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Marr Rugby round-up:   All systems are Purple and Gold as new season approaches

Marr Rugby round-up: All systems are Purple and Gold as new season approaches

Kevin Quinn24 Aug 2016 - 13:00
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Marr Rugby round-up

Marr Rugby round-up: All systems are Purple and Gold as new season approaches

With the first competitive matches of season 2016/17 approaching Marr Rugby is gearing up and once again challenging itself to continue building on the successes of the Purple and Gold journey that has seen unprecedented levels of achievements adding to the club’s history.

Since season 2009/10 the club has enjoyed continuous and sustained improvement. This has come from hard work and effort on and off the park and on the way added memorable chapters to the club’s history. Our approaches to improving what we are doing have provided a template for other clubs to follow.

Moving forward we know that we still have much to do to ensure that Marr Rugby fully achieves its potential and to reach this goal there is much more hard work ahead. All members of the Club will have to be ready and willing to help on this journey.

Re-capping on Season 2015-16

Senior Rugby: The three senior sides had a mixed year. In only their second season in BT National League 1 the 1st XV excelled taking Marr Rugby to its highest ever league position. Winning 18 out of 22 fixtures and finishing as runners up the season cumulated in a play-off against Gala. At the start of the season this prospect seemed like a pipe-dream and the achievement created a slight logistical dilemma.

For the play-off a pre-arranged commitment involving several key players caused critical conflict that prevented Marr Rugby fielding its preferred 1stXV. There were particular issues for front row cover. The need for application of the emergency loan arrangements was identified. This was required to enable us to participate in meaningful scrums and ensure we were not restricted in the squad’s number of replacements. After much toing and froing with the Championship Committee our application was finally approved on the Thursday before the match.

In the match itself, after a nightmare start where key player Andy Kelly was injured during the warm-up and forced to retire after less than five minutes of play and Gala taking an early lead through two tries, Marr’s troops rallied and forced their way back into contention. The match ended with a Gala win to secure the Premiership place. For Marr Rugby it was an “almost” moment and offered the players involved to understand what was required to compete in Scottish Rugby’s top tier.

Despite the result we saw examples of what makes club rugby so special. All at Marr Rugby are extremely appreciative and grateful to Hamilton RFC and in particular David McGrath who stepped in at 36 hours’ notice to join Marr’s squad and provide critical front row cover at hooker. Despite never having trained with the squad and only ever encountered some of our players in matches where he was playing for Hamilton, David fitted in well and after Ollie Rossi was forced to retire injured went on to deliver a very good performance. In addition a huge number of Marr supporters travelled to Bridgehaugh to get behind the team. In recent years the number of people turning out on a Saturday to support Marr Rugby and enjoy the quality of rugby that is on offer has steadily increased. This applies not just for home matches but impressively our travelling support is the biggest in the league and continues to grow.

The season’s added bonus was Marr Rugby’s debut appearance at the Greenayards for the world famous Melrose 7’s. The club’s growing reputation and recognition of its desire to play attractive and exciting rugby was acknowledged by the invitation to take part in this prestigious event. Over 200 supporters made their way to the Borders to support their team and help re-inforce the Marr Rugby brand of rugby. An opening win against Stirling meant a televised second round appearance against Heriot’s. The closest and most exciting contest of the day saw Marr leading 17-21 as the final play commenced. In a five minute flurry of play Heriot’s possession and pressure was eventually rewarded with a try to secure a single point victory. Marr Rugby’s squad may have been beaten in the tie but their performance won the hearts and minds of the thousands of supporters on the touchline.

At the end of the season Stephen Adair stepped down after six years as 1st XV captain. Since joining the club Stephen has become an integral part of the Marr Rugby family and a key player in helping the club achieve the successes it has enjoyed. When he started he was one of the few senior players who had experience of top flight rugby and as a consequence this made him a perfect candidate to take on the captaincy. Over the period he has been a key player in supporting Craig Redpath in delivering the vision for improving rugby at Marr. He has achieved the record in club history as being Marr Rugby’s most successful captain as the 1st XV achieved its highest ever league position and along the way won promotion after promotion. One of the high points was leading the side out at Murrayfield for the National Shied final and winning the trophy. During season 2016-17, Stephen will continue to be a key member of the 1st XV playing squad and his place as 1st XV captain is being taken by Angus Johnston.

Angus has just turned 21. Along with twin brother Ben he has come through Marr Rugby’s youth structure and they made a major impact in the senior squad. He made his senior rugby debut in September 2012 when he was 17 and just into 6th year at Marr College. In the match against East Kilbride he scored a try and earned the Man of the Match award. In 2013 he was part of Marr Rugby’s 1st XV squad at the BT Shield Final held at Murrayfield. On the following week he was back at Murrayfield when he skippered Marr College’s 1st XV as they won the Brewin Dolphin Plate completion by beating Galashiels. Angus possesses and uses great leadership attributes. Last season when Stephen Adair was unavailable through injury head coach Craig Redpath had no hesitation in promoting Angus to cover the captain’s role and responsibilities. From this and as we look towards the future it made sense to enable a natural succession in a key position. All at Marr Rugby are delighted to see Angus assume this role and wish him well.

In addition, Ben Johnston was recognised by his peers and an expert panel as BT National 1 Player of the Year – how proud can his parents and the wider Marr Rugby family be of this achievement?

After winning and promotion the previous year Marr Rugby’s 2nd XV struggled to maintain their momentum following the retirement or other unavailability of about half of the promotion winning squad. Some impressive away wins were cancelled out by inconsistent results at home. In a year where major restructuring was needed the challenge of playing in the second tier of Reserve leagues provided to great a challenge an finishing third bottom was one of the three clubs that slipped back to the third tier.

Marr Rugby’s 3rd XV’s season was beset by disruption with a number of cancellations of matches either caused by their opponents inability to field a side or at times Marr’s squad affected the same way as players were drafted up to support the 2nd XV. Despite this the side achieved a creditable mid table position to secure their league place.

Coaching: Craig Redpath continued his charge as Head Coach and once again delivered an outstanding performance, developing and improving the individual and group skills and abilities of the players to achieve another year where impressive and record making results were achieved.

Just after the midway point of the season his second in command, Paul Burke, had to step down due to work commitments that saw Paul have to re-locate as he took on responsibilities as General Manager of Bannatyne’s in Inverness.

Paul joined Marr Rugby in season 2011-12 as player/coach. As a vastly experienced player and a background as a trainer specialising in strength and conditioning he was a valuable addition and asset to the coaching team as Marr Rugby focused on helping development of players within the club. Paul’s wealth of knowledge and experience has made a significant impact in helping the Club achieve the improvements and success it has enjoyed. As a coach and as a player he instilled many of the qualities, attitudes and approaches that are now clearly evident in professionalising what the senior players do and their commitment to improving themselves as individuals and the as a team.

All at Marr Rugby acknowledge the valuable contribution that Paul has made and wish him all the best as he continues on his own career progression.

Youth Rugby: Marr Rugby continues to ensure that young people can get to experience and enjoy the positive benefits of rugby at Mini and Midi level.

Under the guidance of convenor Gregor Inglis, Marr Rugby’s Minis had another great year with significance numbers of primary school aged children participating in active sport and learning and developing key individual and team skills that will help them throughout their life. The season culminated in a series of tournaments across the central belt and once again Marr Rugby’s youngest sides excelled, several times bringing home silverware to add to their collection and along the way showcasing the Club and our brand of rugby.

At Midi level Marr Rugby ensured the continuation of school rugby delivered at Marr College. This is enabled by a significant investment by the club in volunteer coaching as well as two paid positions as development officers. This involves a substantial financial commitment by the club as only one of the posts is supported in part through partnership funding from Scottish Rugby and South Ayrshire Council.

In January the Club’s rugby development officer Rory McGee took a five month career break as he travelled to Africa to join the Bhubesi Pride’s initiative. We had recruited a highly experienced candidate to cover as temporary development officer but just before they were due to start they withdrew. As a consequence Zane Burn stepped up from his assistant DO post and was supported by Craig Kolarik. This situation wasn’t ideal and meant progression of the youth development plans were limited. Midi convenor Stephen Cotter did a superb job in helping to keep us on track.

Developing youth rugby remains a key focus of the club’s improvement plan and priorities. Marr Rugby’s U15 squad enjoyed a particular successful season winning four tournaments along the way.

Our senior youth team is Marr College 1st XV and the principal coaches for the second season in a row were two of the senior players Keith Dunsmuir and Gregor Ness. This level of involvement helps cement the link across from youth to senior rugby and part of its success can be measured by transition of players who stay in rugby after they leave school. The dropout rate is significant and is a national issue. This season we have seen seven school leavers opting to continue playing rugby and join the Club’s senior ranks. This is a healthy number with most who were eligible opting to move to join the adult game and bucks the trend being seen elsewhere.

Looking ahead to 2016-17

Some of the key points to highlight

Operation Phoenix Phase 3 (Changing Rooms): With grant support from Scottish Rugby and Sports Scotland we were able to progress plans to re-develop and extend the changing rooms. However a number of factors meant that we missed the window to commence and complete the work and it will start as soon as possible in 2017.

Club Captain: Following discussion it was agreed to introduce a Club Captain’s post to join the club’s management group and act as key link to the senior playing sides. Two candidates stepped forward and after a players’ vote Gregor Ness was elected to become the inaugural post holder.

Coaching: Craig Redpath has recruited Kenny Diffenthal, Gareth Abbot, Keith Dunsmuir and Stephen Galloway to join the senior coaching team. Kenny joins us from Greenock Wanderers and brings a wealth of playing and coaching experience. Kenny having formally played stand-off for Ayr under coach Craig Redpath, has also played for Border Bulldogs in SA, a stint in New Zealand club rugby, as well as spells at Hamilton and Greenock. Gareth’s expertise is in athletics and in particular sprinting and has been influential in helping Marr’s players to become faster and more direct in their running. Keith, supported by Stephen will take on the 2nd XV. Following Paul Burke’s departure, Scott Bickerstaff assisted by Ollie Rossi will lead on strength and conditioning. Andy Mathieson continues to run the 3rd XV and this provides an opportunity for many of the not so young players to get opportunity to continue playing and enjoying rugby.

Senior players – new faces and some familiar ones of note: This season sees some new faces and names as well as the return of some that are familiar. Joining Marr from other clubs as they aim to progress their rugby career include Gregor Paxton (ex Kilmarnock and Ayr), an exciting and hardworking centre who is part of the Glasgow Warrior’s U20 team, Tom Steven (ex Kilmarnock and Glasgow Hawks), a winger who has plenty of power and pace. Marr Rugby’s grow your own crop sees the return to rugby after a short respite and career break of Chris Nisbet and the brief retirement of Andy Kelly, who in addition to his new Mini rugby coaching role will also return to play at senior level. Returning from serious injury are Murray Beckwith, Conor Bickerstaff, Danny Clark and Ali Walker. All four have featured in pre-season fixtures and look sharp and ready to go.

In addition seven youth players have elected to make the transition and continue in adult rugby. Each has already featured in the pre-season fixtures.

Youth rugby: Marr Rugby sends many good wishes to Cameron Paterson whose attitude, ability and performances for Marr Rugby have earned him a rugby scholarship at Strathallan School. This fantastic opportunity is great recognition of the potential of a young player who has progressed through Marr’s Mini and Midi ranks. All at Marr Rugby wish him well and good fortune as he embarks on his personal Purple and Gold journey to shoot towards playing at the highest possible level he can achieve.

At School and Midi level Gregor Ness will continue to take charge of the College 1st XV. He will be supported by other coaches and senior players will provide specialist skills development sessions. The involvement of senior players cannot be overstated. It helps link the club from end to end and we are seeing the benefit in numbers playing and also in improvements in the standards of play.

An age group to watch is the U16 squad. Head coach Euan McDougall along with his assistant coaches have developed a promising group of players who have already shown a healthy appetite to acquire silverware.

The Minis continue to go from strength to strength. Gregor Inglis has assembled a great set of coaches and worked wonders in enlisting the support of parent helps who are happy to invest their time to help in a variety of roles. It’s also wonderful to see the next generation of younger players being introduced to rugby by their parents many of whom have played (or in some cases still are playing) in Marr Rugby’s senior sides are now involved in coaching.

Help behind the scenes – Your club needs you!: There is a small band of Marr Rugby members who do a great deal on the field and behind the scenes to help the cub achieve its current success. From coaching to looking after team or club admin, selling kit, helping in the bar and/or post-match catering to promoting club news through the website and other social media. We know that there are many members of the club or in their extended family who have skill sets that will help us raise our game and build some capacity. This might include young people hoping to build up their own personal CV as they gain real experience. Alternatively those who may be interested in some sort of career change or simply have some spare time – any and all help is most welcome.

In particular we are looking for more people to help with those who are interested in maximising the potential use of the club’s website and in supporting some of the behind the scenes admin for the club. We’d also like to see if we can get some more helpers on match days.

For each of these we envisage the demand only being an hour or so either every week or fortnight – unless of course people want to do more.

Please think about what you might be able to offer or something you are interested in and we can sort something out.

All in all there’s a lot going on at Marr Rugby. We want the club to be playing at the highest possible level and offering players to enjoy and experience playing opportunities at this level and higher.

The future is bright!

Further reading