Papplewick

Rugby Programme 2024/25

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Introduction
Having recently attended the National Conference for Heads of Rugby in
Schools at the Allianz Stadium (Twickenham to you and me), I am pleased to
see the RFU continuing to invest time and money into the ‘Age Grade’ game,
looking to navigate the ever-changing climate. The RFU is looking to promote
the idea of ‘A Changing Landscape’ and ‘Modernising Tradition.’
The phrase ‘Changing Landscape’ is certainly an important one that all involved
in the game are acutely aware of. The risks around rugby have been widely
publicised, and quite rightly too, but I can confidently say that rugby is a
different game from what you may have experienced at prep school. It has
even changed immeasurably since I joined Papplewick 12 years ago. Rugby is
evolving and for the better.
Rugby's merits and values put it above all other sports, in my opinion, which is
why I feel the phrase ‘Modernising Tradition’ is also important. We are not
trying to change the game beyond recognition and lose the values that all
involved know are so important. We are trying to merge these traditions and
values into a game which will hopefully be enjoyed by boys and girls for many
years to come.
At Papplewick, we aim to do this in two main ways. Firstly, ensuring the game
of rugby is as safe as it can be. This is achieved through excellent coaching and
training sessions to managing fixtures to ensure that every boy is playing at the
right level for them. The second way is to ensure that any injuries are
identified, handled appropriately, and triaged. Then, any time away from the
game is carefully monitored if required.
Rugby always will be a sport that I hold close to my heart. What the sport has
given me over the years is more than I can put into words. I feel I am in an
enviable position at Papplewick to give some of that back. If I can ensure that
the Papplewick boys are getting the same opportunities as I did and
subsequently experience the values, attitudes and enjoyment of the game that
I did, I will be happy.

Roger Wood
Master in charge of Rugby

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Contents
Page 4 - What does rugby look like at Papplewick?
Page 6 - Rugby in the Lower School (Years 2-4)
Page 7 - Rugby in the Middle and Upper School (Years 5-8)
Page 8 - Who coaches my son?
Page 9 - Injuries and concussions.
Page 10 - Questions and Answers.

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 What does rugby look like at Papplewick?
First, I would like to point out that rugby at Papplewick looks very different
from the rugby you may have been watching during the Autumn
internationals. In particular, and I do think this is crucial to note, prep school
rugby largely involves small pre-adolescent boys playing against each other as
opposed to the undeniably large men one sees in the adult game. International
rugby is also a complex game that has many different facets, from rucks and
mauls to line-outs and highly technical scrums.
The RFU ‘Age Grade’ programme is designed to ensure that every player is able
to enjoy rugby in a safe environment where they can develop their personal
and social skills as well as a wide array of transferable multi-sports skills. This
results in their personal development as well as their lifelong involvement in
rugby and other sports.
In the RFU’s Continuum (the rules that govern ‘Age Grade’ rugby), these are
introduced gently and gradually to allow the boys to develop the skills and
understanding required to perform them effectively and safely.
At Papplewick, alongside the Continuum, the rugby programme will involve the
three different formats:
1) Non-Contact
2) Reduced Contact
3) Full Contact
The rugby programme will be structured to cater to all levels of ability and
confidence. While most boys will be more than happy going into full contact,
we know that through experience and confidence, some boys will start off
playing a more tailored game with reduced contact in sessions and non-contact
elements. This aims to build confidence to take part in full-contact rugby when
they are ready to do so. To this end, the school has already organised some
competitive touch fixtures on some Wednesdays and Saturdays for boys who
are not involved or ready for competitive fixtures.
This year, in a bid to help manage the contact time that the boys are
undertaking, we will be having a non-contact day each week when all sessions,
regardless of the team or ability, will be playing non-contact rugby. In truth,
this is not new to the rugby world as teams are becoming much more aware of
managing the contact element to the game. For Papplewick, this will be on
Tuesdays.
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Rugby is still a competitive sport, and we look forward to continuing to build
and develop the strong rugby culture that we have at Papplewick. We have
been proud of how results have improved year on year and this season, we will
look to continue to build on these successes. We aim to do this through the
following:

• Developing the Whole Player- developing a positive attitude towards

rugby.

• Training sessions will follow the RFUs APES principle: Active,

Purposeful, Enjoyable and Safe.

• Setting high standards, just like everything we do at Papplewick.

• Improving all pupil's FUNdamental athletic skills: agility, balance,

coordination and speed.

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 Rugby in the Lower School (Years 2-4)
In Years 2 & 3, the boys will play touch rugby. This takes out any contact within
the game and allows the boys to develop the basic skills involved in the game.
They will learn the basic principles of passing and running whilst learning how
to attack and defend as a team.
In Year 4, the tackle is introduced, and the boys will start to learn how to
manage the contact element of the game. At this stage, there is still no rucking
or mauling, so it's just a tackle. It is important to note that the boys don’t have
to tackle the player to the ground, and the referee can call ‘tackle’ if they feel a
reasonable attempt has been made. I sometimes think of this as glorified
hugging!
This is what the continuum looks like for Years 2-4:

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 Rugby in the Middle and Upper School (Years 5-8)
In Year 5, the ruck is introduced, but only one player from the attack and one
from the defence are allowed to compete for the ball. This then doubles to two
players from the attack and two from the defence in Year 6 before becoming
unlimited numbers in Years 7&8.
The scrum is also gradually introduced, starting in Year 5, as an uncontested
method of restart with just three players. In Years 6 and 7, one boy is allowed
to contest for the ball in a scrum by ‘hooking’ it back, but no one is allowed to
push. In Year 6, there are still just three boys in a scrum, and this increases to
just five players in Year 7. Only in Year 8 are the boys allowed to push in the
scrum.
By Year 7, there are twelve players in a team, and in Year 8, there are thirteen
players in a team, but in both cases, there are still no lineouts, kicking
conversions, or penalties at the posts. In fact, we don’t need the posts at all,
but we like to put them up so that the boys feel like they are playing on a
proper rugby pitch!
This is what the continuum looks like for Years 5-8:

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 Who Coaches My Son?
We are blessed at Papplewick to have a host of experienced and passionate
coaches. The boys will always train within their year group, and training
sessions will be differentiated to match all the boys' confidence and ability.
This is the staffing for the upcoming season:

Under 13 A- Roger Wood

Under 13 B- Mark Burley
Under 12 A- Stu Malan & Jason Dodd
Under 12 B- Josh Sivier
Under 11 A- Ben Martin
Under 11 B- John Nutter
Under 11 C- Will Hollis
Under 11 D- Gareth Fotheringham
Under 10 A- Arthur Astbury
Under 10 B- Tom Ferry
Under 10 C- Greg Pienaar
Under 9s Henry Wareing
Jamie Baker
Josh Sivier
Under 8s & Under 7s John Nutter
Danny Mills

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 Injuries and Concussions
Rugby is a contact sport, so just like football, there will be injuries. However, as
with any sport, the risk of injuries can be reduced in a number of ways. At
Papplewick, we do this in the following ways:
• Quality coaching, teaching the correct techniques, and ensuring that
boys are as safe as possible when engaging in contact.
• Wearing the correct equipment. Most boys have been fitted with an
Opro gumshield, which offers protection for the boy's teeth, but more
importantly, concussions, too, and all boys must wear a gumshield.
Scrum caps are also encouraged but not mandatory.
• Correct warm-ups following the RFUs Activate, which is the RFU’s injury
prevention exercise programme.
• Staff who are trained in concussions and follow the RFUs HEADCASE
programme, which is one of the UK’s leading concussion awareness and
education resources.
• Following the strict Return to Play protocol published by the RFU if a boy
has a concussion.
In school, the school Nurse, Laura Wooldridge, [email protected], will
manage the school’s concussion and injury programme. Should there be any
suspicion of a concussion, the boy will be removed from play and seen by
Laura or another healthcare professional.
It is important to note that concussions can happen in any walk of life, so it is
essential that if your son does suffer a suspected concussion outside of school,
Laura is notified straight away.
The RFUs HEADCASE uses the 4 Rs, which Papplewick will be following. These
are:

• Recognise
• Remove
• Recover
• Return

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 Questions and Answers
I appreciate that a number of you will still have some questions about the
rugby programme that we run at Papplewick. Hopefully, I can answer a few of
these now:

1. My son doesn’t like rugby because of the tackling and contact. What can
he do instead?
Answer—All boys will continue to play rugby, but training sessions and
games will be adapted to ensure that all boys can play and, hopefully,
enjoy rugby in some form. No boy will be forced to play contact if he
doesn’t want to.
2. I have a question about selection and would like some feedback as to
which team my son is playing in. Who do I contact?
Answer—The first person you should contact is your son’s coach, who is
listed on page 7. You can also contact the lead coach for your son’s age
group, who is the coach taking the A team for that year group.
3. My son fell over at home and banged his head. I am worried that he
might have a concussion. What should I do?
Answer- You should immediately contact the school’s nurse, Laura
Wooldridge, and inform his coach. Your son will then be assessed when
he returns to school, and if needed, he will follow the return-to-play
protocol.
4. My son is really enjoying his rugby, and I want to know if he can play
outside of school.
Answer- YES! Playing rugby outside of school works really well at
Papplewick because all junior rugby is played on Sundays. There are
some fantastic local clubs to Papplewick who are very welcoming and
always looking for new players. The most local clubs to Papplewick are
Bracknell, Windsor, Camberley and Chobham. You can use the following
link to find the club most local to you:
https://www.englandrugby.com/find-rugby
If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to get in touch at
[email protected] and hopefully I will see many of you on the touch
lines, watching and enjoying some great rugby.

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