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Cumnock Cumnock FOLLOW US ONLINE TWITTER.COM/RUGBYCLUBMAG Iain McKenzie is an U13s coach and has played himself for the past seven years starting late in the day, aged 36. He told us, “My wife Leslyn is from South Africa and after returning home from London, originally meeting in Inverness, we set up home in Cumnock. When our son Seth came along, my wife being a rugby fan was keen to see him involved in the sport so we took him along to the club and now he plays no.10 for his team. As U13s coach I can’t speak highly enough about the current squad and the great parents who support their kids through all our sessions. I ended up playing second row for the 2nd team which I loved and had the honour of becoming captain too. Cumnock Rugby Club have a great family inclusive feel about it, experienced no less by my wife who arrived sections the mood has been very positive for some time, with high numbers of players available and our teams challenging well in their respective conferences, and tournaments. Due to the construction of a new academy on the old Broomfield playing fields we were temporarily relocated to playing on nearby pitches at Netherthird. This short- term upheaval has paid off for us as a club as we are now lucky to have the use of the two new artificial grass rugby pitches, with two grass pitches coming on the grounds of the old academy. These fully flood lit pitches have made a great difference to us as it has allowed us to train and play at the club whatever the weather or time of day.” The Off-Season “In order to address some of our areas requiring improvement following our relegation from West 1, we began our pre-season training earlier than usual in from halfway across the world and was instantly made to feel welcome by the club’s great people. I would like to wish all my friends at the club the very best of continued success for this season!” June. This allowed us to bring a gradual increase to the intensity level rather than the usual pre-season shock to the system and also meant there was time to work with players who have holidays or seasonal work. We wanted to also use the pre-season as an opportunity to ease the transition for the young players from U18 into the senior game so we included them within the senior pre-season sessions. This worked as it allowed them to get to know the senior players, making walking into the senior dressing room on their first cap less daunting, and got the young players used to the style of game we are looking to play this season. The feedback on this approach has been good from both the youth and senior players and has already led to an increase in the number of young players looking forward to playing with the senior teams this season and next. This has been helped by Morton previously coaching the U18 team so there was a familiar face. The off-season is always a difficult time for the club as there is less revenue coming in but we are lucky to have some key members in our committee (including my Mum Catriona Hunter) who work hard to make sure there are functions on and things are being organised ahead of the coming season.” honour for the senior teams. We also encourage our senior players to help with coaching the younger teams, either through one off sessions or becoming an assistant coach to one of the teams.” This Season Community “Our on the pitch aim for this year is to develop our senior squad, building the positive attitude, bringing the younger players through and hopefully to get our 1st team back into West League 1, although we know that will not be an easy task with some of the competition. Off the pitch we are looking to build on our profile in the community, in particular with the senior club to attract more supporters, volunteers and sponsors.” “We have a strong following from many in our local community, with the club having a welcoming family atmosphere to all who wish to attend regardless of age or ability. We have close ties with several other social and community groups within the area and we aim to support each other through providing facilities or by attending events. We are lucky to have the support of many local businesses who sponsor our teams right through the club, many who have either played for the club or have family who play or have played for the club. There is a strong family atmosphere to our club, with many current players being the 2nd generation from their family to play for the club. We are very grateful to all our sponsors as without them we wouldn’t be able to survive as a club.” Youth “Youth rugby is the lifeblood of our club, as we rely on home grown talent for our senior teams. Without our youth sections we wouldn’t have a club. The whole club is proud of the success of our youth section especially when we see our home-grown talent coming right through to senior level and then going on to bigger and better things. The most well-known product of our youth section being Mark Bennett who has went on to represent Scotland and to compete in both Commonwealth and Olympic games. The new academy being built adjacent to the club is going to be a rugby school which we are hoping will boost the interest in rugby in the area and bring more young players to the club. We have tried several times over the last ten years to field a girls’ team with varying success, the highlight being our U18 girls team winning their final at Murrayfield. Sadly, however we have always struggled for numbers but hopefully the new stronger links with the new school can also boost the numbers of women playing and we can field a team again.” Integration “As well as including the U18 players in the senior squad pre-season, we have included them in the senior awards night and encouraged them to come along to other senior social functions within the club. To bridge the gap further down the age groups and becoming familiar with the senior squad, last season we trialled short mini matches during half time of our first team matches, with the mini players forming a guard of Challenges “Due to our location, as a senior club we have the constant challenge of retaining players, with many of the talented young players who have come through the club going off to university in Glasgow, Edinburgh and further afield where it is difficult for them to travel for training and matches. While we are lucky that some of the players return to play and bring the experience of playing with University teams, it does cause issues as players retire due to age, injury or other commitments. We are always on the lookout for new players and all ages and experience levels.” Ambitions “Over the next five years we hope to build on our successful youth section through our links with the new rugby school, and bring our 1st team back into West League 1. We want to build on the depth of our senior squad by retaining home grown talent and attracting outside players so we can comfortably field two strong squads each week. We are in a very positive position with our new facilities and we want to make the most of the opportunities available to us.” Jamie Keenan’s rugby playing days came to an end when he left school and followed his passion for cycling but he has always remained a fan of the sport and of its values. He told us, “My nephew Paul Steven’s son Ryan is involved with Ayr Rugby Club now which is fantastic and it seems that the influence of rugby is attracting people to play and have fun. Cumnock are a great club who offer the community a place to go to and we have enjoyed a long association with them over many years. This season we took on sleeve sponsorship in addition to our usual and we were keen to give this great club something back for their loyal support over the years. Myself and everyone at Keenan Coaches wish Cumnock Rugby Club and all its members young and old the very best of continued success!” 28 Issue 88 www.rugbyclubmag.com 29