If you go down to the Recreation Ground this week you will see the Community team involved in their Summer Camps. Throughout the week they are delivering coaching skills for the U7s-U16s.
The camps look at all the different core skills such as catching, passing, kicking and tackling with an emphasis on teamwork and friendships. This enables the Community coaches to assess the skill levels of the young players and then provide coaching sessions to improve the techniques with the aim of raising the standard of each player’s skills.
“Each year we coach different young people who come to the Bath Rugby camps, in an attempt to improve their rugby skills. This year the numbers have been higher with almost 150 attendees ranging from under 7 through to under 16 years,” said Community coach Caryl Thomas.
John Harrison, who organises the camps, thanked the players for their input into the camps, and praised the Bath Rugby Community Coaches for maintaining and delivering a high standard of skills coaching at the Bath Rugby camps, adding, “We have ensured that match tickets to the Bristol game on Friday evening on the Rec have been offered to all the camp participants and we are pleased to welcome many of them and their families to the Rec to support Bath Rugby!”
The work of the Bath Rugby Community team is an all year round job. Out of season does not come into the team’s remit!
During the first week of the summer Jimmy Deane, Steve Middleton and Caryl Thomas of the Community team went to New York with Danny Grewcock for a week to lead a rugby camp at Westpoint Military Academy.
Since that time a rugby camp has also been delivered at Marlborough. The kids were treated to a special experience during the camp as they found themselves guests at Bath Rugby’s new training facility at Farleigh House, where the camp participants were able to sit pitch-side and watch the senior Bath Squad being coached by Sir Ian McGeechan, Brad Davis and Martin Haag. At the end of the session the players and coaches freely mingled with the young spectators, answering questions and providing autographs, making it a visit to remember.
Further camps and courses will be advertised on the Bath Rugby website. If anyone would like to register an interest in attending future Bath Rugby Skills Camps please contact: john.harrison@bathrugby.com
