ORRELL RUFC
JUNIOR RUGBY SELECTION POLICY

Teams will be selected on the basis of the four A's –

• Attitude
• Attendance
• Availability
• Ability

Attitude - the coaches give up three or more hours of their week to develop and improve your son's rugby skills. They are not professionals but they are qualified and dedicated.

Players who turn up late, forget their kit, refuse to listen to instructions or mess about during training all reduce the amount of time available for the Coaches to do their job. The right attitude is crucial if we are to improve.

Attendance - the coaches will recognise that someone who turns up to training every week is showing determination and really wants to play rugby.

Availability – training times and fixtures will be circulated weekly via text message. Please reply promptly to confirm availability. We can always organise a lift if players are struggling to attend.

Ability - this is not only about the individual skills needed to play in a particular position but also the requirement to use those skills for the benefit of the whole team.

Please make sure your son understands our 6 SUNDAY rules that will help with the above:

• Switch on before you arrive and be ready to play – training starts at 6pm and pre-match Sunday warm-up starts at 10:15 prompt!
• Unselfish players make up a great rugby team
• Never blame others, just concentrate on doing your best
• Do as the Coach says and your skills will improve
• Accept who you are playing with and help them to perform at their best
• Yes on the pitch - save the discussion for later. Coaches are always willing to talk to boys and parents about the development of players and selection policy after training sessions/ matches.

 
Under 13 to Under 16 players are selected with the skills necessary for the particular position and their ability to participate in a team environment. The coaches will assess each team on its merits.

Players should play at a standard and in a position where they are appropriately challenged and provided with an opportunity to demonstrate and develop their skills.

Matches - the objective is for players to enjoy their rugby and be competitive. We will not focus nor measure success by the number of wins. We will champion a positive attitude towards the team over the abilities of individual achievement.

Playing time – we will firmly encourage equal game time for all players in a squad. The club recognises at certain times (Cup matches/ Festivals) that coaches and managers may wish to field the strongest side possible. Where this is done, team management will consult with the players and parents. The team management will ensure that game time expectations are understood and agreed to before game day

CUP/ FESTIVAL SELECTION
Lead coaches for each age-group will be encouraged to select, for Cup matches/ Festivals, a squad which they determine gives them the best opportunity to perform well. Selection should always be based on the four A's.

The precise weighting given to each of these three criteria is left to the discretion of the lead coaches with whom the final decision regarding player selection lies. The lead coaches are responsible for making parents/players aware of their decisions as soon as practicable.
If you are unhappy with a selection decision, please talk to your coach in the first instance. In the unlikely event that you don’t resolve the matter with them, please get in touch with the Chair of the Junior Section.

A Place We All Want to Be.- the Orrell & Winstanley Community Club Joint Venture
Orrell RUFC is a founding member of the Orrell & Winstanley Community Sports Club; a joint venture with Winstanley Park Cricket Club to develop a much-needed community sports & wellbeing facility on a 13-acre site on Winstanley Road in Orrell.

Our Vision is to be a hub at the heart of the community used by all ages, offering a range of participation sports, health and wellbeing activities or just for personal social interaction to be used and enjoyed by all the community 7 days a week A Place We All Want to Be.

Our mission is to develop a community health hub that will develop from one that offers participation in the amateur sport of rugby and cricket to one that includes a range of other sporting and wellbeing activities; to engage with the community to improve physical and mental health and provides a place where people can be active and provide facilities where the community members can meet socially, can relax and unwind – an all-inclusive centre for the community.

Our work is on-going on the site and you can find out more on the development and progress to date on our website in the Information Section. March 2021