Aberavon RFC V Bedwas RFC

Aberavon RFC are facing Bedwas RFC tomorrow night [Fri 29th Nov] at the game will bring a tough challenge as Bedwas are finding some form. We were unlucky last week against Cardiff to not win, but also not picking up a bonus point from the game, this was very disappointing. However, again we showed improvements which will be taken into the game tomorrow night.

Sadly, we lose Darryl Thomas who goes through a lot of work on the flank. We gain the services of Lee Purnell - who is a fine player. Jay Baker makes his first start for Aberavon and he looks sharp.

The forwards have a tough task against Bedwas, we have to win that battle first and then the backs can strike and cause Bedwas some problems.

As always ... get down to watch us play, we get better and better the more you are behind us. 7:15pm KO and Bring the Noise!!!!

TATA Steel Program [Coed Hirwaun and Cwmafan]

Today I was at Coed Hirwaun and Cwmafan running the third session of four of TAG Rugby as part of the program sponsored by TATA Steel. The Y4 classes are really progressing in their understanding of the game of TAG rugby and are finally adopting the rules into games and passing backwards and not forwards (which is always a relief).

Presently, the classes are learning skills of 1v1 (below), this gives the children a sense of direction to move FORWARD with the ball. This works well.

Cwmafan Junior School

Coed Hirwaun Primary School

The children then progress to 2v1 games, which helps them understand that 'if' the ball carrier gets TAG'd then they must pass to their team mate. This is a great exercise as the defender can understand to TAG the ball carrier, then give the TAG back before chasing the other player down. For the attacker, it is good to act upon being TAG'd to pass the ball straight away to keep the game alive.

Lastly, it is always good to finish with games of 5v5 or 7v7 so that the children can get used to playing a proper game of TAG rugby. I spend a long time on games so that I can teach whilst they play. I find children understand the rules much easier in game time, then 'skill' time.

Cwmafan Junior School

Aberavon RFC V Cardiff RFC [23/11/11]

Aberavon RFC take on Cardiff RFC tomorrow and I for one am very excited. Its a new era at Aberavon RFC with the appointments of head coach Jason Hyatt and assistant coach Barry Maddocks. The players are enthused and have a glaring motivation about them. All is good. However, we can only show the good changes through winning, and we are more than capable and prepared to win.

We played very well in the first half against Bridgend last week, scoring 27 points. Although, we did not score a point in the second half, our defence was very very good. A 2 minute lack of concentration gifted Bridgend two tries, which we have worked hard at this in training to make sure it does not happen again. With continuous pressure applied against teams, we can really become a force to play against.

Anyway, we need the support of the town and the fond Aberavon RFC supporters. Let's all get down to the Arms Park tomorrow [23/11/11] and bring the noise ... Cmon Afan ...

Trigger at Cwmafan [Warburtons]

Last day with Warburtons until the next round of schools today. Today I was at Cwmafan with Daryl Thomas [aka Trigger], in fact Cwmafan Primary was Daryl's old school, but I do not think he looked like this then. I doubt Daryl had a dodgy 'Movember' either.

If you are wondering what Daryl is doing with his hands - these are called 'bakers hands'.
The children at Cwmafan had a great day making sandwiches, it is always good to see children with a smile on their faces and having a break from the academic learning.

It is great to see Aberavon players giving a little back to the community, which sums up really the players we have at Aberavon RFC.

Below is a picture of one of the Warburtons girls, Jenna. I do not think she will be impressed with me sneaking that one on here. Nice hair net.

Wizards League [Secondary Schools - Round 4]

Unfortunately Cymmer Afan have had to pull out of the league due to facing difficulties of the size of their school and not being able to compete due to lack of number. Cymmer have shown great character in the opening games and Gavin Groves the teacher at Cymmer has worked tirelessly to put teams on the pitch. The show must go on. What has happened in terms of the league, all games against Cymmer have been VOID. Therefore, all point scored for and against have been deducted. This week only St Joes and Glandfields featured. The year 7 game was a game of two half's with Glandfields leading 0-10 at the interval and St Joes scoring 19 points to win the game 19-10. A great to watch with some good players on show. The year 8 game was won by visitors Glanfields, they took victory winning 10-24 against St Joes. There is a bit of a break now until next fixtures, they are: Dyffryn V St Joes and Dyffryn V Glandfields, both to be played at the Plough.

Wizards League [Secondary Schools - Round 3]

The secondary schools Wizards League has completed its first phase of competition with all schools playing against each other at least once. St Joes beat Cymmer 0-54 [Y7], whilst a bye was given in the Y8 game resulting in Cymmer taking the game 30-0. Glanfields and Dyffryn [Y7] was a great game to watch. Glanfields were leading 36-5 until 10 minutes left of time, where they battled back to 36-22. In Y8 Dyffryn were the victors winning the game 14-22. There has been some very strong games on show this term with some exceptional players featuring in each game. Prospects are very high for the town in terms of rugby, all that need to happen is for the schools and the pupils to keep playing consistently. The teachers have worked extremely hard to arrange games and get the game played. Without the efforts of the teachers, this would not go ahead. Teachers are vital.

Wizards League [Secondary Schools - Round 2]

The 2nd round of fixtures in the secondary schools have been completed and saw some close games. The year 7 game between Dyffryn and St Joes ended at 22-27 to Dyffryn, which was an epic game. However, Dyffryn Year 8 team won 50-7 against St Joes. Cymmer played Glandfields [Sandfields and Glanafan]. The Year 7 game ended 0-54 to Glandfields, whilst the Year 8 game ended closer with Glandfields winning 10-26. Excellent games so far.

Wizards League [Secondary Schools - Round 1]

The new secondary schools program got underway this week which is sponsored by Costain. Hard work has gone in by the secondary schools teachers to get teams on the field to feature is this league format. Glanfields played St Joes in the opening game with a strong looking game by the Year 7’s finishing 15-15 and the Year 8’s Glanfields team won 17-7. Dyffryn played Cymer Afan and the scores there were [Y7] 56-7 and [Y8] 59-15, both wins going to Dyffryn.

Aberavon RFC & Warburtons at Coed Hirwaun Primary

Today, myself and Aberavon RFC player Joe Tomlin-Reeves [JTR] visited Coed Hirwaun Primary School as they were visited by Warburtons as part of the Aberavon RFC sports program. In today's session was sandwich making and Angela and Jenna both talked through the 'eat-well' plate, which is a good platform of healthy nutrition. Angela and Jenna prepped the children by sending them to tie there hair up, wash their hands, then putting hair nets on the children and also aprons. Bakers hands was used to make sure the children did not dirty their clean hands. JTR got involved with the children whilst they were making their sandwiches. It is good to see Aberavon RFC players getting involved with the schools.

Warburtons and Aberavon RFC

As part of the Aberavon RFC sports program delivered to Primary Schools in Port Talbot, Warburtons spend a week visiting the schools. This week Warburtons visited Eastern today, Coed Hirwaun tomorrow, Groes on Wednesday, Central on Thursday and Cwmafan on Friday. Warburtons deliver an excellent service to the school via Angela and Jenna, who are two enthusiastic and professional workers. They have two workshops [1] Sandwich making and [2] bread making. Today, we did bread making and the children very much enjoyed themselves. Jenna and Angela teach the children how to make bread and also discuss the eat-well plate, food wastage and give a short history on Warburtons.

Wizards League: Round 4

Some excellent rugby and netball were played this week, with a lot of schools becoming very competitive in their results. Central had tight games with Awel Y Mor in both games, with Central eventually winning rugby 35-15 and netball 9-6. Coed Hirwaun travelled to Cymmer and won 1-10 in netball and 10-40 in rugby. St Therese remain unbeaten in both rugby and netball beating Baglan 40-10 in rugby and 12-2 in netball. St Therese next fixture is against Central which will be a very good game. Tywyn also remain unbeaten and have one game in hand. Tywyn played Groes and won 0-30 in rugby and 0-10 in netball. Tywyn have also managed to not have a single point scored against them in both rugby and netball. After three games, that is an excellent statistic. Groes, Baglan and Cymmer Federation show signs of improving each week which is excellent. After the 4th round, Coed Hirwaun sit at the top of the rugby table unbeaten. Whilst Awel Y Mor top the netball table on points difference. The Wizards League is certainly heating up nicely this season.

Wizards League: Round 3

The Wizards League is really picking up with some consistent performances from some schools but also some schools are getting better every week. Examples of improving weekly is Baglan Primary, 3 games in and 3 loses, however the improvement each week is great. This week Baglan lost to Awel Y Mor 15-25, but also recorded their first three try’s of the campaign. Awel Y Mor also won the netball game against Baglan in  a close game, 9-10 that ended. Other big games were Sandfields V Central where a draw was recorded in both rugby and netball, 25 all [rugby] and 9 all [netball]. Cwmafan beat Traethmelyn 0-25 and 0-10 in rugby and netball respectively, with Cwmafan really showing good form this year. Coed Hirwaun continue their unbeaten form in rugby beating Eastern 35-20 and just winning 3-2 in netball. St Joes lost to Blaenbaglan 10-25 in rugby and 2-6 in netball. Tywyn had a clean sweep over Cymmer Federations claiming a 0-30 win in rugby and a 0-10 win in netball. Lastly, St Therese played Eastern in a rearranged game and won both their games in netball and rugby, achieving a 30-5 win in rugby and a 10-0 win in netball. That makes an unbeaten start for St Therese Primary School.

Wizards League: Round 2

Round 2 of the Wizards League saw some great matches on display. Highlight of the matches was St Joes V Traethmelyn, both rugby and netball were close encounters. Traethmelyn were the winners in rugby winning 30-45, an excellent display of rugby. St Joes won the netball out scoring Traethmelyn 6-5. In rugby, the Coed Hirwaun V Blaenbaglan game proved to be close, with Coed Hirwaun edging the win 20-10. However, the Blaenbaglan netball team won 2-12. New comers Cymmer Federations again came close to their first winning, losing to St Therese 20-30 in rugby and 1-10 in netball. Groes have won their first game of rugby, which is a great achievement as it is their first year in the league. Groes beat Awel Y Mor 25-20 but lost 0-10 in netball.  Sandfields beat Baglan in rugby and netball, whilst Cwmafan also won their matches against Central. There are a few games to be played in order to catch up, they include: St Therese V Eastern, Traethmelyn V Central and Tywyn V Eastern. Hopefully these games will be played this week. Two games down in the Wizards League and there is good elements of competitiveness and constant development in both rugby and netball.

Wizards League: Round 1

The old Costain League now known as the Wizards League went through the first round of fixtures this week and saw some interesting fixtures being played. Three season winners in rugby and netball, Tywyn featured against Blaenbaglan who were Tywyn’s biggest rivals last season. Tywyn won this fixture in both rugby and netball, 20-0 in rugby and 7-0 in netball. New comers to the league Groes Primary School had their first game against Sandfields Primary, who returned to the league this season also. Sandfields won 30-5 in rugby and won 7-0 in netball. Regardless of the result, it was great to see Groes Primary involved. With Tir Morfa and Glanymor amalgamating to form Awel Y Mor, it was also a fresh start for them. Awel Y Mor featured against Cymer Federations, which is an amalgamation of Cymer, Glyncorrwg, Croeserw and Pen Afan. The rugby game was a strong game for both teams, which eventually saw Awel Y Mor win 30-25. The netball was won by Awel Y Mor 11-1. Other games included St Joes V Coed Hirwaun, showing a high score of 50-45 to Coed Hirwaun in rugby and St Joes winning 11-2 in netball. Cwmafan played Baglan,  with Cwmafan winning both the rugby and the netball 20-0 and 4-3 respectively.

CHILDHOOD OBESITY: What Can Be Done?

Childhood Obesity is the highest in the UK and Wales is also fifth highest globally. This is a real concern to say the least. The Welsh Government [WG] report that 35% of children aged 16 and below are classed as overweight or obese, this is also stated as a growing statistic, this has not changed since 2007. We can all deliberate the causes of the rises in childhood obesity such as the growing advances in technology, poor food choices, lack of physical activity and participation in sport, poor parenting choices and discipline and so on. However, we should be more concerned about how we can combat the increases of childhood obesity. The WG attempt to apply certain measures to reduce the risk of ‘becoming obese’; this is made through many ‘optional’ programs that the tax payers supplement. The National Health Service [NHS] funds the treatment of childhood obesity which costs the NHS a staggering £73m a year just for treatment, granted this is less than 1% of the £6bn budget supplied to the NHS by the WG, however we can add this to the cost of programs such as Change 4 Life, MEND and 5x60 which are all ‘optional’ preventive measures created by the WG. Needless to say that not only does obesity within children create social issues through bullying, lack of self-confidence, depression and underachievement in school, childhood obesity is economically hampering the nation with no real improvements in statistics. So what can be done? My measures may seem complicated and difficult to structure but are based on a preventative approach. The approach I would provide will not only prevent childhood obesity, but will also raise the health of the nation, improve social interaction, improve academic achievement and also raise the level of sport in Wales. In Wales there are 1656 maintained schools in, this includes nursery, primary, middle, secondary and special schools. It is the WG responsibility to ensure that these maintained schools are given the best opportunities in all departments and lowing childhood obesity should be as important as receiving a good education in my opinion. This is the approach that I suggest. WG should create a scheme were physical activity is mandatory at each school, preferably in the mornings before education begins, this should even be made part of the curriculum. This mandatory physical activity program should not be sport based, but to be cardiovascular based. Granted that this approach is starting to sound slightly military, but let’s be honest, the military approach is notorious for improving discipline. Many studies exist based on how cardiovascular fitness can improve education at schools; this would be a major bonus for Wales as a nation. Ok ... so trying to get this program up and running would be difficult and something in the national curriculum would have to be sacrificed, but the relevance of it is crucial for Wales as a nation. Statistically childhood obesity leads into adulthood and the WG identify that if a parent is obese it is most likely their children will be also. The WG promotes healthy living and the need to get 60 minutes of activity a day in the Climbing Higher document. The strategy to achieve this with children in schools was through the introduction of the 5x60 program which is an ‘optional’ extra-curricular program, not all children participate in this, and it is normally the ‘sporting’ child who participates. Initiatives are in place and the WG should be applauded for doing so, but with the high increased rates of childhood obesity which is continually growing and the high importance of physical activity portrayed by the WG, it is about time the WG take childhood obesity more seriously. To surmise this new initiative, it would need two employees at each school [not all schools would need two], a small budget to support the job roles. Every child would have to take part in a mandatory cardiovascular based program every day for 30 minutes and this would be made part of the national curriculum. How would the initiative be measured? Well there would be a suitable fitness test that would show the level of fitness of a child; this could be repeated every term. Different tests would have to exist for level of schooling, therefore primary and secondary schools would have different tests and their grading would be different. Costs? Each school would employ two physical activity officers [PAO], one on a salary of £25,000 per annum and the other on £15,000 per annum, also giving a £5,000 budget to support the remit. This is a total of £45,000 for each school, creating a grand total of £74,520,000. This figure obviously seems a lot, but remember, this figure is less than 1% of the WG budget to the NHS. Secondary schools currently receive 120 minutes of mandatory Physical Education [PE], this is not always reached, and this allowance is just not enough. PE would still exist, but would be more theoretically based educating children in healthy eating and nutrition. Both the PE staff and the PAO would work together to create an extra-curricular sports program for the traditional team sports or individual sports. My suggestions you may think are very drastic and very unsuitable for children, but how else is this nation going to improve our childhood obesity epidemic without making drastic changes.

Future of Welsh Rugby: BACKLASH

My article in the last Wizards Community Magazine caused some interesting influx of emails sparking interesting debates. Also I conversed a lot with close friends and family regarding the article also. Interestingly enough, what came to the front of the debates was a wide range of opinions, beliefs and desires which in all honesty was the purpose of the article. The article was questioned by a few to be negative towards ’grass roots’ rugby, but I would totally disagree. The main purpose really was do Wales need to rethink the way we capture and develop grass roots rugby to keep in front of the global rise in rugby participation. Let me give you something to think about again, to illustrate what my point was. Wales have played Japan 9 times in a capped test match, with Wales winning 8 games out of the 9. Wales have on 7 occasions put 50+ points on Japan with a 98-0 win in 2004. However, in 2013 Wales narrowly beat Japan 18-22 and then lost in the 2nd test match 23-8. We can all begin the excuses now, [1] it was in Japan [2] main players were in Australia with the Lions [3] other main players were either rested or left behind [4] not enough preparation time was allocated before the tour [5] the players were all youngsters … I could keep going. The facts again do not lie. Since the first game against Japan in 1993 and with Wales winning comfortably in all games—20 years on, Japan are challenging, Japan won. This is my point. Imagine another 20 years? Not just for Japan, but for Russia, USA and China. With global developments in rugby is amazing for the game of rugby, but we must be wary of the future and not become complacent. Briefly, what also came from the article was the preference for school children to be subjected to ’Sport for All’ where there should be opportunities for all children to play sport with competition being non important, or the ’competitive’ root where winning is the in the highest of importance. This is something that can be for your own deliberation. Which root is best can be debated all day, benefits of both great but also negatives of both can also be identified. The most important action we all take is getting as many children playing rugby and into the local community clubs. Which is very difficulty in this current society that we live in today.

Results [Wales] V Japan - The last 10 years

15th June, 2013—Japan 23 V 8 Wales

8th June, 2013—Japan 18 V 22 Wales

20th Sept, 2007—Wales 72 V 18 Japan

26th Nov, 2004—Wales 98 V 0 Japan

17th June, 2001—Japan 30 V 53 Wales

10th June, 2001—Japan 10 V 64 Wales

9th Oct, 1999—Wales 64 V 15 Japan

27th May, 1995—Wales 57 V 10 Japan

16th Oct, 1993—Wales 55 V 5 Japan

What Does the Future Hold for Welsh Rugby?

Presently we are celebrating the delightful series win by the British and Irish Lions over Southern Hemisphere giants Australia, which has also come on the end of Wales winning the annual six nations competition with an inspirational win over arch rivals England. Welsh rugby have produced Lions in Justin Tipuric, Jamie Roberts, Alex Cuthbert, Ian Evans, Alyn Wyn Jones, Richard Hibbard and Leigh Halfpenny who can all arguably be products of the welsh development system. For Wales, there are also notable players who have been capped and have paid their presence in the Welsh Principality Premiership, players like Andrew Coombes, Tavis Knoyle and Dan Biggar who have emerged from the development system in Wales. Added to this, sell out capacity crowds at the millennium stadium, even at prices of £75 a ticket, Welsh Rugby is on the up right? It looks economically reassuring and the current players are looking good also, regardless of the mass exodus. New emerging talent is questionable with the recent tour to Japan, but more to the point, what about the state of grass roots rugby in Wales? Where are we now? And what does the future look like for Wales and other nations? I have taken a closer look at participation levels in rugby in Wales and across the globe, participation at grass roots level and at senior level.

So … Wales? A thriving rugby nation bubbling with talent and its children all fueled with passion and desire to lace their boots and get out and play the countries traditional national game? No. Although I cannot reveal the emotion of every child in Wales regarding rugby, I can attempt to provide a picture based on statistics. At the end of 2011 Wales had a population of 3,063,758 million people with 346,969 of that figure being of an age from 7-16, with 178,381 of this figure being male. The male market is arguably Wales’s target market for engaging grass roots rugby. In primary schools there were 163,278 people aged from 7 to 11 at the end of 2011. Sport Wales state that 50% [81,639] participated in rugby, with 64% [52,248] being male. In secondary schools there were 183,691 people aged between 12 and 16 at the end of 2011. Sport Wales reveal that there is a 44% [80,824] participation rate in rugby in any setting, with males contributing 75% [60,618] of this figure. Therefore, in total there is arguably a 32% participation rate in rugby among Welsh population aged 7-16, with 63% participation by males. These seem like average figures, ‘seem’ is the key word, as these figures by Sport Wales represent a person participating ‘once’, this does not represent a consistent sustainable outlook of participation in rugby. It would now prove to be a good time to introduce the International Rugby Board [IRB] statistics as a compare and contrast to possible miss leading statistics provided by Sport Wales. IRB issue that there were 50,557 registered players playing rugby in Wales, 44.3% were senior registered players. This leaves just over 55% [28,149] of players at grass roots level. Sport Wales identify 162,463 people aged 7-16 participating in rugby, but the IRB state only 28,149 are actually registered players. Now this is a more realistic figure to what our communities are experiencing in terms of grass roots rugby—disbanded mini sections, lack of fixtures and loosing talent to other sports. Let me quickly put this into context, of the 346,969 population of Wales aged 7-16, 28,149 are actual registered players, which is just 8% of the 7-16 year old's in Wales, Why? How? This is worrying if you ask me. If we compare this to the 2011 Rugby World Cup [RWC] winners New Zealand [NZ], who have 137,835 registered players of which 19.8% [27,374] are senior players, leaving just over 80% [110,461] of grass roots registered players, I find that incredible, fascinating and valuable.

Percentages can be misleading, but numbers are not. NZ have a foundation of 110,461 grass roots rugby players to choose from, Wales have 28,149, back to percentages, that’s 75% larger base of players. What delights me about rugby is the global growth, but this also scares me. The IRB report that since 2007 there has been an increase in registered rugby players in Europe by 22%, sounds great, however these increases are emerging from countries like Georgia, Russia, Romania and Italy. Rugby has risen 33% in Africa, 22% in South America and 18% in Asia. Great for the sport, but is this worrying for Wales as a rugby nation? My only worry is that when countries like China [population of 1,349,585,838], United States of America [USA] [population of 316,668,567], Russia [population of 142,500,482] and Japan [population of 127,253,075] continue to emerge in rugby and grow their expertise whilst tapping into their enormous population, utilising their resources—these countries will overshadow Northern Hemisphere teams like Wales [population of 3,063,758]. Sri Lanka, USA and Japan are already in the top 10 nations for registered participants, lets bare in mind of Japan’s recent win over Wales … granted first team players were away on Lions duty, but I think this is exactly my point. With 7’s now an Olympic sport, rugby is being taught as part of the school curriculum in China, USA and Russia. If these countries want Olympic domination then they will focus all efforts and resources to succeed at 7’s level first. We all know how big the HSBC 7’s series is, with events in Japan, USA, Hong Kong and Dubai with the recent 7’s RWC held in Russia. This shows how serious the IRB are about growing the game globally, and through the IRBs 10 year strategic plan to grow rugby globally—7’s is going to be the driving force. We have already seen Italy become part of the [now] Six Nations, and more recently Argentina in the [now] Rugby Championship. So is rugby participation on the decrease for Wales but on the rise globally? I think so. Wales show that there are opportunities to participate in rugby with large efforts made by Physical Educational [PE] teachers to enhance rugby through extra-curricular activity. Sport Wales promote rugby through the Dragon Sport [Primary School] and the 5x60 [Secondary School] schemes.

The Welsh Rugby Union [WRU] have made admirable efforts by creating Rugby Participation Officers [RPO] that are placed into different regions all over Wales, in aim to drive up participation of rugby and raise awareness of the game. Is this enough? I am afraid not—if Wales want to keep up with global growth in rugby—then I believe drastic measures need to be done. Short term is maybe not the problem, 5 years and 10 years time Wales will get by, but 15 years and 20 years time, however, after four Olympic Games, we could be seeing rugby domination and increased competition from other nations. Is a different approach now needed to move rugby forward?