HKRU COACHING DEVELOPMENT IN COLLABORATION WITH ACT BRUMBIES

16th May 2023


A week away with the ACT Brumbies has proven to be just the ticket for Hong Kong China Men’s XVs Head Coach and CCO for USRC Tigers RFC Lewis Evans, who was recently invited to join the ACT Brumbies Rugby camp for a week-long professional development and immersion experience. 

 

Since its formation in 2009, the Hong Kong Rugby Union Club Coaching Officer (CCO) programme has been a pivotal pathway for developing coaching staff, and the HKRU is committed to finding opportunities to upskill and support our coaching talent to lead the performance teams within their respective clubs. In addition to their club coaching, each CCO is currently involved with the coaching of the Hong Kong China representative teams. 

 

As part of this pathway, a collaboration opportunity fostered by cross-union relationships meant that the Brumbies were able to host Lewis and provide him with an in-depth look at their preparation and operations during a match week. 

 

Led by World-Cup winning Wallaby and Australian great Stephen Larkham, and assisted by Laurie Fisher and Rod Seib, the Brumbies are currently enjoying a quality run in the 2023 Super Rugby season. Their squad is bolstered by a host of experienced internationals such as Nic White, James Slipper and Allan Alaalatoa, which provided the perfect platform for Evans to observe the intersection between club and international level. 

 

Granted the rare privilege of access to pre-game training, the coaching box on game day and other internal processes, the experience was invaluable for Evans as he looks to rebuild both the Hong Kong China squad and guide USRC Tigers after several years of pandemic-related disruption:

 

“This was an incredible week, and the takeaways were immense. To be able to watch someone like Steve go about their day-to-day and to be able to learn from someone with his skill set is invaluable. Laurie [Fisher] leaves no stone unturned and to be able to shadow them was a real honor.”

 

Evans was also inspired by the relaxed nature and cohesion of the Brumbies environment and will look to use some of this newfound knowledge to guide Hong Kong China through their preparations for the upcoming Asia Rugby Championship. 

 

“The messaging is always concise and delivered with clarity – in an environment with a constant flow of information, the ability to deliver key points in an efficient way was very encouraging, and that’s something I’ll certainly look to distribute in our own setup.”

 

“The Brumbies are empowered to make team decisions and get their work done which is the product of a good team environment. Obviously, we are more challenged with being a part-time programme, but in a way, that should allow us to put more trust in our players and encourage them to help us deliver results.”

 

“One big positive was that there are lots of similarities in the way we operate, which shows we are on the right path as a young coaching group. I’m looking forward to presenting a session on my learnings and key takeaways to the rest of the coaching team”.

 

HKRU General Manager of Performance Jo Hull was full of praise for the initiative, and hopes to maintain global relationships such as this one to build and develop the skills of her coaching team going forward: 

 

“It’s great to establish a partnership such as this where we can support our coaches, share best practice, and engage with other high-performance systems. We’re really committed to developing our club coaches and encouraging them to forge pathways through our representative teams and relationships such as this one.”

 

“Having an opportunity to observe a club like the Brumbies is invaluable experience and I’d like to sincerely thank Chris, Stephen and the team for extending their hospitality to Lewis”.

 

Lewis and the Hong Kong Men’s XV are next in action for the Asia Rugby Championship on 10th and 17th June in Hong Kong – follow along at hkrugby.com or our social channels for further details. 

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