Former GHK Coach David Ross has now started his new job wth SRU

TEAM TO IDENTIFY THE SCOTLAND STARS OF TOMORROW NOW IN PLACE
Posted: 30/Nov/06
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Scottish Rugby’s team to identify and nurture the best prospects for our national team in the 2011 and 2015 World Cups and beyond is now in place.

Eight Performance Development Managers, whose priority is to identify young talent, are now in post covering the length and breadth of Scotland and Exile players.

One of the PDMs is accountable for the Women’s game where the next World Cup is in 2010.

Performance Development Managers have the responsibility for managing and developing the route any young player aged under-18 takes as they progress from their school or club via regional teams to age-grade representative rugby. This is known as the Pathway.

This includes the planning and administration of the playing Pathway; the selection, induction and continued professional development of the volunteer coaches in that Pathway; and the identification and development of talented players.

Scottish Rugby’s Head of Player Development, Henry Edwards, said the network of PDMs has been achieved as a result of Scottish Rugby’s partnership with sportscotland.

He stressed the PDMs, through their links to the community game, would be working closely with National Academy Managers to identify talent, to make the transition from promising young player to winning internationalist for Scotland as seamless as possible.

They will also work in tandem with Scottish Rugby’s UK Coaching Certificate Development Manager, Jock Peggie, to ensure that a steady stream of qualified coaches is developed.

“Player pathways begin from under-15 and work their way up through under-16, under-17 and under-18. A key part of the role of the Performance Development Manager is identifying that talent for the higher level and ensuring that not just the talented player but the coaches working with that player, many of whom are volunteers, are given the necessary support.

“This will then give the player the best possible chance of attaining the ultimate – playing and winning at international level.”

He added: “Not all players will fulfil that dream but our entire sport is better off if we are developing both players and coaches who can also contribute importantly to the growth of the community game.

The PDM team is:

Grampian, Highlands and Islands – David Ross

Fife, Central and Tayside – Andy Henderson

Edinburgh, Midlothian and West Lothian – Grant McKelvey

Borders and East Lothian – Bryan Easson

Glasgow South – Adam Gray

Glasgow North – Jamie Dempsey

Exiles – Rob Brierley

Women – Jo Hull

To contact a member of the PDM team, please email Henry Edwards ([email protected])

This article was posted on 30-Nov-2006, 15:53 by Hugh Barrow.