RAMS Under 15s coach Mark Pett-Ridge is hoping the return of rugby will put smiles on people’s faces from next week, writes Richard Ashton.
The easing of lockdown on March 29 means the lads can get back in action after being stuck staying in contact via Zoom for the best part of three months, and Pett-Ridge can’t wait.
He said: “We’ll be looking to make the most of the months ahead and bring smiles to people’s faces both on and off the pitch.
“I’m glad lockdown is coming to an end because we only had a bake-off left to keep them engaged.
“But the boys and parents have been great. We raised £1,500 for Dani (Watts) and the Injured Players Foundation and had regular Zoom meetings with guests like (Director of Rugby) Seb (Reynolds), Turkey (Sean McDonnell-Roberts), John Raspin, Russell Earnshaw from the Magic academy.
We did Nick Heath’s rugby quiz and we were guessing the Six Nations scores every weekend – for the record the coaches are pretty rubbish, losing to both the parents and the players.”
He continued: “I’m really looking forward to getting back to OBR, with the boys, their parents and other age groups, because the social side is really important and has been missed by many.
“My main aim will be to re-engage with as many boys as possible from the current squad and welcome new boys on board, and the sessions will be fun, engaging and competitive.
“After so long away from the pitches we have a great opportunity to re-works skills and build up their fitness. We will be doing a lot of small sided games mixing R4R and Xrugby7s.
“We have a day out planned at the end of May at a Sevens festival in Guildford where we will have a great day out with the players and parents with a bit of rugby.
“I’m also look forward to getting the boys an opportunity to play on the first team pitch under the new lights.”
With first-team hooker Ben Henderson joining the coaching team, Pett-Ridge has revealed what he expects to see next week.
He said: “A lot of energy and excitement! It’s going to be interesting to see how the boys have grown up since December.
“It will be games, followed by games and more games with a sprinkle of skills.
“We’re always looking to challenge the boys and bring some tasks to their play and to the scoring of games.
“We will also look to do some other sports including tag rugby and hopefully do an Aussie rules training session.”
And Pett-Ridge lastly admitted what he thinks the boys have missed the most during the lockdown, concluding: “Rugby and everything it stands for – not only playing but being at the club with their teammates through to watching first team, helping out with the minis, ball-boying home games. You name it, they haven’t done it in ages.”
