HAMILTOM BULLS
HAMILTON BULLS
Hamilton Bulls is a club which plays a vital role in their local community and has enjoyed
an encouraging start to the season. Rugby Club Magazine caught up with Head coach David
Gemmell to find out more.
Involvement
He told us, “I joined Hamilton’s U16s for the
1985/86 season after industrial action put pay
to 3rd year school rugby. I got early chances
to test myself in senior rugby debuting for the
1st XV in 1988, before captaining for 9 years in
the 90s and, over my 25 years of appearances,
was proudly part of Hamilton’s move from West
Division 1 all the way to Premier 2…on the
way, 2 perfect league seasons were notable
achievements.
I love the physicality of the sport; however it
requires trust and reliance in teammates to make
a team truly successful. Rugby has blessed me
with many great friends and, alongside them,
great memories! I consider rugby not just a sport
– it’s a way of life!”
The Role
“On taking on the coach mantle last season
2013/14 (though I have never retired as a
player!), I get huge satisfaction from developing
the burgeoning talent we have at Hamilton. I aim
to make rugby as enjoyable and thrilling for our
players as I found it.
Physical preparation and understanding the
game clearly boosts players’ confidence and
enables them to perform to their best – we
therefore spend a lot of time on these areas.
With so much talent available to the club, the
biggest challenge is who to select! I’m indebted
to lots of people for allowing me the opportunity
of giving something back to my team – my wife
Susan, and children Jamie and Zoe in particular.
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Together with our coaching team, Alex Reid,
Steve Anderson and Richie Maxton, finding
new and interesting ways of holding young guys
attention in order to make the club as successful
as possible is tough, but the rush you get from
the players, members and spectators when
things work out in our favour makes it all worth
it!”
Atmosphere
“Hamilton is a great place to be with 3 senior
squads eying league success. The vibrancy of
the mini and midi sections brings energy to the
club in terms of new players and their family’s
year in year out.
Hamilton RFC has long focused on creating an
old school family club atmosphere wherever
we go, taking time to engage in the off field
attractions which go hand in hand with the game
– e.g. bus sing songs and making long standing
friendships with other clubs.”
Youth
“Youth rugby is CRITICAL to us! These are our
senior players of the future so we must pay
attention to their development. Not only that,
they need something to aspire to as both rugby
players and as young men. We therefore try
to set a good example to youngsters in their
passage through the game in the hope they’ll
become Hamilton stalwarts of the future.
We are improving the transition from junior
to senior each year through closer dialogue