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Fun. It has to be doesn’t it? Yes it does.
You know the story of Tom Sawyer whitewashing the fence? He is conscripted by his Aunt Polly to do so, but comes up with clever ‘reverse psychology’ to trick neighbourhood boys into believing painting the fence is actually the greatest thing in the world to do.
He gets so convincing about all the fun he is having that before the afternoon is over he has bartered turns at whitewashing with all the boys that come along in exchange for amazing things.
Well, that coaches, is part of the art of school rugby. If you can convince all of your players of the fun they are having (which shouldn’t be too hard) then you have the blank fence from which you can paint fantastic values on, on and off the field.
Rugby is the foundation from which a whole host of attitudes and character can be built upon. The very nature of the game complements good values. ‘Look after your mates’, when the going gets tough, the tough get going’, Play hard, but play fair’. To name a few.
The rugby site interviewed school rugby coaches in NZ, across a range of socio economic backgrounds, and the underlying theme of having fun was echoed loudly throughout, no doubt the world too.
Emma Jensen, All Black and Epsom Girls Grammar Head coach said, “The biggest part of our role is facilitating the students’ love of the game. You don’t even have to be a good coach to instil the love of the game” Love is such a strong driver in participation in sport and in life. How much better do you do something when you love doing it? To put it another way, would you rather do something you love, or something you hate. Make it fun, make them love it. If you can achieve this small thing as a coach, you create an environment for which so much can seep in.
Tongan international and Sacred Heart Head coach Gus Ledger stated, “Its our role and duty as coaches to equip our players with not only the necessary physical tools, but the mental and emotional ones as well, we do this by coaching in a way that students want to be involved” When people want to be part of something, “they are far more receptive to the messages we are delivering. The key is getting them to this state. My opinion, making it fun is paramount to achieving this”. Once there a coach has license to impart the learnings that are in line with themselves, the school and the community as a whole.
Dave Askew Head coach at New Zealand’s leading All Black provider, Auckland Grammar school, believes that enjoyable rugby trainings help spark the schools primary aim, good grades. “It’s our belief that success on the rugby field and success in the classroom is directly related to the level of enjoyment had in each”. He believes that the lure of playing rugby helps his student’s grades, because he makes it clear to his players, “If you want to do well in my rugby teams you have to do well in the classroom too”. Like Tom Sawyers said, “You want to whitewash the fence, well wadda you gonna give in exchange”. Because the motivation is so high to be involved in rugby, “we get great buy in from the players, parents and teachers. We also make sure as coaches; we praise good grades as much as good tackles”.
By making rugby fun, as coaches, we are able to teach more than just the rules and subtleties of the game. We can leave imprints that can steer and shape students’ lives long after their ability to play the game has gone.
Having interviewed the likes of Richie McCaw and Dan Carter, the sentiment these two great players had of their first memories of playing the game was how much fun they had. Hearing from them on their retirement, their vocabulary rang with phrases like, ‘I have thoroughly enjoyed every moment of my rugby career’. It’s not an occupation you do as well as they have unless you love it. It’s the same at all levels, from your first exposure to your last.
Fun. The most important thing in a game of rugby. Keep that tucked away inside every time you enter the game.
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