JUNIORS NEWS
Junior Awards a great success
Last Friday 24th April saw a great night with all of our junior teams attending the annual awards night.
Matt Gilmore Director of Rugby commented we changed the format this year and included for the first time the junior netball girls and the feedback was very positive mixing the rugby and netball awards together. It is especially pleasing to see how the junior rugby section is continuing to flourish after our 6th full season and we aim to continue our drive to be the best mini & junior rugby club in the area. We can only flourish as a club by supporting the mini and junior sections of our club and we are undertaking a significant summer campaign to recruit more volunteers into our ranks we can never have enough coaches, administrators and referees and our goal this summer is to recruit more volunteers into the Mini and junior sections.
Junior Winners were:
Most Improved Player
Netball Hannah Balacky
U13s Jack Buckley
U14s Joe Butler
U15s Connor Howard
U16s Alex Nangle
Coaches Player of the Year
Netball Tilly Pietachly
U13s Aidan ODonnell
U14s Stevenson
U15s Marc Weir
U16s Chris Bamber-Blake
Players Player of the Year<
Netball Steph Brosnan
U13s Leon Devlin
U14s Hashmat
U15s Oliver Hayes
U16s Andy Puffitt
Rising stars play for Middlesex
U15 XV stalwarts Jonathan Woodward (Scrum half) and James Kent (Hooker)
took their places in the Middlesex Under 15s A and B teams respectivey
to face Sussex last Sunday, in their first match of the season. This
is the second year the two have been selected to play at County level,
competing with players from high profile clubs and schools for their
places in the squad. Both teams secured hard fought wins against
strong opposition, with final scores of 39 -15 for the As
and
19 - 17 for the Bs. There is a definite buzz around these two players
with Jonathan already being selected to attend the prestigious Wasps
School of Rugby for the second year. Grasshoppers wishes them both
success for the future. Watch this space!
Rising star wins award
U15 XV Captain Ashleigh Armel-Close shows off his certificates
Young rugby league stars in London
Ben Hodgson, our Grasshoppers U16s prop joins a record number of young Rugby League players from London and the South East who have been selected for the RFL's National Squads at Under 16 level.
Ben, who attends Isleworth & Syon and who also played for West London Sharks, has been offered a professional contract with Harlequins Rugby League. Though Ben is leaving us, he remains a loyal Hoppers Friend! We wish Ben all the best for the future.
Welcome to Grasshoppers Juniors Rugby
New players (from U13 to U18) will always receive a warm welcome from the Junior Section at Grasshoppers RFC. Just come along for a couple of free sessions to see if you enjoy training & playing. Wear any basic kit of shorts, socks and shirt (enough layers to keep warm and dry); you will also need a drink (water or squash). You can wear football boots to start off or trainers if it's dry! Once you get into the sport then you can buy the correct kit from the club house shop. We also welcome the support from the players' families, which is an integral part in the development of any good Youth Section.
The main objectives for our junior club include ensuring the players learn and develop new skills both on and off the field of play, build self-confidence, establish strong robust team principles and most importantly enjoy training and playing the game. The club operates within the RFU/Sport England Welfare of Young People in Rugby Union. This covers the safety of all young people under the age of 18. All coaches, managers, volunteers and administrators within the Junior Section are CRB cleared. All coaches qualify at a minimum of level 1 and level 2 as well as having refereeing experience.
We field teams in the Herts/Middx Youth Leagues at U13, U14, U15 and U16 and are looking to build on our successes of last season. The success of the junior section is built on the hard work and dedication of our players, volunteer coaches and managers. As always, we constantly need volunteers to help run teams and maintain the club plus sponsors to help fund the teams. If you can help please speak to a coach or committee member.
The junior sides at Grasshoppers train every Wednesday evening and train/play on Sunday mornings from September to April and enjoy a full and comprehensive fixture list. For more information on joining our friendly but ambitious club please contact Debbie Johnson