Chronicle Editor
Nkosilathi Sibanda, [email protected]
RUGBY outfit, Hwange Diggers plan to intensify their outreach drive in secondary schools in the area in their bid to develop the sport and instil a rugby culture in the coal mining town.
The team, coached by Dion Kamwendo, started its rugby awareness project in August last year where they formed teams in the community, targeting players at primary schools.
While their initial plan didn’t yield the desired result, Kwamendo said they will soon consult with school coaches and other stakeholders on how best to conduct the outreach, given that most schools tend to concentrate on athletics in the first term, with ball games set for the second term.
“The idea is to use schools as a growth pedestal. Schools are the breeding ground for any development project in sport. It is within our plans to venture into secondary schools, taking advantage of that schools have opened. We started well with primary schools but did not do as much as we wanted. We will continue with our rugby awareness campaigns. We want to have as many of our schools in Hwange taking part in the sport,” said Kamwendo.
He said this year they will also push the tag rugby concept which is one of the most recommended programmes in teaching the game at grassroots and amateur levels.
In the past months, Hwange Diggers caught the attention of the Tag Rugby Trust and they were assisted in introducing the idea to a number of budding players.
Kamwendo said as they reach out, they want to “instil” a rugby culture in Hwange.
“The aim is basically to have more children playing and eventually become players that will form the basis of stronger teams later as they turn professional. We aim at building a rugby culture in young players. In so doing we foresee a future where Hwange schools become powerhouses in rugby. It is all possible as we work together as coaches, administrators and school authorities,” said Kamwendo.
As the New Year begins, Kamwendo said they want to up the gear and move with “speed” so that they influence as many secondary school going children to develop an interest as well.
“The more we act the better. We stand guided by that in the first term, most schools only do athletics. That has to change because we believe sport has to be all year round. So, it is our hope we will use weekends and other free days to help our youngsters be exposed.” —@NkosieLegend
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