admin
Mehluli Sibanda in Esigodini
THE curtain came down on the second edition of the Falcon College Under-14 Rugby Coaching Festival yesterday with tournament director Orlando Fernandes hinting at plans to make it bigger next year by including more government schools.
From Friday up to yesterday, South African coaches Greg Miller, Marius Hurter, Nico le Roux, Michael Horak and Jacques Botes, and former Sables coach Brendan Dawson imparted rugby skills to local youngsters, who then put them into practice in matches against each other.
Fernandes, a former Zimbabwe national Under-14 rugby team assistant coach, is convinced that there is a lot of talent in underprivileged schools, hence the plans to involve them in a bid to unearth more potential.
This year, Northlea, Churchill and Highlands were the only public schools that took part in the three-day fiesta dominated by private schools.
“I would obviously like to make this tournament a lot bigger. I want to expand the concept by extending it to junior schools. I also want to be able to invite more disadvantaged schools so that they can gain.
“I would also like to offer the course at lower cost to coaches from disadvantaged schools because that’s where a lot of hidden talent is in my opinion,” Fernandes said.
He described this year’s festival as incredible, with the youngsters and their coaches gaining a lot. The coaches from Investec International Rugby Academy also showed a lot of eagerness to improve the local youngsters’ game.
“I think it’s been fantastic, the boys have gained a lot in terms of basic skills, the coaches have learnt a lot in terms of how to handle drills; how to conduct a coaching session and how to provide feedback to boys during and after a match.
“I think the coaches have been fantastic; they bring a lot of energy with them, enthusiasm and commitment to this game so I have been really satisfied and pleased with this tournament,” said Fernandes.
He expressed his gratitude to their main sponsors AMG Global for helping finance the schoolboys’ rugby festival.
“I understand that many companies are struggling currently, but AMG Global for us came through in a big way. They have been generously supportive and have really helped make this tournament possible.
“Without their help this wouldn’t have taken place. There were other contributions made on a much smaller scale, but every little bit does help.
“I would like to thank Ram Petroleum, The Wearhouse, Bonsa Spar, who gave what they could in order to make this tournament a success,” he said.
Schools that participated in the three-day rugby feast include Falcon, Christian Brothers College, Churchill, Northlea, Highlands, Barwick, Midlands Christian College, Heritage, Lomagundi, Hillcrest and Whitestone.
Falcon, CBC and Lomagundi also had their first teams in attendance, but they did not engage in full contact.
Full results
Highlands 20-10 Whitestone, Falcon 15-10 Gateway, Churchill 0-50 Lomagundi, MCC 5-10 Northlea, Falcon 5-10 Lomagundi, Whitestone/Highlands 5-40 Barwick, Hillcrest 30-0 CBC.
@Mdawini_29
Online Reporter