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The month of August is traditionally the month for Rugby training and education and this year was no exception when a World Rugby Trainer arrived in Accra on the same day that Ghana Rugby held its first ever in-house Coaches Clinic in the city.

Mr Robert Bwali from Uganda arrived in Accra on Saturday 12 August 2017 to conduct a week long series of Sevens Rugby Courses at the Accra Sports Stadium starting on Monday 14 August 2017.

The courses, supported by Olympic Solidarity under the auspices of the Ghana Olympic Committee, will include a Level 1 Sevens Rugby Coaching Course, a Level 1 Sevens Rugby Match Officiating Course and a Level 1 Strength and Conditioning Course.

On the day of his arrival, the Ghana Rugby coaches also assembled at the Rugby Secretariat in Osu-Accra for the first ever Coaches Clinic that was initiated by the coach of the national Rugby team, Mr Lovemore “Dallas” Kuzorera.

According to Kuzorera, it is important that the coaches of all Clubs and youth Development Officers get together from time to time to discuss issues of common interest.

“Ghana Rugby has adopted a Development Plan (GRDP) based on the principles as outlined in World Rugby’s “Get Into Rugby” programme, and the principles embodied in the Irish  LTPD (Long Term Player Development) model. It is important that these guidelines are used in practice to improve Rugby development in a structured way,” Kuzorera said.

The Coaches Clinic included a classroom session that included discussions around the challenges that Ghana Rugby coaches face and the understanding of the key performance indicators of a Rugby coach, as well as an in-depth look at the way the 76-page GRDP should be used as development guideline.

The afternoon practical session looked at the assessment of players’ conditioning based on the South African BokSmart guidelines as well as a session on the tactics of restarting a match.

“The conditioning of players has become a highly specialised and indeed scientific area that receives much attention in especially top tier high-performance unions and involves the assessment of player’s fitness, speed, endurance, agility and strength. It is only through a proper assessment that one can focus in on the development needs of each player,” Kuzorera said.

Players who attended the Clinic were full of praise for the efforts put in to bring the Clinics to fruition.

Rob Oram from the Accra Rugby Club opened a floodgate of praise when he said, “A big thanks to coach Dallas and the GRFU for making this happen!”

Other comments included, “Much enjoyed and appreciated,” “I learnt a lot and will work with it,” Really enjoyed the explanation and the empowerment. Thanks, Ghana  Rugby for the most detailed development plan I have ever seen and wished for,”  “It was empowering and unique since it was the first of its kind,” and “Bright future for Ghana rugby.”

The President of Ghana Rugby, Mr Herbert Mensah, commented from his UK home on the Coaching Clinics and World Rugby Training Courses and said that training and education are fundamental to the future success of  Ghana Rugby and will always be very high on his agenda.

“Rugby in Ghana is in its infant shoes, and without proper training and education our development teams will never be able to lay the essential basic foundation and understanding of the Game, let alone the more advanced high-performance tricks of the trade,” Mensah said.

The Coaching Clinic will also be conducted in Cape Coast on Saturday 19 August 2017 and will be attended by World Rugby Trainer, Robert Bwali.