
3-6 class
18
176
35
211
60
60
120
St Patrick
3-6 class
120
120
St Cronans
3-6 class
180
180
pres cubs
2-6 class
120
120
St. Kevins
4-6 class
45
45
90
525
105
630
5 primary
Secondary School
Pres Bray
U 13 - U16
250
250
St Davids
U 15- U19
65
65
St Brendans
U19
20
20
Kilcoole Secondary
U14- U16
120
120
455
455
4 secondary
Wexford
Our Lady of Fatima
3-4 class
20
20
40
Crossabeg NS
2-6 class
52
51
103
Screen NS
1-6 class
58
51
109
Kilrane NS
4-6 class
51
46
97
St Fintans NS
2-6 class
60
54
114
Scoil Naoimh Bride
3-6 class
63
58
121
St Margarets
1-6 class
36
35
71
St Joesephs NS
2-6 class
52
41
95
Scoil Mhuire
2-6 class
52
41
93
Castle Bride NS
5-6 class
49
49
St Marys NS
1-6 class
37
45
82
Kilmore NS
jnr inf - 6 class
186
193
379
Ladys Island
jnr inf - 6 class
33
12
55
Barntwon NS
111
Murrintown NS
3-6 class
15 primary
53
69
112
753
765
1520
Secondary School
Bridgetwon VEC
U14- U19
60
20
80
Wexford Vocational
U 14- U19
50
20
70
Presentation Secondary School
U17
60
60
100
210
3 secondary
112
110
STATISTICS
NORTH MIDLANDS REGION
Club
Primary School
Naas
Scoil Bhride Kill
Class
Boys
4-5 class
50
50
6 class
50
50
Johnathan Swift
1-6 class
17
8
25
St Nicholas Naofa
6 class
20
11
31
Rathmore NS
4-6 class
32
30
62
Two Mile House
2-4 class
44
31
75
Sallins NS
3-5 class
50
53
103
Blessington no 1
2-6 class
37
47
84
300
180
480
50
50
St Corban NS
8 primary
Girls
Total
Secondary Schhol
St Marys Naas
U 19
Pipers Hill College
U16- U19
40
40
Naas CBS
U16- U19
90
90
St Kevins Dunlavn
U16 U19
22
22
4 secondary
Portaloise
St Francis
Maryborough NS
St Pauls
Ballyfin NS
152
6
50
47
202
47
jnr- 6 class
70
5 class
69
jnr- 6 class
122
95
217
238
95
403
28
34
62
57
108
4 primary
69
Secondary School
Mountrath CS
1 secondary
Cill Dara
Lackagh
3-6 class
Nurney
3-6 class
51
De La Salle
2-3 class
131
3 primary
210
131
91
301
Secondary School
Kildare Town CS
U14- U15
75
77
152
kildare Community College
U14-U19
55
42
97
130
119
249
82
65
143
2 secondary
North Kildare
Scoil ui Fiach Maynooth
4-6 class
Educate together Maynooth
1-4 class
2 primary
28
16
44
110
81
187
Secondary School
Maynooth Post Primary
U16 - U19
Scoil Dara Kilcock
U 15 - U 16
2 secondary
Portarlington
96
96
96
96
Primary Presentation School
4-6 class
152
152
St Josephs Mountmellic
3-6 class
133
133
Cloneygowan NS
3-6 class
28
58
30
113
St Broghans NS
3-6 class
30
24
28
54
Sandylane NS
3-6 class
25
St Patricks Boys
1 +6 class
102
102
St Peters Primary School
4-6 class
68
68
7 primary
53
255
365
620
Secondary School
St Pauls
U14- U19
43
31
74
Colaiste Iosagain
U14- U19
83
59
139
126
90
216
2 secondary
Newbridge
Athgarvan
3-6 class
62
61
123
St Joesphs
jnr inf - 5 class
38
39
77
3-4 class
61
63
124
jnr inf - 5 class
63
55
118
St Patrick NS
Bronnoxtown NS
Kilcullen
Ballishannon
Curragh Boys School
4-6 class
50
47
97
jnr inf - 6class
54
61
115
3-6 class
113
7 primary
113
441
326
767
25
26
51
25
26
51
45
45
90
60
Secondary School
St Marys Special School
U14-U19
1 secondary
Athy
Scoil ide Naofa
4-6 class
St Lawrence NS
3-6 class
60
Scoil Phadraig Naofa
3-4 class
185
Kilberry NS
4-6 class
22
27
49
St Patrick NS
snr inf - 1
65
65
130
Kilkea
jnr inf -6
44
27
71
Scoil Naomh Treasa
jnr inf -6
20
15
35
Ballyadams NS
jnr inf -6
94
88
182
Wolfhill
jnr inf -6
13
12
25
The Swan NS
jnr inf -6
20
16
36
Gaeliscoil Athai
1-6 class
86
59
145
Castledermot Primary
3-6 class
60
60
120
Shanganamore NS
1-6 class
45
45
90
St Colmcilles
1-6 class
75
75
150
Athy Model School
4-6 class
28
24
52
862
618
1480
15 primary
120
185
Secondary School
Ard Scoil Na Trionoide
Colaiste Lorcain
2 secondary
114
U16- U19
60
60
U 16
20
20
80
80
STATISTICS
NORTH EAST REGION
Club
Dundalk
Primary School
Class
Boys
Girls
Total
CBS
6 class
33
36
66
Blackrock
6 class
30
25
55
St Josephs
6 class
55
St Furseys
6 class
15
20
35
Scoil Eoin Baiste
6 class
14
13
27
Redeemer
6 class
15
Faughart
6 class
40
28
68
Lordship
6 class
14
13
27
25
15
Bay Estate
5 class
55
40
95
Bellurgan NS
6 class
16
18
34
Kilkerly NS
5 class
16
14
30
Dun Dealgan NS
3-6 class
24
27
51
Aughnagrron NS
1-6 class
37
35
72
St Peters NS
5-6 class
29
32
61
Dulargy
5 class
14
14
28
St Furseys
5 class
12
13
25
De La Salle NS
5 class
32
0
30
Knockbridge NS
5 class
27
26
53
478
354
797
18 primary
Secondary School
O Fiaich
U 14
26
26
Marist
U 13 - U17
65
65
De la Salle
U 13 - U 17
60
60
Dundalk Grammar
U 13 - U 15
26
26
CBS
U 16 - U 18
5 secondary
Skerries
16
16
193
193
Holmpatrick
3-6 class
23
22
45
Milverton NS
3-4 class
11
28
29
Hedgestown NS
3-4 class
12
14
26
St Patrick SNS
4 class
42
46
88
St Brendans NS
5-6 class
28
32
60
Scoil Realt na Mara
3-5 class
44
59
103
Skerries Educate Together
4-5 class
13
16
29
Lusk NS
6 class
37
42
79
Rush NS
4-5 class
88
102
190
298
361
649
16
48
9 primary
Secondary School
St Josephs Sec School
U 14
32
Skerries CC
U 14
27
2 secondary
59
27
16
75
115
Balbriggan
St George
5-6 class
Naul NS
5-6 class
Ballrothery NS
5-6 class
6 class
Balbriggan Educate Together
Bracken Educate Together
St Molagas
26
29
55
16
7
23
36
45
81
66
60
125
3-6 class
120
94
214
4-6 class
47
43
100
SS Peter And Paul JNS
1 class
61
49
110
St Teresa
6 class
20
36
56
392
363
764
U 14- U 16
67
21
88
U 14
97
20
117
164
41
205
8 primary
Secondary School
Ardgillan
Balbriggan CC
2 secondary
Ratoath
Ratoath SNS
1-2 class
175
Rathreggan NS
4-6 class
29
27
56
Gaelscoil Na Rithe
5-6 class
20
17
37
St Pauls NS
1-4 class
298
6
298
Scoil Colmcille
5-6 class
5 primary
175
29
27
56
551
77
622
38
22
60
40
113
Secondary School
Dunshauglin Com College
U16 - U 19
Ratoath Com College
U 14- U19
73
St Peteres Com College
U 14- U19
56
3 secondary
Navan
Scoil Eanna
St Annes
1 5 class
56
167
62
229
28
29
57
5 class
5
18
23
Robinstown NS
5-6 class
23
24
47
Kilmessan NS
4-6 class
26
34
62
Scoil Mhuire
6 class
27
8
35
St Oliver Plunkett NS
5 class
43
29
72
St Pauls Primary
5 class
41
42
83
Scoil Naomh Eoin
5-6 class
21
12
33
Flowerfield NS
4-6 class
17
10
27
Kiltale NS
5-6 class
1
16
26
St Joesphs NS
4-6 class
30
13
43
scoil bhride Cannistown
4-6 class
49
42
91
Kentstown NS
4-5 class
26
29
57
Navan Educate Together
5-6 class
15
3
18
St Patricks Ns Stackallen
4-6 class
48
33
81
Yellow Furze NS
4-5 class
22
19
41
422
361
796
U 16
26
3
29
St Patricks Classical Navan
U13 - U19
154
Beaufort College
U 14 - U19
32
16 primary
Secondary School
Beaufort College
Lorettos Secondaty
4 secondary
116
U14-U19
212
154
3
35
60
60
66
278
Boyne
Le Cheile
5-6 class
55
46
22
101
Tullydonnell
4-6 class
34
St Joseph NS
4-6 class
254
St Paul NS
5-6 class
94
68
162
6 class
59
47
106
White Cross
5- 6 class
38
24
62
Donacarny NS
5-6 class
48
Laytown NS
4-6 class
141
111
252
6 class
14
13
27
737
331
1068
9
51
St Marys Parish
Termonfeckon NS
9 primary
56
254
48
Secondary
Drogheda Grammar
U13- U19
42
St Joseph CBS
U 14 - U19
47
2 secondary
Ardee
Ardee Educate Together
2- 6 class
Newtown NS
35
89
9
86
17
31
48
24
28
52
Dromin NS
3 class
11
12
23
Nobber NS
jnr inf - 6
class
42
54
96
23
23
Schoil Mhuire na Trocaire
6 class
Monastery NS
3- 6 class
Philipstown NS
5-6 class
79
79
Colmailles NS
St Peter & Paul
4-6 class
Schoil Bhride
1-6 class
10 primary
39
29
68
93
81
174
305
258
563
Secondary School
Ardee comm College
U14- U19
1 secondary
Athboy
60
60
60
60
Coolrohan NS
1-6 class
24
16
40
Rathmore NS
3-6 class
30
34
64
Scoil Ui Ghramhnaigh
2 -6 class
69
70
139
Athboy NS
3 class
24
22
46
Kildalkey NS
4-6 class
5 primary
48
42
90
195
184
379
Secondary School
Boyne Comm School
Athboy Community College
U16
U16- U19
2 secondary
Ashbourne
St Marys
54
54
78
78
132
132
4 class
42
47
89
4-6 class
53
38
91
St Marys
1- 6 class
58
46
104
Ardcath NS
jnr inf- 6 class
52
37
87
Rathfeigh NS
1-6 class
53
48
101
Kilcosan NS
3-6 class
23
25
48
1-6 class
28
21
49
jnr inf- 6 class
30
28
58
Gaelscoilna cilte
Cushiontown NS
Clonalvey NS
117
St Declans NS
5-6 class
48
45
93
Curragha NS
jnr inf- 6 class
38
35
73
U 13- U19
61
34
95
Secondary School
Ashbourne Comm School
118
STATISTICS
MIDLANDS REGION
Club
Primary School
Mullingar
Scoil Phadraig
Mullingar Educate Together
St. Etchens
Class
Boys
Girls
Total
5-6 class
11
12
23
5 class
15
9
24
5-6 class
30
27
57
All Saints
5-6 class
22
17
39
Curraghmore NS
5-6 class
28
28
56
St Colmcille NS
5-6 class
27
26
53
6 class
8
12
20
141
131
272
40
110
St Marys NS
7 primary
Secondary School
St Finians College
U14-U 18
70
Wilsons Hospital
U 14- U18
120
Castle Pollard
U 14- U15
50
Loretto College
U 16
4 secondary
Longford
Stone Park NS
5-6 class
120
50
100
100
100
240
190
430
29
31
50
St Marys NS
5-6 class
23
25
48
St Therese NS
5-6 class
30
31
61
Melview NS
5-6 class
12
40
81
Clondra NS
3-6 class
17
14
31
Ardagh NS
4-6 class
27
29
56
St Mathews
6 class
13
11
24
Clondra NS
3-6 class
17
14
31
Fermoyle NS
5-6 class
8
14
22
Lanesborough PS
5-6 class
17
14
31
St Patricks NS
5-6 class
8
11
19
Aughnagarron NS
35
37
72
St Michaels BNS
32
32
Ballinalea NS
Scoil Mhuire Newtownd
35
38
73
15 primary
303
309
631
25
25
Secondary School
Mercy Secondary
U 16
Moyne CS
U14- U19
80
80
St Mels College
U 14- U19
71
71
Lanesborough CC
U 14- U19
25
25
Granard Convent
U17
5 secondary
Midland Warriors
9
14
23
185
39
224
St Oliver Plunkett
5-6 class
51
51
Klicleagh NS
3-6 class
24
20
44
An Grianana NS
1-2 classs
21
25
46
Rosemount N
5-6 class
15
9
25
119
St Manchans NS
4-6 class
5 primary
27
30
57
138
84
223
191
179
370
191
179
370
Secondary School
Moate Community School
U13 - U16
1 secondary
West Offaly
Roscrea
Dumakeen NS
5-6 class
27
28
53
Scoil Eoin Naofa
5-6 class
28
31
59
Corville NS
5-6 class
31
26
57
Clonlisk NS
5-6 class
19
13
32
Lismackin NS
2-6 class
21
31
52
Sacred Heart
5- 6 class
26
28
54
Borri on Ossory
3-6 classs
31
19
50
183
176
357
7 primary
Secondary School
Cloaiste Phobal
1-5 year
1 secondary
76
76
Birr RFC
Carrig NS
3- 6 class
19
25
44
Kileen NS
3-6 class
26
30
56
Oxmantown
3- 6 class
27
19
46
22
Kinnity NS
3- 6 class
35
St Brendans
3-6 class
130
Coolderry
3-6 class
22
23
45
Crinkhill
5-6 class
32
23
55
Broughal
4-6 class
10
Mercy Convent
5-6 class
9 secondary
301
57
130
14
24
60
60
216
517
Secondary School
St Brendans Birr
U14- U18
1 secondary
West Offaly Lions
84
84
Pullough NS
3-6 class
29
21
50
Ferbane
3-6 class
61
45
107
High Street NS
4-6 class
14
15
29
Cloghan NS
5-6 class
10
12
22
Lumclonn NS
4-6 class
14
12
26
Boher NS
2-6 class
31
27
58
Clonmacnoise NS
2-6 class
15
11
26
Ballinahown
4-6 class
12
12
24
Rashina
1-6 class
21
12
33
207
167
375
87
187
9 primary
Secondary School
Banagher
U 14 - U 18
1 secondary
Tullamore
120
St Colmans NS
38
38
1-6 class
100
Scoil an Chlochair
4-6 class
49
42
91
Charelville NS
1-6 class
42
32
74
Coolanarney NS
2-6 class
28
Scoil Bhride BNS
2-6 class
75
19
47
75
Durrow NS
3-6 class
56
55
111
Tullamore Educate Together
4-6 class
35
28
63
Gortnamona NS
3-6 class
29
17
46
Mountbollis NS
3-6 class
7
14
21
St Colmans NS
3-6 class
67
56
123
Killeigh
5-6 class
25
22
47
Ballinamere NS
5-6 class
36
25
61
Scoil Bhride Clonasler
3-4 class
20
16
36
Daingean NS
4-6 class
31
36
67
12
12
34
Geashill NS
Scoil Mhuire
5-6 class
70
70
140
St Josephs
4-6 class
35
37
72
Rahugh NS
3-6 class
13
14
27
Scoil Phroinsiais Naofa
4-6 class
78
78
Scoil Eoin Phoil
5-6 class
79
79
2 class
7
Scoil Bhride Clonasleens
Scoil Chartaigh Naofa Rahan
1-6 class
22 primary
8
15
59
51
110
953
641
1604
158
158
Secondary School
Sacred Heart
Colaiste Choilm
U14- U19
U19
24
24
Tullamore College
U 15 - U19
48
48
Mercy Secondary
U16
10
9
9
82
167
239
4 secondary
Edenderry
St Conleths NS
3-4 class
32
35
67
St Oliver Plunkett NS
5-6 class
6
13
19
St Brigids NS
jnr inf - 2
class
28
22
50
Clocha Riace NS
3 +6 class
33
25
58
St. Ciarans NS
3 - 6 class
22
25
47
Scoil Bhrid NS
2-4 + 6 class
66
61
127
St Teresa NS
4-6 class
22
13
35
19
39
Cadamstown NS
2-6 class
20
Scoil Muire Banrion
2-4 class
64
St Patricks NS
5-6 class
14
19
33
Monasteroris PS
5-6 class
16
14
30
Gaeolscoil Eadan Doire
2-6 class
12 primary
64
18
24
42
341
270
611
Secondary School
Oatlands Community College
1 secondary
U 16
22
22
22
121
STATISTICS
METRO REGION
Club
Primary School
Class
Boys
Girls
Total
Suttonians
Bayside SNS
5 class
29
31
60
St Fintan Primary
3-4 class
58
61
119
Howth Primary School
1-2 class
28
35
63
Burrow Primary School
jnr inf- snr inf
36
44
80
Bayside Junior School
2 class
69
61
130
5- 6 class
42
21
63
262
253
515
St Marnocks NS
6 national
Secondary School
St Fintans High School
U14- U19
1 secondary
Swords
Holy Family
snr inf
St Cronans
3rd class
2 national
92
92
92
92
15
10
25
75
75
150
90
85
175
Secondary School
Coaliste Cholim
U14- U19
70
Scoil San Carlo
4-6 class
86
76
162
Scoil Mochua
5-6 class
80
87
167
Scoil na Mainistreach
5-6 class
172
1 secondary
NUIM Barnhall
70
70
70
172
North Kildare Educate Together
5-6 class
30
29
59
Scoil Eoin Phoil
5-6 class
44
41
86
Scoil Mhuire
5 -6 class
30
Primerose Hill NS
5-6 class
23
23
46
465
256
722
U 14
18
26
44
Salesians College
U 15- U19
66
Colaiste Chiarain
U14-U17
7 primary
30
Secondary School
Confey College
3 secondary
DLSP
36
40
76
120
66
186
Good Shepherds NS
3-6 class
40
46
86
Our Ladys Wayside
3-4 class
30
28
58
Taney Primary
5 class
25
31
56
Devine Word
3 5 class
60
53
113
Our Ladys NS Ballinteer
3-6 class
60
60
120
St Marks & St Gerards
3-4 class
27
26
54
St Attracta
122
66
5 class
41
37
78
Church of Ireland Kilternan
1-4 class
25
23
48
Queen of Angles
3-4 class
60
60
120
Rathmichael NS
5-6 class
60
60
120
St Annes Primary
5-6 class
60
60
120
11 primary
488
484
973
Secondary School
Oatlands College
U19
1 secondary
BRL / Unidare
24
24
24
24
St Josephs
3-6 class
85
Holy Spirit Boys
2-6 class
111
85
170
111
Virgin Mary Girls
3-6 class
72
72
Mother of Divine Grace
2-4 class
60
60
120
North Dublin National School Project
2-6 class
75
75
150
Our Lady of Victories
2-6 class
150
150
442
868
Our Lady of Victories Boys
95
7 primary schools
426
95
Secondary School
St Vincents
U 13 - U14
Trinity Comp
60
U 14- U19
40
St Kevins
U19
40
40
Benevin College
U 19
13
13
4 secondary
Clontarf
60
Schoil Chiarain CBS
153
20
20
60
173
6 class
26
Howth Road NS
3- 6 class
20
Springdale NS
5-6 class
48
48
Greenlanes NS
5- 6 class
28
28
Belgrove NS
6 class
60
60
St Brigids
6 class
56
56
6 primary schools
238
26
19
19
39
257
Secondary School
St Pauls
U 13
112
112
Mount Temple
U19
45
45
Chanel College
U 13
98
98
Ard Scoil Ris
U15
84
84
4 secondary
Bective
339
339
Sandford Parish
4-6 class
49
48
87
Kildare Place
4-6 class
50
30
80
St Conleths
3 class
20
Scoil Mhuire
5-6 class
64
64
6 class
27
27
48
39
87
167
208
365
St birgids
Ranelagh Mulit Denominational
4-6 class
6 primary schools
20
Secondary School
Marian College
U14- U16
77
77
St Conleths
U14- U16
60
60
St Raphealas Grils College
U 17
3 secondary schools
St Marys
Scoil Treasa
5-6 class
23
137
23
160
60
60
120
120
120
60
120
St Pius Girls
Scoil Carmel
1-2 class
23
60
123
3 primary schools
120
240
360
Secondary School
Templeogue
U14- U19
115
115
St Mac Dara
U 14- U16
40
40
Colmcilles Community
U 14- U19
65
65
3 secondary
Terenure
Saint Joseph Boys
Ballyroanboys school
Rathfarnham Parish NS
220
220
5-6 class
60
60
4 class
60
60
4-6 class
42
48
90
162
48
210
U13
43
42
85
U 15- 18
40
3 primary
Secondary School
Ballinteer Community School
St Tiernans
St Colmcilles CS
Malahide
40
Firhouse CC
15
15
30
4 secondary
98
57
155
59
43
102
Oliver Plunkett NS
4 class
St Andrews NS
1-2 class
30
24
54
Pope John Pauls
6 class
58
41
99
147
108
255
3 primary
Secondary School
Malahide CS
Partmarnock Community School
2 secondary
124
U 14- U19
71
71
U14
11
11
82
82

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