RUGBY: Taster day at Yeovil College for girls rugby (From Yeovil Express)

RUGBY: Taster day at Yeovil College for girls rugby

3:50pm Tuesday 7th April 2009

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GIRLS from local schools are being invited along to Yeovil College later this month to learn more about playing rugby.

Rugby for girls started at the college in the 2003-2004 season and since then the sport had gone from strength to strength with the college having a unique representative record on relation to girls being selected for regional and national teams.

The girls train with the lads and this year they had a huge influence with preparation for the national sevens competition at Rosslyn Park.

The girls train twice a week and have full support and back-up from the college’s academy system.

There are lectures in nutrition and lifestyle in addition to SAQ sessions and core weight-lifting programmes.

Andy Roda, is head of the Sports Academy at Yeovil, and is an expert in the conditioning aspect of player development.

He also leads the college rugby programme assisted by George Cooper.

But it is the college’s family atmosphere and camaraderie that enables the girls to enjoy themselves so much and yet at the same time make tremendous progress with their rugby. The girls train with the lads, but have their own discrete contact sessions.

Andy Roda said: “Over 50% of our players are converts from other sports. They love the game and we all work immensely hard, but within an atmosphere of humour and bonhomie.

“We are a smallish college, but that adds to the family atmosphere that we generate and I am convinced that this ambience is central to the values that are instilled within both the boys and the girls’ squads.

“The girls smiled and laughed for our two days at Rosslyn Park where we qualified for the latter stages for the second year in succession.

“In terms of the current cliché of “value-added” in education, what we achieve at Yeovil goes well off the Richter Scale of attainment.

“This is true of the boys as well as the girls for we take players from the local catchment area and not the whole of the South West as other establishments do.

“Personal values and ethics are as important as the game itself at Yeovil College and we are totally passionate about our rugby.

“This is doubly important in the modern game where many of the traditional values are being slowly eroded away.

“The rugby programme is set to expand at Yeovil College and links with local clubs and schools will increase the number of players coming into the college with some experience of the game.

“We do not wish to hoover-up the whole of Somerset of female rugby players! This happens in other counties for both boys and girls and is surely bad for the overall development of the game.

“However, we want to make Yeovil College to be a base for the South Somerset and North Dorset area.

“We have a superb PE Department and the standard of student coaching on the various academic coaching courses is second to none in the country.

“The students have a balanced education and really do develop their potential in all aspects of their life at Yeovil”

A “taster day” for Years 9-11 students from local schools will take place at Yeovil College on THURSDAY, APRIL 23, from 4pm to 6pm.

Andy, who played for Saracens, London, Bristol, Parma and Exeter during his playing career, added: “We hope that as many local girls will attend this event and come and see for themselves what is on offer at Yeovil!”

George Cooper, meanwhile, had six successful years as coach at Bridgwater and Albion RFC and nine years at Ivel Barbarians RFC where they ascended from Dorset & Wilts League 2 into South West 2 East via three promotions.

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