Club gears up for bright future
8 Feb 2008
Sevenoaks Rugby Club has agreed a package of far-reaching measures designed to strengthen its senior playing structure and establish a firm platform for future success.
Club gears up for bright future
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Sevenoaks Rugby Club has agreed a package of far-reaching measures designed to strengthen its senior playing structure and establish a firm platform for future success.
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Among a raft of initiatives, the club is now committed to increasing its coaching complement, bolstering its recruitment efforts and offering players comprehensive support in terms of fitness, nutrition advice, injury treatment and rehab.
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Three months ago the club established a task force to look into every aspect of its senior playing structure and produce a report for the General Committee. Its goal was to produce a fully developed proposal for a structure that could challenge for and sustain rugby at London 1 level, but without compromising the club�s amateur ethos.
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The task force comprised current and immediate past club captains George Roffey and Damian Manning, Academy coach Mark Aspinall, former head coach Ron Standen plus Andy Nichols, Mike Thomas and Bryan Phillips, all respected club players and administrators, who together bought a wealth of diverse and successful rugby experience to the table.
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The plan, approved by the General Committee last Thursday, will see the coaching staff increased to three senior coaches. The club will also formally establish the role of recruitment manager to help facilitate targeted recruitment of players, both locally and from overseas if necessary. Back-room roles such as club physiotherapist and team manager will also be upgraded.
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We looked at what other successful clubs were doing, and analysed where we were falling short and where we could learn from others. We were also keen to maximise our own internal advantages. We have, for example, excellent links with South Africa and we need to ensure we make best possible use of this as a potential recruitment channel.
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The process begins this week when the club will advertise for the role of Head Coach. Further appointments for assistant coaches will follow thereafter.
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The new Head Coach role will see far more emphasis placed on improving playing skills throughout the entire club, not just the 1st XV, and the two assistant coaches will provide the necessary support to ensure that is achieved.�
Sevenoaks has long enjoyed great success with its junior section, having produced over 20 internationals at age-group levels in� recent years, as well as two full England internationals, one of whom has gone on to play for the British Lions. Six former Sevenoaks juniors are currently professional rugby players with Premiership or top European sides. We are immensely proud of what our junior section has achieved over many years and now we intend to provide a senior rugby structure that even our very best young players can genuinely aspire to become part of when the time comes. Continuity between the junior and senior sections of the club has always been good but we intend to make it even better in the future.
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A key element of the Head Coach role will be to increase the interaction between the senior coaching staff and the junior set up to ensure the outstanding talent being produced at junior level has a clear pathway into senior rugby.�
It was seen as important not to make piecemeal or rushed decisions but to look at the whole issue in the round and set a solid platform for long-term success. This initiative, coupled with the appointment of our new Senior Rugby Chairman Jim Monks and the ongoing plans for our new clubhouse, means we are on the verge of some very exciting times at Sevenoaks Rugby.
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