Our clubs are gearing up for a dynamic return to the field, with friendlies underway and league fixtures set, we’re also rolling out several educational and support programs. Our commitment to fostering a supportive and competitive environment is more robust than ever, promising an exciting season ahead for the Western Province Rugby community.
Our Saturday fitness and conditioning sessions for our WP club rugby women’s players at the High-Performance Centre in Bellville has now concluded and we look forward to the results as the ladies now return to their clubs. The enthusiasm and commitment displayed by everyone involved have been truly inspiring.
This week saw the final distribution of the initial season fixtures, and next week sees us into the next phase of preparing for our Women’s rugby league fixtures with additional engagements with our women’s clubs next week.
We already see a number of friendlies scheduled, with some notable derbies in play. Although all matches promise to be spectacular, fans can, in particular, look out for Hands and Heart against Vander Stel, Hamediehs against SK Walmers, Villagers versus UCT, and Hamiltons hosting Brackenfell. Additionally, there are a number of Paarl regions and Helderberg basin derbies as expected as teams quite often play their neighbours.
This weekend’s friendlies will see the official start of the implementation of the new laws, this following our law change workshops. For the coaches that missed out, please be on the lookout for a catch-up course to bring yourself up to speed.
This week saw some big strides forward in our campaign to ensure the wellbeing of our members, in particular our focus on Safeguarding, as we rolled out two courses with in excess of sixty members in attendance and now in the process of being cleared and certified, with additional catch-up courses scheduled for next week. Safeguarding, in particular, focuses on the prevention of harassment and abuse of vulnerable groups.
Our mission alongside the non-negotiable national sports compliance on safeguarding not only includes education and safeguarding our members but also includes ensuring all players and all role players are aware and knowledgeable on the aspect of safeguarding. Any clubs who have not yet ensured a delegated safeguarding representative has been appointed and certified must reach out to the WP Rugby offices to complete the process.
The Varsity Cup and Varsity Shield went into another and this week this week as we saw an intervarsity between Maties and UCT at the Green Mile, with Maties coming out on top. Unfortunately, things did not work out for UWC, who went down to the NWU Eagles, while CPUT went down to TUKS this Friday.
We continue to break records in our coaching department as last week saw in excess of fifty coaches complete the World Rugby Level One coaching course, which ranks as quite possibly the highest enrolment for a single day over the years we have presented the course. And notably, this Friday saw close on thirty World Rugby Strength and Conditioning candidates attend the S&C course at Newlands.
This course is integral to our ongoing efforts to enhance the capabilities and preparedness of our coaches and athletes. There is no doubt that the clubs’ players and coaches who have an advanced strength and conditioning process in place reap the benefits during the season with higher performance and fewer injuries.
Still, on the education front, the launch of our series on Governance has been met with great interest. This week saw our first course with a focus on the Role of the Executive with in excess of seventy members in attendance. The next two courses will be on Good Governance and financial management. This initiative is designed to bolster the administrative and operational excellence within our clubs. We encourage all members to sign up for these courses, reinforcing our commitment to not just sporting excellence but also to the principles of good governance and management.
As we move forward, please continue to submit your compliance documents and actively participate in the various courses and forums. These engagements are vital to our collective success and the continued growth of rugby in the Western Province Rugby.