Gather a group of Level 1+or- coaches and they daren't talk about motivation, lack of skills, difficulties in gathering 15 players for training, let alone games.

There is a massive range of situations for coaches of all levels.

For me, being a team coach means so much more than devising a training schedule. Sometimes you get lucky. Last year I coached a team which had a management team of its own! I just turned up and coached, and to a greater extent, coached what I wanted to coach. I had time to plan effectively, reflect and discuss things with players.

This year I am coaching my son's under 8's (more on that as the season progresses) and I am the skills coach with the local professional team's age groups.

A wise head said to me once that you can't coach more than one team - I would agree with this in an ideal world. But it is addictive; you get asked; no one else puts themselves forward. If I didn't have a family and a job of work (which happens to be writing rugby coaching, which is good news!) then I would do more.  

My advice - if you are going to put yourself out for a team, make sure that you drag in others. Invest time in managing these volunteers, because you will benefit from them in the long run. If your investment equals 100%, then spend 30% managing, recruiting and motivating others to give you 70% quality time, plus a more than 30% increase in activity due to the work of others.

I am currently writing an article on motivating volunteers. I would be interested to hear your thoughts.

I`am part of a coaching team of 6 & coach seniors, mostly squad coaching, but have responsibility for 2XV on match days. All teams have management behind them, so I only have to coach, although I do have input on other aspects.

I also coach a CB development squad, again just coaching/selection & no management.

Of the two, I found the development squad gave me the most satisfaction. I saw great improovment & willingness to learn from the players, they enjoyed both training & the games. I found I put more into the development squad because they gave me more back, I also felt I improoved as a coach because of this.

This is not a bad reflection on the seniors I coach, just a different attitude towards their rugby & their own asperations.

Ruck, Ruck, & Ruck again.

I get a real kick out of taking the school side - they all turn up, keen as mustard, motivated, on time (mostly!) and always give their all. To be blunt, I just wish I was a better coach, for which reason I subscribe to Dan's publication and have registered with this site. The head coach is top notch, so I have a lot to live up to.

BTW: I am a Level 1, going on a Level 2 course next month. My background is the SE London/Kent leagues, playing regular adult rugby from 1978-2003, now just guest/veteran appearances (especially tours!).

The older I get, the better I was

If email and texting isn't your thing, pass this job onto someone that is familiar with the technology. It works really well and cuts down the time taken to communicate your messages.  The kids love to get a message from the coach now and then, it makes them feel very grown up, but check with Mum & Dad first.  It is important to remember that not everyone uses these tools so make sure that everyone gets the massage in a way that works for them.

We trained hard as a small group of about 20. Guys came from all over to have a go. However, we found that we were not very skilled, and as a result lost every game in that first year, 2004. Teething problems with our sponsor, and coach including players, made life for me as co-founder and the instigator of the mess difficult. I have to thank my wife for supporting me in the role of secretary. Interestingly the average age of our players was 35 in 2004! Mind you milestones like our first try and boat-race victory were memorable points.

2005 saw the club aquire a new sponsor, new pub, new jerseys, new coach and a new attitude. We rose from the ashes and made the semi finals, one game away from a grand final birth, whilst retaining the majority of our good players and gaining some excellent young ones.

2006 saw the same coaching staff return. However a couple of key players left us and confidence dropped. This combined with our 3rd president in as many years, made for a uncomfortable start to the season. The coach also had difficulty's getting to training due to a move closer to the city for work, so trainings were always unplanned. He was always old school in his methods, un-qualified, and relied on his players skill in 2005, rather than his coaching. His best friend was actually the better coach because he would always be there doing basic fitness for us, pulling tyres running hills etc. This can become very repetitive after some time.

As a result, we didnt have a gameplan and went from game to game progressively getting worse, and more frustrated.

Eventually, I was injured, I completly tore my left a.c.l, with associated medial damage. I was self employed and have a family of six.

I was lucky, I had saved and could afford the surgery at a private hospital, and a new job fell in my lap.

I followed my teammates away when I could and watched the decline, It was horrible.

So I decided to follow the A.R.U. pathways program and attained my first qualification late lastyear. And when the A.G.M came along and our old coach didnt apply for the job I jumped at the chance. By the fourth round this year I had achived a A.R.U. level one coaching accreditation and the team has defeted two of the top teams in our competition, and are most importantly enjoying their rugby again.

On top of that I have found a new interest in a game ive played for so many years. I really look forward to coaching every Tuesday Thursday and Saturday. I make myself available all the time for Rugby and would love to take it further. This site has been really helpful and I recomend it to all coaches regadless of experience.

Go the Wallabies!!!

p.s. Always plan act and review.

Go forward in everything you do!

this is very hard at the moment as i have gone into a town that play union and football

rugby league is not very popular so i am trying to make it  popular.

i have never played but my son as played league for the last 5 years, so i have seen quite a lot.