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00:00I'd like to thank our coaches which have come online today to have a little chat with us.
00:12Could you please state your names and which inclusive community clubs that you coach at?
00:16Okay, hi, my name is Jack. I'm with the Scarlett ICC down the park, Scarlett.
00:24I'm with Oshbridge East in Herringbridge Comprehensive School.
00:29Hi, my name is Angharad. I'm with the Dragons ICC.
00:35Fantastic, and it's good to all hear from you. Right, so we'll kick this off.
00:41I've got a few questions for you. So first off, what is an ICC?
00:47So what is an inclusive community club? So an ICC, as Darren just said, is an inclusive community club.
00:53It provides opportunities for young children and teenagers to get involved within a rugby club local to them.
01:01It provides them with opportunities. So it's not all contact.
01:05They can do tag games, lots of running stuff and lots of coordination drills such as catching, passing, kicking.
01:12They pay £2, £2.50 a weekend to turn up and play.
01:17They can bring brothers and sisters along with them if they need any assistance.
01:20Mums and dads get involved and it's just a really good way for children to get involved in rugby.
01:28Fantastic. I mean, like the age range is around six to 16 and it sort of fits within the structure of everything else that we're doing that hopefully we'll cover in the near future.
01:39So, you know, a little bit about what ICCs are. How many have we got in Wales? Who knows that?
01:46So there's currently seven. There's two in the Dragons, one in the Scarlets, one in Blues, one in RGC and two in Ospreys.
01:55It's good to see we've got pretty good coverage and, you know, I'd like to think that we're going to get a couple more, you know, teams, you know, growing as time goes along.
02:04And hopefully we'll talk a little bit more about that in a bit.
02:07But what I'd like to do is first off, talk about you guys and ask, you know, how did you get involved with coaching at the ICCs?
02:16So I started off as a WRO rugby development apprentice. So I was based in the Scarlets region.
02:21And I think my first ever disability rugby event was the deaf rugby event.
02:26And I just just fell in love with it. I felt like I had a good passion about it.
02:30So, yeah, I really enjoyed it and that's how I started my journey.
02:33Similar to Jack, I was an apprentice. I was an apprentice. So I went on the same journey almost as Jack, started coaching within disability clubs.
02:46And I was fortunate to help Darren with all the school work while I went on in primary schools, found a love for disability rugby and helped Darren, continued to help Darren.
02:55And then the ICC appeared in Ospreys and I thought I'd jump on the bullet and help out.
03:00So I'm a little different. So I got involved through university placement.
03:05So I started work with the Dragons community and then WIU community and then been there three years now helping out and it's gone good so far.
03:17Fantastic. Well, I already all know pretty much your stories, Charlie, working with you from your dot and watching your experience build.
03:26And AK as well, I think our very first ICC when we first got going was based down in the Dragons region and you were heavily involved.
03:34And it's great to see you still involved in it now. You know, like it's quite clear you guys have got a passion for it.
03:40I know it. And it's great to be able to share this with the general public as well.
03:46Can you just talk a little bit about the type of children that we get at inclusive uni clubs?
03:52You know, who can join an ICC? So any child with a disability ages from six to 16.
03:59All our coaches have been like skilled and stuff so we we can adapt our sections to any disability.
04:07And there's always a warm welcome there for anyone who wants to join. Perfect.
04:16And it is, you know, it's everyone's welcome. And I love the fact that, you know, like on many occasions when I've gone along to the ICCs,
04:23we've been able to see, you know, like parents joining in and playing with their kids and seeing brothers and sisters,
04:32you know, like joining in and, you know, being engaged and having fun.
04:38And, you know, I think that's the crux of it, really. So that'll lead me into my next question.
04:42What really are the benefits for, you know, children that want to come along to our ICCs?
04:49Lots of benefits within sport and also outside the community.
04:53So within my ICC, there's lots of children who have come by themselves and they're the only member from their school that are involved in this ICC.
05:00Whereas now I've got eight or nine in my ICC. They all class as one big group of friends.
05:05When they see each other, they get really excited and it's just a way of them developing alongside people that they don't often see.
05:12So they get excited and then obviously they're making new friendships. A lot of my club now have a McDonald's club.
05:18So after our session on a Sunday morning, they all then go and have a lunch club in McDonald's.
05:22So it's just nice to see them socialising outside of rugby as well as within rugby.
05:31You know, I think the social aspect is huge, you know, and also, you know, being involved in the space myself for so long now,
05:39you know, it's the amount of energy and effort that we put in.
05:42And you know, as well as I do, it's quite exhausting running those sessions in a good way because you put so much into it.
05:48You know, but it's really important to see the kids so infused and engaged, you know.
05:53Has anyone got anything else to add on that?
05:55I mean, like looking around, you know, like what sort of activities, what opportunities do these kids sort of get in Wales?
06:06So, yeah, I feel like opportunities haven't been the best for children with disabilities.
06:13And I've seen a massive increase in it during events around the region and stuff like that.
06:18And I think it's looking pretty amazing at the moment.
06:23I think it's what we do in the ICC as well, I'd say. We even do a bit of tackling in our ICC.
06:28I'm not sure about the other ones, but the kids get in the tackling vagues and have a good time.
06:34And that actually leads me on to sort of like our next question.
06:39What is different in, you know, coaching at an ICC in comparison to, and I know all of you are rugby coaches who are very, very busy,
06:49you know, coaching in a different environment?
06:54I think it's less intense and it's more enjoyable.
06:58And I find this extremely rewarding, seeing children with like, from like low confidence and you just,
07:05they come to our sessions and you just see them in like smiling, having a good time.
07:08And it's a great feeling and you feel like you've done your job correctly.
07:15I agree with Jack, so it's pretty much the same when you're doing mainstream rugby.
07:21It is rewarding, but when you switch to, when we're doing disability events and it is a lot more rewarding,
07:27we do have a lot more fun, probably more fun than the kids sometimes with the coaches and more.
07:33But yeah, it is a lot more rewarding to see them smiling and yeah.
07:43It is very rewarding. I often find myself going into a session with a plan,
07:47knowing what I'm going to do throughout the session.
07:49And someone comes up to me, child, can we do big boppers?
07:53And then I find myself, my session's gone out the window and I'm just doing whatever they want to do,
07:57which I feel is quite nice as well, because it's given them the opportunity to kind of dictate what we want to do.
08:02And you can see what are their favourite games and what they enjoy most about rugby.
08:09Fantastic. I also think it's quite cool the fact that you get to be part of that journey as well.
08:16Each of you have worked with me when we've run countless sessions in schools
08:21or gone to disability events and run rugby very specific for those kids.
08:26But I guess to be a coach and see these kids grow week in, week out,
08:33in confidence, in fitness and socially must be a massive, massive bonus.
08:41So with that said, what does an ICC session look like?
08:47And don't say chaotic, because I know it's quite structured.
08:55Yeah, it was absolute carnage half the time, but it's really, really good.
09:03Obviously, we start off with a nice warm up, stuff like stuck in the mud, etc.
09:09We go into some more competitive stuff like relays.
09:12They just love a little competition between each other.
09:15And even bringing some ball rugby games and stuff like that into it as well.
09:22So, yeah, really good.
09:27I normally start my session in more of a relaxed way.
09:31So children come in in dribs and drabs and obviously not all of them there by 10.
09:35So I give them a little 5-10 minute threshold for them to just have a run around, get a ball,
09:40do whatever they want to do for them, 5-10 minutes.
09:43And then like Jack, we normally start with big block boppers or a game similar along them lines.
09:48But a really big skill game my children like playing is fireball.
09:52Because they get, obviously it's really good for their catching and passing,
09:55but they get really excited with a little bit of competition.
09:57Sometimes they try and catch each other out and things like that.
10:00And mine also love crash mat diving.
10:03So we practice scoring big tries on the crash mats and have a little competition for them as well sometimes.
10:10So similar to Charlie, so with us at the Dragons, I was normally arriving dribs and drabs.
10:15So we almost have like 10 minutes of free time where they can pass the ball around with their family
10:21or whoever's come with them.
10:22And then we go into more, we do a little bit of warm up then into different types of skills.
10:27So we switch from maybe running skills to passing skills and then finish off with a game.
10:31And our favourite in the Dragons is rob the nest, which can be carnage at some times,
10:38but they love it and that's the main thing.
10:42Brilliant.
10:44And one of the big things for me is seeing quite how much you as coaches have grown within this environment
10:49and how comfortable you are with finding your own way and finding and adapting what you've been taught
10:56to best give the best sort of product to your players.
11:04What sort of barriers or difficulties have you come across since being involved?
11:14At start, I think the parents think rugby is just a contact sport and they just,
11:21they don't think there's other ways of playing it.
11:23Like, you know, there's millions of ways you can play rugby.
11:25And yeah, so they don't realise that we can have some fun, non-contact and enjoy it.
11:32But yeah, I think the parents are a bit worried at the start, but when they get to see our sessions
11:37and how it's run, they're happy enough to bring their children back and, you know, happy days.
11:44So similar with Jack, everyone assumes rugby is just people crashing into each other.
11:50But with us, I think some of the difficulties we found in the Dragons is finding the right area to target.
11:56So we do have a number of special educational schools and units in the Gwent,
12:02but it's just finding that right area where we can get the most numbers.
12:05So I think that's our biggest barrier at the minute.
12:10I think we've been quite fortunate in Bridgend in the sense of we're quite central to Bridgend.
12:14We do have people coming from the Herringbridge school itself and then obviously from units in different schools.
12:23But our biggest barrier, again, is children understanding that they can play rugby without tackling.
12:29So luckily for me, the Ospreys have come down before with a tackle on with her.
12:33She's got that out and they've really enjoyed tackling to their extent.
12:38And they've really enjoyed just having a bit of fun with that and tackling that, which is nice for them to see.
12:42And they can understand that we can play other games along with having a bit of fun with a tackle pad.
12:48Awesome. So like I always sort of come back to the triangle of perception when we work within our sort of space.
12:56So the three points of that triangle being, you know, your parents, you know,
13:01and letting them understand that their children can do these activities even with their disabilities.
13:08And sometimes as well, depending on what setting we're working in, it'll be the teachers as well.
13:14And again, it's the same sort of thing. All our children wouldn't be able to do that.
13:19And then the individual themselves who sort of caught in between all of that with that sort of low confidence in I can't, I can't, I can't.
13:27And it's good to see that you're also covering that. And, you know, I mean, you're sort of dealing with those barriers.
13:32But slowly but surely, we are changing those perceptions.
13:35And I think when we do more things like this and we can push the profile of inclusive student clubs even more,
13:41more people are going to want to become involved or they'll just sort of lose that fear factor of, you know, being involved.
13:50So that brings me to one of my favourite questions is what is your highlight?
13:55Or what's the thing you're proudest most of since you've been involved in coaching at ICC?
14:04For me, I think it's just about the simple things of it.
14:06I just have seen the smiles on the children's faces, laughing, making new friends,
14:12just see them happy leaving the session and then coming back next week.
14:16I think I feel like I've done my job correctly and it's a really good feeling I get.
14:21So, yeah, that's probably my highlight.
14:27Same with me. We've had lots of children coming in, like Jack said, with smiling faces and also leaving with smiling faces,
14:33giving their friends high fives before going.
14:35And I think a positive for us and a big highlight is whenever someone new comes into the club,
14:40they're always really welcoming, always wants to go and give them a big hug or just go and speak to them and kind of help them along the way.
14:48Similar to both the guys. If we get a new person, but no session is the same.
14:53So every week is different, but then it's still the same ethos that they're all leaving with a smile on their face.
14:59And that's what you want as a coach.
15:03That's it. And, you know, I think a lot of it's about being on that journey and, you know, seeing real growth,
15:09you know, seeing that change in understanding that increased level of confidence in an individual, in the collective, in the group.
15:21You know, it's amazing to see that sport is a key that we can use to unlock that potential in those kids that they didn't really think that they had.
15:28You know, so, you know, that's for me is huge.
15:32So, I mean, like, how do you see the ICCs evolving as we go forward now?
15:40Involving ICCs, I'd say, creating more events as we are.
15:46All the times we're making new events, promoting the ICC online in schools, etc.
15:53I think that's a good way of doing it. And maybe even opening maybe two ICCs in the, for example, in the Scarletts region,
16:01because we have a big area to things. So we've got like Aberystwyth and stuff like that.
16:05We've only got one at the moment, which is in Parker Scarletts. So maybe get one up there as well or something.
16:14I think a good way is obviously to always try and increase the numbers like Jack said, get out advertising.
16:19But another good way, which might be a little bit further down the line, is meet up with other ICCs.
16:23So maybe as an Osprey, I'd go to Jack's session maybe, and then Jack would run that session.
16:28And my ICC would get an understanding of how other ICCs run and vice versa.
16:32Same with AK and everyone else involved within different ICCs.
16:37So I think the numbers can only grow. So I think by obviously free advertising more,
16:41going maybe offer taster sessions in schools and then that'll give kids something to look forward to.
16:46They can go home then and say, I want to go here. And then obviously meet up with other ICCs,
16:53maybe get a bit of a regional competition going or like a mini tag festival, which I'm sure we've talked about before.
17:01But just to have a sense of competition and they can feel part of the team.
17:08Perfect. And, you know, like you said, numbers are only going to grow.
17:12And, you know, we want to get to that point where we just burst at the seams and we've got to bring in more coaches
17:17and we can do those inter-regional competitions, maybe around Derby Day or whatever, you know what I mean?
17:23And really build those numbers up.
17:25So what would be your advice to any sort of coach or potential coach that could be watching this now thinking,
17:33oh, you know, I'd like to get involved with working with children with disabilities at an ICC?
17:41So I find a lot of new coaches when they get into disability rugby, they feel a bit uncomfortable
17:46and they overthink what to do in the first place.
17:50My advice for you is just go straight for it.
17:55Just enjoy it. Have fun. Probably have fun. And yeah, just enjoy in general.
18:02If you're humming and harring over getting involved in disability coaching, just jump on the bullet
18:06because not all these opportunities come around that quickly either. So jump on the bullet and get it.
18:10And likewise, just even if you're unsure and you're a little bit nervous maybe of how you would get involved
18:16in that setting, then kind of just take a backward step and just be that familiar face within that session
18:21until you then gain the confidence to maybe take your own little path and drill
18:25or whatever else you can think of to do within the session.
18:30So don't be nervous. I know when I first had my session, I was nervous.
18:34I'd like to think I've got better now. But just join in, whether that be you're running around joining in the game
18:41and then, like Charlie said, you're a familiar face. But don't be scared. It's not that bad. It's pretty good.