Open Evening
Friday March 14th 4:30 to 6:30

The Pirates Youth rugby section hopes to hold an Open Evening on Friday March 14th, from 4:30 - 6:30, in the clubhouse, to which parents of current and future members and others are invited to meet the age group coaches.

Adrian Bick, the newly appointed Club Coaching Co-ordinator for Youth Rugby said "The number of young people we're coaching compared to just 5 years ago has doubled. The club and the coaches want to offer the best quality rugby experience to the young people, but we are currently limited by a lack of resources, principally volunteer input."

Wendy Nicholas, Section Secretary said "Adrian's agreement to be Coaching Coordinator demonstrates the quality of the coaching available for the young people. He's also backed up by coaches such as Rob Williams, a former England schools prop forward. Both Adrian and Rob came through the mini/junior set up and of course Nicky Brooks who played over 600 games in a Pirates shirt."

The youth section currently has around 250 members and has a great track record of producing players, who go on to play representative rugby.

These include Matt Jess now at the Cornish All Blacks, formerly of Gwent Dragons but who also played for the Cornish Pirates and Cornwall, Ryan Westren who also played for the Cornish Pirates and Cornwall and who is now at the Cornish All Blacks, Robert Whyte and Gareth Andrews who both played for Scotland U18's in 1999-2000, Charlie Armstrong who played for Ireland U18's in 2006-07 and Adam Nicholls who played for British Colleges in 2005 and who has also played for the Cornish Pirates.

The club is keen to push for the RFU's prestigious Seal of Approval accreditation. In order to do so a number of volunteer helpers are required in key positions.

There is a need to find more coaches, principally with a background in rugby, but because the game is now multi-skilled volunteers with experience of coaching athletics, other hand ball games, such as netball and even wrestling can become involved.

Also crucial to the development of the game at junior level are referees. The RFU has developed its Entry Level Referees Award that enables holders of the qualification to referee junior matches and provides a pathway to refereeing at international level.

The club is also looking for people with experience of finance, marketing, sponsorship and administration. Wendy continued "I have been involved with Youth rugby for several years now and there is a great sense of satisfaction from seeing children as young as 6 develop, just a few years later, into highly skilled rugby players.

It is not always apparent, but there are many opportunities that arise out of being involved in rugby, at all levels and these are enhanced when involved with a club as highly regarded as the Pirates.

We have a very small but committed team who make rugby happen for our younger members each week. But, we all have many other commitments and we now need to spread the load. There is lots of support available these days for volunteers both through the club and other organisations."

Anyone with an interest in helping out, who may be able to offer even a very limited amount of time, is asked to contact Wendy Nicholas 01736 871835 or 07855 416519 or to go along to the club at the times stated above.