Randalstown Rugby Club’s pre-season training got underway at St Benedict’s school last week with excellent numbers attending each of the three sessions on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday morning.
56 players from the senior and U19 squads took part on Tuesday showing the type of commitment that helped make last year such a successful one at Neillsbrook.
Then the 1st XV were promoted to Qualifying League 2 after finishing top of Qualifying League 3 and the 2nd XV were promoted following a Top Four Junior League finish. The U19s won the North Eastern Regional League with an unbeaten record.
The upcoming season will though be much more difficult for all three of Randalstown’s senior sides and the U19s so to see such numbers training at this time of year gives great encouragement to the coaching and management teams.
For the U19s their biggest issue at this stage is the number of players available to them. Having “lost” 12 to the senior game and only gained 6 from the club’s U17 squad there is an obvious imbalance in squad size.
If any young player with a 1994 or 1995 birth date would like to play rugby for a side that can be more than competitive against every opposition club throughout Ulster then they are encouraged to attend training at St Benedict’s school in Randalstown any Tuesday or Thursday evening at 7.00pm.
It does not matter if the player has previous rugby experience or not – some of those who were part of last season’s successful squad had a limited or no rugby background. The quality of the coaching at Randalstown can help every player realise their potential.
Alternatively any parent or player interested in learning more can contact Alistair on 07736808027 at any time. Now is the best time to get involved as there are still several weeks before the first matches commence, a time that will be well spent preparing players for what should be an exciting season at Randalstown Rugby Club.
The pre-season timetable is available on the club website and as usual a warm welcome is extended to all. See you in the ‘Brook.
