A Brief History of SofR at CHS
CHS were awarded SofR status in August 2016 and this saw the introduction of curricular rugby at the school for pupils in S1 as part of the Scottish Rugby Union youth rugby initiative. We are delighted to be the only school in North Lanarkshire now who have the SofR status. We now have over 100 pupils involved, both boys and girls in S1, S2, S3 and S4, as we look forward to season 4.
The SofR programme is supported by NLC, SRU, sportscotland (Cashback for Communities programme) and Waysiders Drumpellier Rugby Club.
Lead/ Coaching Staff:
Mr Calder and Mr Wilson successfully ran the SofR programme for years 1 and 2 and Mr Wilson (UKCC Level 2 qualified coach) now heads this up following Mr Calder’s departure to a promoted post in Dalziel High School. Mr Wilson is ably assisted by coaches from the local rugby club, Waysiders Drumpellier.
June 2019:
We organised a SofR Presentation Evening in the school to celebrate the success of the programme and the season. This will bring parents/ carers, young people, staff, coaches and others together who help to make the SofR such a success at CHS. All players received a medal and a certificate for participation in the SofR and we had a Boy and Girl player of the year trophy awarded for S1, S2 and S3.
Social Media Coverage:
The newly introduced SofR Twitter account is proving a very good vehicle of positive messages from all that is rugby in CHS. Find us at @MrSofr.
Timeline & Events for season 2018/2019:
As well as playing games against other schools at all age levels there have been a few other notable events this season.
- NLC/ Active Schools 7-a-side rugby tournament (S1 boys, S2 boys). This was played over 3 venues (Coatbridge/ Dunbeth, Broadwood Stadium and Dalziel Park) where the S2 boys won the overall tournament for their age grade beating Chryston, St. Maurice’s and Dalziel at Finals Day in February 2019.
- In November 2018, all the girls from the SofR were invited to a training session with the Canadian Women’s team at Ravenscraig Sports Centre which involved participation in part of the training, a Q&A session and we then beat the Canadian National side…at Rock, Paper, Scissors. The girls were then invited to watch the team take on the Scotland Women at Scotstoun Stadium the following evening. A great time was had by all!
- All the S1 and S2 boys and U15 girls were allowed to participate in the Scottish Power Energy Networks (SPEN) Community League competition, which is generally reserved for Glasgow-based teams. They all attended Scotstoun on Wednesday 6th March and finished third out of five teams.
- The S1 boys and S2 boys’ teams participated in the NLC Active Schools 7-a-side tournament over 3 venues (Dunbeth, Broadwood and Dalziel Park) where the S2 boys won the overall trophy. Quite an accolade (and at Dalziel Park).
- As part of the P7 transition programme to CHS, we also organised a very successful Rugby Festival in April 2019 at the local rugby club which reached out to all the associated primaries. This involved coaching clinics and an information session regarding the SofR at CHS and the Application Process for the programme. All P7 pupils (and staff) received a specially produced SofR medal.
- As part of the Glasgow Warriors in the Community programme, we have been visited at the school over the session by professional players who have helped coach the young people and then participated in Q&A sessions.
- Recently at the SPEN (Scottish Power Energy Networks) Community Awards Dinner (Glasgow Warriors main kit sponsor), Abbi McDonald (S3) received an award for outstanding contribution to the rugby community within CHS.
Future:
Going forward we will be looking to introduce Strength & Conditioning and Nutrition elements into the SofR programme for S4 pupils and continue this into S5 (Next season), under the tutelage of SRU qualified instructors.
We already have games on the horizon (Home and Away) with Dalziel HS, Eastwood HS, Falkirk HS, St. Andrews (Carntyne) and have signed up again for the NL (Active Schools) Rugby 7’s.
At the moment, we continue to be supported by NLC, SRU, sportscotland (Cashback for Communities programme) and Waysiders Drumpellier Rugby Club, which enables the SofR to function well.
Each year group receives 1 period of rugby in curriculum time and we run the after school rugby on a Wednesday, which is open to all pupils. The numbers attending on a Wednesday are in excess of 50 every week.
