Coaches Catch Up
Ahead of our first pre-season game this weekend, we caught up with newly appointed 1st XV Coach George Thomas, to see how pre-season is going and his thoughts on the season ahead.
Congratulations on stepping into the role of 1st XV Head Coach. What does this opportunity mean to you, and what are your main goals heading into the season?
Thank you. Obviously I’m delighted to have been offered the role by the club and am acutely aware of the responsibility to both players and the wider Luctonians Community that the position carries. I’ve been involved at the club in one capacity or another for over 30 years, starting as a mini in the u6’s (longer if you include watching Dad play and of course Mum was physio for about 10 years as well) and so it does mean an awful lot.
In terms of goals, Rob and I have some specific targets for the season and of course we are in a results based business! However, I’m looking no further than Lymm at home on the 6th September. I think it’s very important that the focus remains game to game and our goals are performance not outcome based. If we can get that right then the league will look after itself.
Equally though I’m very motivated to encourage the players to take ownership of their club and make the most of their time here, both on-field and off. I see a big opportunity in further developing and fostering a player led culture, empowering our players to make decisions on the pitch and set their standards off it.
I also want to re-engage the 1st team with the rest of the club, starting with the Mini-to-Mortimer day on 30th August. I want everyone to know who these lads are that represent us on a Saturday, from minis through to our sponsors and VPs, and likewise those players to know and be actively involved with the junior club, sponsors and supporters. It’s a brilliant feeling as a player to walk back into the clubhouse having given everything on the pitch and have people of all stations, minis to alickadoos , know who you are and want to share in that success.
How have you approached pre-season preparations? What’s been the key focus for the squad so far?
Preparations began before the end of last season in terms of player engagement with our current squad, reviewing the season and getting a fuller understanding of what the lads experienced and where they want to take things this year. The whole coaching group, including S&C and medical have had key input into our preparations and I’m very grateful that in our backroom staff, we have a team of highly motivated people with a broad variety of skillsets that are all committed to delivering the best programme possible.
Rob Lewis coming in as DOR has already had a significant impact in terms of our planning and strategy as we look to build on and add layers to certain aspects of our game. His experience at the top level of the sport is going to hugely important this year.
Jeremy Wheadon joined us this summer as our S&C coach and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience and I’m impressed with how the players are engaging with both Jerry’s element and the programme as a whole.
We are looking to continually develop players and a large element of our sessions so far have been focussed on individual skills and identifying opportunities to play heads-up rugby.
Rob’s mantra of “structure to get into un-structured” is key to how we can further develop as a team.
There isn’t a case of ripping up the playbook from previous years, those foundations and principles the Ryan embedded are the reason behind why the club have been successful across both 1s and 2s over the last few seasons, it’s now a case of adding to that. Becoming more adaptable, being able to deal with different pictures and scenarios.
As we move into August the focus now will be to start putting all those elements together with our fundamentals of set-piece and defence as we look to peak for 6th September. There’s a lot of ground to cover over the next 6 weeks but we’re up for the challenge!
Team culture is often just as important as tactics—how would you describe the squad’s mentality heading into the new campaign?
Massively important and cannot be underestimated. You have seen with the Lions this summer how much emphasis is put on culture and having good people. We’ve got some brilliant people across our senior squads and with Ben Link as captain. I want them to define their culture and start to really dictate what they want the environment to look like. People talk a lot about what being a Luctonian means, I believe it’s up to these players to determine what that means to them now and create a new legacy that is talked about in the same way as those teams and club greats from the 90’s and 2000’s.
Although effectively we operate in a semi-pro league, the club’s values and ethos remain as steadfast as ever; enjoyment, team spirit and hard work endure at the heart of all that we do.
With regards the current mentality, there’s a general sense of excitement across the board at the moment, a lot of new information to take on but a real eagerness to learn, take responsibility and work hard which makes our lives as coaches an awful lot easier.
I can also see a real competitive edge coming to the fore now in training as we approach our first pre-season games.
This season’s league looks highly competitive once again. What are your thoughts on the opposition, and where do you see the biggest challenges?
Yes absolutely, it genuinely gets stronger each year but that’s exactly what we want, to challenge and test our players and give them opportunities every week to enjoy their rugby at the highest level possible.
Camborne for example now have 2 Fijian in Internationals in their squad, I think that’s fantastic for the league and a really exciting prospect for our players to go up against individuals of that calibre and experience.
Without wanting to sound cliché, every week will provide a challenge and the real nuance of this league is that you can be playing a student team on 4G one week; high tempo, high ball in play time followed by say Cinderford or Taunton at Mortimer Park which is an entirely different prospect; ultra physical, set piece and collision focussed.
The real challenge is being able to adapt to the variety of styles, playing surfaces and even atmospheres of these different clubs and be able to back up performances through the campaign. Where we’ve possibly fallen short over the last season or two is that ability to follow up a big “emotion-led” performance against a top team with an equally good performance the following week against a mid-lower table side. That is a big focus for us in terms of mindset and being able to achieve consistency of performance when the emotional drivers aren’t necessarily at the same level.
Finally, what message do you have for the supporters as we approach the opening fixtures?
Don’t underestimate how important you are to the players and the club, the energy you bring on a Saturday has an immeasurable impact. To feel that the club knows and is fully behind you makes putting your body through the rigours of league rugby and the commitment required that bit easier and likewise in return, hopefully we will give you a product that is exciting to watch and get behind. We touched on culture earlier but that culture belongs to and is driven by the entire club community not just those 15 players on the pitch.
To paraphrase Lord Kitchener – your club needs you!
Looking forward to it!
GT, Luctonians 1st XV Head Coach.