Holiday rugby training
Springboks and coaches are offering young rugby players comprehensive holiday training.
FORMER Springboks, national coaches and rugby specialists will offer their expertise these July holidays at the Investec International Rugby Academy’s high performance players’ and coaches’ courses in Pietermaritzburg.
Having identified the gap in youth sports development in South Africa, the Investec International Rugby Academy aims to emphasise the importance of playing a sport at school while guiding schoolboys with a passion for rugby.
Offering position-specific skills and theoretical training, young players can look forward to working closely with former Springboks Braam van Straaten (flyhalf), André Pretorius (flyhalf), Marius Hurter (prop) and Ian MacDonald (flank), and Italian lock Carlo del Fava, as well as former provincial players Greg Miller, Greig Wegerle and Ryno Combrink.
Coaches can also look forward to fast-tracking their expertise by learning alongside former Springbok coaches’ Ian McIntosh and Dick Muir, current Sharks assistant coach Paul Anthony, and former English player and provincial defence coach Michael Horak.
The Investec International Rugby Academy’s courses cover more than just theoretical and practical rugby training; they also educate young players on the importance of nutrition, injury prevention and recovery, physical conditioning and mental toughness.
Rugby specialists Mark Steele (Sharks Strength Conditioning Coach) and Ruan Fourie (former Sharks and Lions Physiotherapist) will be ensuring that players understand the effort that is required behind the scenes.
Aiming to nurture the pool of talent available at school level, the Academy gives players and coaches the advantage of learning the skills and knowledge that professional coaches attending took years to develop; allowing coaches to integrate the latest coaching methods into their practices and allowing players the opportunity to stand out among their peer groups.
Offering a Prestige Players’ Course (ages seven to 10), an Intermediate Players’ Course (ages 11 to 13) and a five-day Players’ Course (ages 14 to 17), the academy’s biannual players’ courses are highly sought after by school players and teams from all over South Africa. Depending on the level of instruction, coaches can choose between the comprehensive five-day coaches’ course which runs alongside the five-day players’ course or the intermediate coaches’ course for coaches who work specifically with primary school players.
The Investec International Rugby Academy’s next set of courses will take place from Saturday, 1 to Wednesday, 5 July at St Charles College in Pietermaritzburg. All meals and accommodation, as well as kit and learning material are included in all course packages. For more information about the Investec International Rugby Academy’s Courses or to register your son for the July courses, contact Greg Miller on 031 940 5565 or visit www.investecacademy.com.
