There is a hunger for short term success – but also a strong recognition that success must come while developing our young players into potential professional rugby players. Head Coach Patrick Horgan and assistant coaches Wayne Jones and Rob Appleyard are committed to moulding this group of players into a team that can mix it with the best in the world at this season’s Junior World Championship in Wales.
The June tournament, on home soil, is the perfect shop window for any international side and the coaches have no hesitation in admitting that they will be judged on Wales U20’s final position in that tournament. However, the trio are convinced the side will only progress to its true potential if the players work hard on the basics and processes of the game which will provide them with the tools to enable them to step up to a higher level.
Dragons Assistant Coach Wayne Jones is in charge of the set-piece. Jones said: “It’s all about the process at the moment, particularly in the set-piece which is an area which cannot be influenced or judged by results alone. We have our own ways of measuring success in that area and we have already improved our setpiece in the two Six Nations games to date.
“We are taking the players out of their comfort zones and they are achieving things they didn’t think themselves capable of. We believe that if the players are confident with the process used in the jump, the lift, the throw and the technicalities of the scrum, and then they can absorb any moves, policies and calls as necessary. If we get the set-piece right, it is a great foundation on which the rest of the team’s game can be built.”
The Wales U20 squad have provided the national squad with training opposition over the past few weeks but Jones claims the young guns will not have been too surprised by the methods used by the national squad: “We are working very closely with Robin McBryde and the national coaches to ensure that these players are learning the processes used by the senior set-up when it comes to the line-out and scrum. Our scrum work in particular mirrors the work done at national squad level.”
WRU Skills Coach Rob Appleyard looks after the defensive structures of the U20 side, and, as a former U21 captain, appreciates the difference between young players now and then.
“In our day, we relied on our raw ability as players to take us through games,” says Appleyard. “The players coming through the system now though are very much young professionals in every way. From their nutrition to their conditioning and work ethics and their understanding of the game, they are streets ahead of where we were at this age.
“For me as an academy skills coach, I work with these players on an individual basis and in small unit groups so it’s really exciting to see the fruits of that work in a team environment. The development of the team is ahead of schedule at the moment on the field but we still have a lot to work on and my work defensively is focussed on putting the building blocks together and hopefully seeing the finished results at the Junior World Championship in June.”
While Appleyard and Jones are focussed firmly on the future, Head Coach Horgan believes the added ingredient in the team’s progression is to pick up some important wins on the way.
“While the foundations are vital for the months ahead,” says Horgan. “I see one of my roles as getting this team into winning ways so it can only help our development to do well in this U20 Six Nations competition. Our execution needs improvement and we can only do that in a competitive match situation.”
Everyone involved will be hoping that the team can continue its development on a winning note after tonight’s encounter with the Azzurri.
