There are often many questions about Rugby and about what the boys will be doing in their rugby sessions. Let me detail how rugby is coached at Arnold House and why it forms such an important part of the sports programme here.
Core Values
Rugby’s values of Teamwork, Respect, Enjoyment, Discipline and Sportsmanship are what makes the game special for those who enjoy the environment and culture they create.
Taken from the Rugby Football Union (RFU):
Teamwork is essential to our sport. We welcome all new team members and include all because working as a team enriches our lives. We play selflessly: working for the team, not for ourselves alone, both on and off the field. We take pride in our team, rely on one another and understand that each player has a part to play. We speak out if our team or sport is threatened by inappropriate words or actions.
Mutual respect forms the basis of our sport. We hold in high esteem our sport, its values and traditions and earn the respect of others in the way we behave. We respect our match officials and accept their decisions. We respect opposition players and supporters. We value our coaches and those who run our clubs.
Enjoyment is the reason we play and support rugby union. We encourage players to enjoy training and playing. We use our sport to adopt a healthy lifestyle and build life skills. We safeguard our young players and help them have fun. We enjoy being part of a team and part of the rugby family.
Strong discipline underpins our sport. We ensure that our sport is one of controlled physical endeavour and that we are honest and fair. We obey the laws of the game which ensure an inclusive and exciting global sport. We support our disciplinary system, which protects our sport and upholds its values. We observe the sport's laws and regulations and report serious breaches.
Sportsmanship is the foundation upon which rugby union is built. We uphold the rugby tradition of camaraderie with teammates and opposition. We observe fair play both on and off the pitch and are generous in victory and dignified in defeat. We play to win but not at all costs and recognise both endeavour and achievement. We ensure that the wellbeing and development of individual players is central to all rugby activity.
Arnold House coaching staff always look to promote and adhere to these values in every session and match we organise.
Skills Progression
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) publishes clear Age Grade Regulations, which ensure that every player is able to enjoy rugby in a safe environment. Age Grade Rugby is the development pathway for all players aged 6 – 18 in clubs, schools and colleges and it incorporates the rules of play, matches, coaching standards and the structure of the season. Arnold House adheres to the RFU regulations at each stage and progress the boys as they are ready on an individual basis.
Year 3 / Under 8s
The main focus is introducing the game at a basic touch and tag level. The focus of this will be developing the core skills ready to move on for the following year. These skills include passing, catching, go forward and most importantly, developing teamwork.
Year 4 / Under 9s
We gradually introduce the boys to contact rugby, starting with the very basics and building it up slowly. Only once the boys understand the correct techniques are they safe to progress to the next level. What you may see during training is a bit of wrestling or different activities which act as a warm up for different parts of the body required for tackling and focus on areas to develop correct body position for when making a tackle. We then talk them through the tackle and demonstration starting from their knees to ensure they know the correct body and head position. We will only ever put boys into situations we feel that they are at the level they are ready for.
This child-centred approach is taken into matches: many of the fixtures at Year 4 will be played differently: for example, one week, all teams may play touch rugby as this is best for our boys, and the next week the A and Bs may play contact whilst the Cs may play a hold rule, and the Ds will play touch. This will also depend on the level of the opposition, and we, as staff, always discuss with the opposition and play what is best for the lowest ability player of that team, to make it fair and safe environment for all.
Year 5 and above
With the remainder of the year groups, rugby is optional, but those who decide to play rugby will continue to play by the framework that the RFU have set out, with the oldest boys playing in 13-a-side matches with six in the scrum.
The British Weather
Traditionally, rugby is a winter game played on the softer pitches at this time of year. Unfortunately, we live in England and the weather is not always the greatest! This does mean the boys will get to experience the wet and cold at some stage, but the boys’ enjoyment of the sport is our primary concern: we will always be flexible in our sessions. We do, however, encourage boys to wear thermal leggings and top if they do suffer from the cold. Hoodies and tracksuit bottoms are not suitable for rugby, for health and safety reasons, but do come in useful as something warm and dry to put on afterwards.
Safety
Rugby is a physical sport and similar to ALL other sports, including hockey, there is a slight chance injury may occur, but we as staff will do everything we can to minimise the risk of injury. We see rugby appear in the media and we understand the concerns around these news headlines; safety measures are regularly discussed amongst the Arnold House coaches and these are the things that we are doing to mitigate the risk. The chance of head injuries and concussion at this level are unlikely – our accident stats are regularly reviewed and analysis of these stats prove that the measures we have in place have been successful in preventing serious injury.
Staff are well trained and qualified to coach all aspects of the game, especially the tackle, and have ongoing First Aid training. Some boys may not be able to partake in contact rugby for medical reasons, but there is no need for them to miss out on the benefits of playing rugby: we adapt the training and they can participate in touch rugby matches both in training and against other schools.
Arnold House Coaching Staff
As Teacher in Charge of Rugby, I am passionate about the sport but that is not confined to just coaching: I am still playing rugby on a Saturday, with training twice a week. I have grown up playing rugby since the age of 6, playing for my local hometown club where I continued to play until I was 18, and in that time, I also represented my school, region and played academy rugby. Following that, I represented my university team and continued to play for my regional side. At university, my coaching journey also kicked off; whilst on placement I was coaching multiple age groups from U9 to U18. This continued as I moved into my first teaching post, where I completed my RFU Level 2 coaching qualification. I have continued coaching all the way through to the present day, and I still absolutely love coaching. I always look back on when I was younger and think the best decision I had ever made was to play rugby. I have learnt a lot from my time playing the sport; not just the skills required to play but many life skills from playing and the RFU sum this up nicely in their core values.
Many of the coaching staff have played contact rugby themselves - including Mr Matthews, Mr Millburn Fryer, Mr Harahap, Miss Hall and Mr Stringer - and we have had many other colleagues play in a touch rugby league over the last couple of the years. Rugby really is a sport for all.
I am a firm believer in the core values rugby have to offer, which help to build towards this term’s focus of industry, which is resilience, and the citizenship focus of being kind, which again links back to teamwork.
I hope this overview is helpful. Am always happy to answer any queries you may have.
Mr Ingram
Teacher in charge of Rugby