During the summer the WRU development officers held a Dragons Recruitment Roadshow around the region. The aim of the roadshow was to focus on recruiting more players for club sides as well as recruiting more volunteers to assist the running of new teams. The two focus points came under the headings of –
Fire in the Future – to enthuse more players to join clubs and be more physically active on a more regular basis.
Valuing the Volunteer – the aim of this was to attract and inform more people on how to become involved in volunteering at their community club and how they can further their development and skills via both informal and formal education routes.
In order to raise awareness of the role of the Development Officer and help boost club development in Gwent, the Gwent Rugby Development Team organised a two week Recruitment Roadshow. The Development Team visited 18 community clubs spread evenly across the five Unitary Authorities in Gwent. Clubs were chosen based on their work in the community and their desire to provide a service for the young people within the community.
The aims of the roadshow were as follows -
1) Recruit one new age group team per unitary authority
2) Recruit three volunteers per new club side
3) Promote volunteering and the valuing of volunteering
4) Inform and promote the role of the Rugby Development Officer in Gwent
5) Promote the Newport Gwent Dragons brand through promotional material and opportunities for the community to meet members of The Dragons Senior Squad
6) Promote Dragons District rugby to the clubs across Gwent
7) Raising awareness of rugby as a means to a physically active lifestyle and a healthier life in general.
The clubs that were visited were Bedwas, Machen, Rhymney, New Tredegar, Senghenydd, Newbridge, Talywain, Pontypool United, New Panteg, Croesyceiliog, Tredegar, Ebbw Vale, Abertillery, Monmouth, Caldicot, Caerleon, Bettws, Whitehead and Pill.
The format of the roadshow saw a community coach, in conjunction with the club coaches deliver activities for children aged 10-16, focusing particularly on skill development in line with the principles of Long Term Athlete Development. They also co-delivered an introductory TAG rugby session to the youngsters.
Each club was encouraged to capture the contact data of any new players that attended while the remaining development officers worked with the adults to recruit more volunteers to the club. The recruitment of volunteers is an essential practice if a club is to become a sustainable entity in the community. Initial interest suggested that each unitary authority would have started one new age group by the end of last month. At the majority of clubs visited during the roadshow, there was a significant presence of new players at each venue. Over 150 U8s and 390 9-16s attended all the sessions.
Exact figures on the number of potential volunteers could not be recorded but estimated figures suggest that an additional 200 adults (who were not part of the adult TAG sessions) expressed interest in volunteering.
Volunteer strategies at clubs of note were:
New Tredegar RFC – Women's committee (for fundraising)
Pontypool United RFC – Coaches for U11s, plus extra fundraising assistance
Abertillery RFC – Women's committee
Bettws RFC – Additional volunteers for general club running (kitchen duties, kit and fundraising)
Clubs were also provided with 10 free child's tickets for Dragons games which was well received by the clubs and players.
Overall, The Dragons Recruitment Roadshow was a huge success. Over 750 people attended over two weeks and were made aware of The Dragons as a region and recruited more players and more volunteers than many clubs do in a year.
