So the rugby season has come and gone, no more Saturday mornings, no more video analysis and no more ahooooo’s…
This year has been so amazing and special for so many reasons, that I just do not know where to begin. How do you describe the progress of this team in words? For me it was just so amazing and inspiring to see these boys pick themselves up, dust off the loser tag and begin to believe in themselves again. So what happened? Why did the u15a team win 7 games this year? Why did they win 2 spur team of the weeks? Why did they improve every match, without exception?
I will tell you why,
they did so well this year because they wanted to. The boys collectively decided to turn their own fortunes around, they wanted to play well, they wanted to try harder, they wanted to prove everyone wrong, and they wanted success.
This desire to turn things around was not apparent at the start of the year however. I remember them turning up for the Brackenfell game looking like they were about to attend a funeral. They were so nervous that this year was about to turn out the same as last, that the tension in the air was stifling. There was no fun, there was no team spirit, and there was no passion. There was just this huge fear of failure that unfortunately ensured the team lost that first game in a disappointing way. Stellenberg followed shortly afterwards which we lost by 1 soft try at the start of the game. That game was hugely frustrating to me, as the boys dominated possession but they just could not get through to score. That proved to me that this team was seriously lacking self belief and confidence!
The first win of the season came after we beat Duineveld off the superb boot of Ajam, who did not miss a kick that day. This win does not rank up there with Bishops or Wynberg, but what was so significant was that the team played the entire match without Joel – who had a little encounter with their outside centre! After that game I think the boys started to believe my crazy rantings that yes, this team can win matches too!
The obvious highlight was the win over Bishops at home, where the boys were down 16 points with 10mins to go! Thus after ensuring I had pulled out a sufficient amount of hair, they decided it was time to win the match. 3 tries later the game was won by 1 point! This I hoped was the turning point for them…
But alas it was not to be, as it seemed winning was just a fluke for the team at that time, so obviously they had no chance against the powerful Rondebosch side! The team was so nervous beforehand, it was quite sad to watch and listen to them exclaim how they were about to be trampled on. Needles to say they were only down 7 points at half time, but unfortunately it was not to be as we not only ended up losing by 26 points, we also lost Ruairi the captain as well as our flyhalf Jono too! Sport can sometimes be very cruel.
However some confidence was gained after that match, as the boys began to believe in themselves, that they can take on the big boys and not die.
The team then encountered Paul Roos, the best team in the province. Although they lost by 30 odd points, the boys took huge confidence from the fact that they took on their forwards and did not go backwards. A minor victory, but a victory none-the-less.
Paarl Gym was next, but after such an emotional week before, it seemed the boys were just not up for another big performance. Partly my fault for not getting the focus and intensity levels right, but hey mistakes was made, and lessons were learned. The team was gutted after this match, as they knew they did not play like they knew they could have. I was hugely frustrated after this match as I knew I made a mistake with the mental side of things, and so I got onto my computer and emailed a hugely influential person whose work I follow intently…
Enter Tim Goodenough.
For me that week was the turning point of the season and possibly the boy’s lives, as they were made to realise how much control they had over their own performances and how big their balls were… (Inside joke) I think the boys really admired him after being told that this crazy guy, who had worked with the Sharks and Boks, decided to fly down from Durban to help them of all teams. The difference in the teams approach as well as my coaching skills increased hugely, and for that I thank him.
It was plain to see his influence during the Boland match, as suddenly we had a team playing such awesome rugby, dominating almost every facet of play, and scoring some nice tries! For the first time the boys were up at half time!! This was unknown territory for them, and unfortunately they did lose, but the lessons learned were of far more importance than the result.
Wynberg came and went, although not an inspiring performance, they managed to beat them 3 nil… not a huge score, however this was the first time they beaten them in 3 or so years! The wheel of fortune was slowly turning in the boys favor.
Thus we came to the second part of the season, and my word was it an awesome term for the boys! To have nearly beaten Boishaai as well as Rondebosch really spoke volumes about how far they have come as a team! The victories against Tygerberg although not pleasing to me, showed how much character and balls this team now possessed. The victory over Bishops was well, something else, as Bishops threw the kitchen sink at the boys (apparently after a suspicious video made it onto YouTube) and they stood firm and won it by the skin of their teeth! An entertaining match to say the least!
Now it may seem like I rushed the second half of the season but what was apparant to me, was that the hardest lessons were learnt in the first term, and that although the boys may not have won them all, they became better players as well as people after the lessons learned. It was amazing that the boys came out stronger, more positive and even more determined after each defeat.
The entire years journey was epitomised by the Weinberg win, where they boys turned around a 33 -5 loss at the end of last year to a 22 – 8 victory. If that scoreline does not explain how far this team has come then nothing will. They played like they were never going to lose, and seemed to be having more fun than ever. And that is what it is all about at the end of the day.
This journey has been amazing for me to watch, and I’m sure the boys have enjoyed it immensely too. What has made me more proud than ever is to have watched all the boys become confident about themselves and have learned self belief that was lacking before. Thus it was indeed a journey of immense proportions, with so many lessons learned along the way, it has been an utter privilege to have coached and got to know the spuds that make up this team…
However I always said this team needs two years to make the turnaround complete… and that second half, is about to begin.
I look forward to next year more than ever, I want to take these boys to heights they never dreamed possible last year, I believe in them….
Do they?
I have to thank Tim Goodenough and Tom Dawson Squibb for their awesome help and guidence throughout the year, without it this year would not have been as special!
I thank Horse’s parents for their contributions of strapping as well as the awesome pictures throughout the year, and of course the sideline comments that kept opposition parents in line
And finally the amazing and talented Mr Jones who’s guidance and regular sideline beatings have helped me tremendously!
And the spuds who have this year so special… I only hope it continues the way we ended off…
AWESOMELY
(And with a bit of a BOOM?)
