DEVELOPING THE FUTURE VIA COACHING STAFF

Twenty-five coaches and volunteers from Brothers Junior and Senior rugby league clubs descended upon the Daradgee Environment Education centre at the weekend in preparation for the season ahead.

Designed to provide professional development for all team staff, the PD Weekend is in its third year after having been held at Tinaroo in previous years.

Featuring guest presenters from the NRL and the North Queensland Cowboys, the activity provides the opportunity for the club to impress upon team staff the elements of the game in a way it wishes to be imparted to its players.

Acting as a re-accreditation for coaching staff, participants are provided with the resources required for the season ahead, as well as interactive presentations around the coaching of core skills and the planning required from a season down to an individual session.

Football Manager Chey Bird described the weekend as “A wonderful opportunity for the team staff to be appreciated through developing them as volunteers, expose them to guest presenters and their expertise, and as a way to continue reinforcing our club culture. The building of relationships between staff members not only from different age groups, but from the Junior and Senior clubs, sees that continued growth in ‘club first’ support, but also allows for information sharing as the season progresses”.  

With a spread of staff from the Under 8’s to A Grade, the club had the good fortune to be presented to by the Cowboys contingent of Aaron Payne, Glenn Hall and Jared Hoare. Cowboys legend and current Elite Pathways Coach Payne drew upon his playing history to deliver his strong focus on the game’s core skills, with Elite Pathways Manager and former player Hall presenting his view on developing the player and the role of local clubs in forging the potential stars of the future. Jared Hoare is the Elite Pathways Strength and Conditioning Coach and delivered an informative session around designing sessions that challenge the player in their skill and physical development.

 NRL Referee’s Development Manager Michael Inman opened eyes, minds, and empathy levels via his ‘Referee’s Appreciation’ session. Bird continued “Referee’s cop plenty, but without them we have no game. Having coaches truly understand the pressures referees are under for even slow-paced Juniors matches and the difficulty in making correct decisions each and every time will hopefully mean that our staff are at the forefront of cutting them a little slack, and even offering support”.

The Brothers Junior and Senior clubs wish to extend a great deal of appreciation to all of the team staff, guest presenters for what was a great weekend.