Rugby Football Union - Good Coaches Never Stop Learning

Good Coaches Never Stop Learning

Whether coaching young players or a national squad, Kevin Bowring, the RFU’s new Head of Elite Coaching, has always believed in player and coach development.

“Coaches are so concerned with player development, but it is crucial that we look after coach development as well,” he says. “As a national coach people think you know everything but with an open mind you never stop learning and even national coaches need feedback, support, and someone to share their ideas, thoughts and concerns. It is what you have learnt after you are supposed to know it all that really counts.”

As a former coach with the WRU Kevin has experienced life at the sharp end. “I do appreciate the need for coaches to be supported with continuous professional development. The RFU has had the foresight to create the role of Head of Elite Coach Development and I believe in player development and in coaching, its impact on inspiring players to improve, and the effect it can have on team cohesion and performance. My role is to devise and implement a strategic plan for the development of world class coaches who can support effective player development.”

The aim is to ensure that England elite coaches are prepared to deal with the pressures of coaching at the top end of the professional game. “Today the Head Coach needs a breadth of knowledge and vision for the game and for the team. He manages the coaching team, and empowers coaches and players. Coaches need technical and tactical knowledge and vision and management skills too,” says Kevin.
Research has shown that top coaches need to gain more experience at coaching at the highest level, to be mentored by a more experienced coach, to learn from top coaches in other sports, to obtain specific technical, tactical and scientific knowledge, to gain people management skills and to balance personal and professional priorities. The England Elite Coach Development Programme will cater for these needs.

“At the top end the essence of coach education is concentrating on how to coach rather than what to coach. We need to create a learning climate for our top coaches to devise learning opportunities and tasks in order to facilitate new knowledge, experience and skills. How we manage and develop our elite players is extremely important. The new Regional Academy Managers will emphasise individual player development rather than team performance. Part of my role is to support the coaches at the Premiership clubs. I am keen that the Performance Department supports coach development within the Premier clubs, whose coaches are under enormous pressure to produce results and often can’t find the time for their personal professional development. I hope that we can build on the partnership between club and country by providing a service and offering opportunities to club coaches to accelerate their learning.

“I want to offer current coaches support, to identify and analyse individual coaching needs, to mentor and facilitate support for coaches and ensure they attain the key coaching skills. Our top coaches need to feel cared for. The aim of the role is to identify and mentor a group who have the potential and desire to become England team and specialist coaches. We need to identify coaching experts and also fast track past players who have the knowledge, ability and desire to coach. If England are to be pre-eminent in rugby by 2007 then it will need a succession of knowledgeable, educated, innovative coaches who are secure in the best practice of coaching rugby football.

Kevin sgrees with the words of Dave Whittaker - a great English hockey coach - who said, “Coaches need to develop as fast as performers in order to produce world class performances”.