This week saw some fantastic news for WP Club Rugby and WP Schools Rugby and we’re excited to see our u20 DHL WP Rugby team get back into action.
Following the recent announcement by SA Rugby on the allowance for fixtures and training, and after consultation with our clubs the positive news this week was the decision by the WPRFU that clubs may now resume training on condition of the strict adherence to the COVID safety regulations.
This news is very positive for our members who have been starved for activity. The announcement has several positive elements including that clubs can again reach out and engage with their members with a specific training message. Considering the risk of losing members and sponsors the need for club activity is crucial.
COVID has had a very negative effect on the mental health of sports people and the desperate need for sports activity has been apparent. We’re happy to say that WP Club Rugby now again provides some respite from this terrible pandemic.
We urge our members to remain vigilant against the virus and to consider training methods similar to other sports that are currently training without fixtures or matches in mind.
Additional good news this week rolled out from the Department of Basic Education and now sees the return of school sports. We have already received news that many schools have begun some basic training and that by all accounts the players are simply once again enjoying the option for enjoyable exercise, even if it’s just passing the ball around in a social manner.
The SA Rugby u20 Currie Cup starts this weekend and our DHL WP Rugby u20 get their campaign underway next week when we host The Leopards in a curtain-raiser to the seniors Currie Cup match with the venue still to be announced. The fixtures for the SA Rugby u20 championships have now changed from weekly to fortnightly and our first away match then against Eastern Province u20 on 72 August 2021 in Gqeberha.
Our YTC Women’s youth program continues to deliver fantastic results and this year has again seen the announcement of several of our Women players selected for the Women’s National side. This follows from our success in the Women’s Premier division. The current elite squad of just over forty players have been issued home-based training programs and will all have their eye on the SA Rugby u20 YTC games with the first fixture expected to be in October this year.
Our WP Rugby activity calendar carries on with the schedule of online workshops. Next week Thursday 12 August 2021 sees our first Women’s Collective as we gather our former WP Rugby Women’s players and
our newly signed up Women’s Club Rugby reps. This online event which forms part of our “Women’s Collective” will look at various ways to grow Women’s club rugby by looking at methods of recruitment and activities driven by WP Club Rugby. This initiative is inspired by the values of WP Rugby as we believe that rugby can and does play a significant role in the growth of society.
We will be hosting our next workshop on 16 August 2021 on Live Streaming and the various elements of producing a live stream including equipment needed, content consideration, the content delivery network, and data usage.
On Thursday, 19 August 2021 we move onto a lighter format as we roll out our WP Club Rugby Quiz series roll out. The quiz focuses only on club rugby-related trivia such as spot the logo, what happens next, and name the player or coach.
Our next World Rugby Level 1 coaching for Fifteens course will be held on 10 September 2021 at DHL Newlands.
This is a one-day course from 12h00 to 20h00. Please remember to first do your World Rugby Passport online.
The process is easy enough to follow with all of the relevant information provided online. It’s important to note that once you register online and start your course you can return to finish it later. If you are interested, please click here to sign up now.