Scott Baldwin and Jamie Murphy spend an evening with Bridgend Athletic junior section
On a busy day for Bridgend Athletic RFC last week, Ospreys players joined up with the WRU’s Community Development team at the region to host a special coaching evening with the junior section at the club.
While inside the club house Justin Tipuric and Tom Grabham were helping Worthington’s, the Ospreys long-term commercial partners, pay tribute to Phil Rees, the ‘Worthy winner’ of a £10,000 donation to the club, out on the training paddock Tom Cole, Player Development Officer for the Bridgend District, was joined by Jamie Murphy and Scott Baldwin to put youngsters at the club through their paces.
They spent the evening working with the U11,12,13 & 14 age-grades, looking at basic skill development. The backs were put through decision making drills and games with full-back Murphy while former Ath’ youngster Baldwin looked at scrum formation/body profiling and contact area with the forwards.
Speaking about the sessions, Tom Cole said:
“In what was a very busy night for the club with the official re-opening of the club since its refurbishment following the money from the Worthington event it was extremely encouraging to see so many new players involved with the age groups down at the field and the future looks bright for the club moving forward.“
Scott Baldwin added:
“As a former Bridgend Athletic player it was a honour to be able to go back to my club with Jamie and Tom and spend some time helping the next generation of young player. I didn’t start playing rugby until I was a few years older than these boys so they’ve already got a head start on me, but I was impressed by the commitment and ability that they showed.
“It’s important that as a region we are going out and about to local schools and rugby clubs. The children we interact with on these visits are the future of the Ospreys so anything we can do to help develop their interest in rugby is crucial.”