It was great to see so many of you last Wednesday night at the First XV appreciation dinner and for those who did not make it we hope to see you next time!

First XV Dinner

We had a great night and special mention to Ray Ritchie and Angus Campbell who made the out and back trip from Toronto and Vancouver respectively!  A great effort.

Buchanan’s (as expected) put on a great meal and venue and the Noble Ridge wine was a great match for a top shelf cuisine..

Matt Burke (travelled from Sydney to be there) was first class and a true rugby gentleman. Matt actually wrote about his experience in his weekly column (Below or here for original article) which is a credit to your support of a great cause.

The lessons Australian rugby can learn from North America

Matthew Burke

…It’s that time again when I pen this article all the way from Canada.

This weekend in Toronto the Rugby Alliance Coaching Camp sees 800 wannabe stars learn the the basics of the game that we grew up with.

These guys – not so much. They are getting an introduction to a sport that can bring so much enjoyment.

An army of coaches turned out as we try and reinforce the basics of rugby with the kids – run, pass, tackle with the understanding that time and space can be your friend when making decisions out on the park.

What they enjoy the most out of the day is the contact. Maybe it comes from ice hockey,  but the frequent response was that they loved hitting the tackle bags.

It dawned on me that something so easy can bring so much pleasure to kids who are just learning the game. It’s actually a breath of fresh air with the enthusiasm shown for the game here in North America.

They are embracing the running game for what it is. The pure fun of testing your skills

I always reiterate to our Canadian friends, however, that that element of fun comes from learning and executing the skills well, something that they are chasing hard.

Not only did we coach the kids but we coached the coaches. It quickly became a practical on-field session where we ran through different scenarios with vastly different outcomes of what they would do, in comparison to what I would think is the correct option. That is to be expected.

That variance is purely down to my exposure to the game over the years: the 10,000-hour scenario compared to their experience at the helm which would be significantly less. But again they were eager to learn.

On our travels to Toronto we did make a little diversion to Calgary where I caught up with a rugby colleague in Dave Lougheed. A former Canadian international he was in a team through the 1990s that had success against Argentina, France, Ireland and Wales among others.

He equates that success to a team that stuck together for some time so that when the big games arrived they had no fear of the opposition.

Canada is classed as a Tier 2 rugby nation but they were able to forge victories by growing as a group. And that is what he is trying to draw on at present: a group that wants Canadian rugby to grow, but more so gain the unique opportunities that he had as a young bloke to chase a dream.

After playing professionally in the UK for Leicester and representing Canada at three World Cups, and now living back in his homeland, he wanted to give something back. He has formed a network of business associates and has started a program called For the Love of the Game.

A simple concept, but one easily forgotten in the new age of money-driven professional rugby.

Their mission is about inspiring athletic excellence through exceptional sporting experiences. This is an outfit that is not about making money but raising funds to give back.

Dave uses the words sportsmanship, camaraderie, opportunity, passion and excellence as being the defining values of the program.

This program however is not for the best players to continue the rise but for the players who have been identified as having talent but overlooked by the system on the way through.

The scholarships are awarded by nomination rather than application, which struck a chord with me. Those who may be in a less fortunate position can be put by a coach or mentor without their knowledge.

What I liked about Dave’s vision was how he has leveraged his own own sporting memories and experiences to enrich the lives of young athletes and motivate them to reach their full potential.

That is something that I reckon we can endorse in Australia. Yes, the professional game is here to stay, and I was part of that system, but getting back to an understanding of why we play the game and more so remembering where we came from, should be a constant reminder to our current champions.

That connect between the old, the new and the future will keep driving the 15-man game.