U18's County Rugby Assessment Day

Please see information regarding the U18’s Assessment day on Sunday 27th October held at Barnard Castle School.

The session will be facilitated/Lead by the U18’s DCRFU Coaching Team with support from DCRFU Selectors.

All Players please bring training/playing kit(GUM SHIELDS)- including wet weather kit & warm gear for lunch which will be around 12.30-1pm. You will need to bring your own packed lunch.

1. 📷U18's Durham County
   

During registration each player will be given a unique numbered jersey that will be used all day to identify them for selection purposes. Selectors will not be given the name or club of any player until after the session finishes.

Running Order- (Please be on time)

Registration:

10.15am - Props/Hookers & Locks 10.25am – Back row & No 8’s 10.35am – Half Backs & Back 3 10.45am – Centre’s

Fitness: (as in previous years there is a prescribed benchmark for fitness testing by position)

10.25am - Props/Hookers & Locks 10.35am – Back row & No 8’s 10.45am – Half Backs & Back 3 10.50am – Centre’s 11.00am Game Based drills to test required GASP Skills Using the CARDS methodology.

12.30 Lunch & Player - deselection. (if players do not meet the required benchmark by lunchtime we will be asking them to leave at this point)

1.00pm – 2.30pm – Game based and positional testing

Close 2.30pm

After the session a final selection meeting will take place and further updates emailed out to the players nominating coaches.- Feedback will be given on request.

All players wishing to be part of the Durham County U18’s squad this season must be nominated via your club/school/college/acadamy coach.

ALL PLAYERS SELECTED MUST TRIAL AT LEAST 1 OF THE ASSESSMENT DAYS ON 27/10/19 & 3/11/19 at Blaydon RFC and our preference is for you to attend the first one at Barnard Castle.

For complete transparency we are aware the some Falcons Academy Players who are eligible for county selection will not be at the first event as they are in camp, however we will be seeing them on the second event.

We are taking part in 3 festivals & as such will be carrying a larger squad of players to select the Match day 23’s & 2 x Travelling reserves from.

1/12/19- Blaydon RFC- Durham v Yorkshire

15/12/19 – Chester RFC – Lancashire v Durham

12/1/19 – Penrith RFC – Durham v TBC

All nominating coaches are welcome to attend each of the selection events as are parents, all we ask is that a respectable distance from the sessions is maintained and that interaction is kept to a minimum. David Hill the Counties Player Pathway Manager will be on hand to answer any questions you may have re the process etc

We have a large number of talented players nominated this season hopefully pushing for North of England Selection and expect the standard to be extremely high.

You will need to Bring you’re A+ Game to the assessment sessions.

Just to be clear we are only expecting players to trial who meet one of the following criteria;

- played for, or were selected into a game day squad in last years u17 squad.

- played up a year in last years u18 squad and still meet the age criteria for this year.

- nominated by your club, school, college or academy coach this year.

Players who were injured last year and missed county will still need to have been nominated as above.

Thanks