Ireland

Ireland is an island located to the north-west of continental Europe and has a population of about 4.5 million people. It is a beautiful place with a strong cultural and historical tradition. Visitors often enjoy its beautiful landscape, with its green unspoilt countryside and magnificent coastline and are often amazed by the huge diversity in the Irish landscape. Yes, it does rain but this is partly why Ireland truly is so green and beautiful. Ireland really does have something to offer everybody.

One of the biggest attractions of Ireland is the people themselves. They are famous for their warm welcome, friendly natures and hospitality. Their wiliness to “have a chat” with almost anybody means that students never stop learning and have constant opportunity to practice speaking. Students often form strong friendships and stay in touch with their Irish families long after they return home.

Dublin

Dublin, the capital city of Ireland has a rich and varied history spanning more than a thousand years. The city and its suburbs have a population of approximately 1.5 million. This means that it has all the advantages of a capital city while still retaining the charm and warmth of a smaller one.

Dublin’s history is clearly marked on every street, from the bullet holes of the 1916 Rising that you can still see on O’Connell Street to the fine Georgian architecture that dates back to the seventeenth century. The city combines a strong sense of history and traditional values with all the excitement and vibrancy of a modern European capital. Dublin also boasts a wide range of parks from the beautiful St. Stephen’s Green in the city centre to the Phoenix Park, Europe’s largest municipal park.

English is the first language in Ireland. In Dublin, it is spoken with a very neutral and easy to understand accent. This makes Ireland one of the most attractive places in the world to study English. Education and the skills of communication have always been highly valued and the country has produced some of the greatest writers in the English Language such as Oscar Wilde, James Joyce, WB Yeats and Seamus Heaney.

College

The college is located in a beautiful green spot in Ireland.

The College is situated within seventy-acres of beautiful mature parkland which includes rugby and soccer pitches, a gymnasium, a weight room, a running track, a cricket crease with pavilion and a table tennis room. Recently, the College opened six newly constructed tennis courts complete with floodlights.

This is considered one of the most modern school sports campus in the country.

The College can accommodate residential students on-site, most in comfortable, single, double or triple rooms accommodation.

The catering facilities provide both hot and cold meals and a range of snacks.
The school was founded in the 1800 and the rugby posts were first erected in the college more than 100 years ago, that means that students will breath many years of rugby history.

Coaching

All participants will be assisted, coached and guided by Leinster Rugby professional coaches, professional players and experienced English teacher. All our teaching and coaching staff are native English speaker.
Particular emphasis will be placed on the following topics: individual skills and techniques; mini-unit and team skills; communication and the ability to make decisions. Athletes will learn the essential techniques required to play the game safely, they will learn and develop new skills and ways to express themselves in a team environment. During each rugby training session, there will be “humbleness” that comes by working with a group and the “conscientiousness” for the safety and enjoyment of all players involved.

Course Contents

Athletes will have more than 10 hours a week of training and interrelated activities, which include educational lessons, coaching, individual skills exercises, development of mental strength, intelligence and rugby abilities.
Rugby matches and training will be analysed through video support.
Players will also gain a greater understanding of the importance of physical fitness, strength and conditioning and what it is appropriate for young players at any age or stage of the long-term player development continuum. There will be general and specific nutritional talks on how best to eat to be healthy while playing sports.
All Camp Managers are fully accredited IRFU coaches and have additionally completed IRFU Safe Rugby and World Rugby First Aid in Rugby.

 FUNdamentals: Learn to Play – Stage 1

Date: July
Athletes Aged: 9-10
Accommodation: College
Location: Historical College in Dublin, providing numerous sporting facilities including indoor swimming pool
Special Features: Irish and International youth Players participation. Professional Rugby players attending the training and interacting with young players.

Skills Development Programme

At the Rugby and English camp athletes focus on all aspects of the game and performing skills under pressure.
The Rugby Skills Development Programme is designed to develop players, based on the core four skills.

1. Passing or Kicking and Catching
2. Levels of Contact
3. Support and Evasion
4. The Breakdown (Defensive and Attacking with individual skills assessment and progressive development )

All sessions will have one of these four core skills as its main focus, which will be assessed and developed progressively.

Particular emphasis will be placed on the following topics:

• # Communication and the ability to make decisions under pressure
• # Leadership activation; mental strength,  tactical intelligence

Players who attend the Rugby and English Camp will be coached by Professional Rugby Coaches that all have a vast amount of experience in providing top quality coaching to young athletes. To facilitate the appropriate attention given to each participant during their stay, players will be split into groups of 15 depending on their age and ability.

All Camp Managers are fully accredited IRFU coaches and have additionally completed IRFU Safe Rugby and the World Rugby First Aid in Rugby.

Rugby Camp FUNdamentals: Learn to Play – Stage 2

Date: July
Athletes Aged: 11-12
Accommodation: College
Location: Historical College in Dublin, providing numerous sporting facilities including an indoor swimming pool
Special Features: Irish and International youth Players participation. Professional Rugby players attending the training and interacting with young players.

This programme has been designed to start bridging the gap between tag rugby and contact rugby. This is achieved by safely introducing elements of physical contact as well as contact with the ground while still developing the core skills of running, passing, supporting and evading.

Skills Development Programme

At the Rugby Academy athletes focus on all aspects of the game and performing skills under pressure.
The Rugby Skills Development Programme is designed to develop players, based on the core four skills.

1. Passing or Kicking and Catching
2. Tackling (from Tag Rugby to Full Contact Rugby)
3. Support and Evasion
4. The Breakdown (Defensive and Attacking with an individual, mini-unit assessment and progressive development)

All sessions will have one of these four core skills as its main focus, which will be assessed and developed progressively.

Particular emphasis will be placed on the following topics:

• # Communication and the ability to make decisions under pressure
• # Leadership activation; mental strength; tactical intelligence

As an addition to content, there will be a nutritional talk on how best to eat to be healthy while playing sports. This will be both general and also around match time and hydration. Secondly, we will be giving increased education around strength and conditioning, and what is appropriate for young players at stage 1 (11-12) and stage two and over (13+).

Players who attend the Leinster Rugby Camp will be coached by Leinster Rugby staff that all have a vast amount of experience in providing top quality coaching to young athletes. To facilitate the appropriate attention given to each participant during their stay, players will be split into groups of 15 depending on their age and ability.

All Camp Managers are fully accredited IRFU coaches and have additionally completed IRFU Safe Rugby and the World Rugby First Aid in Rugby.

Rugby Player Development –Stage  1-: Learn to Train, Play and Compete

Date: January – February & July – August
Athletes Ages: 13 – 15
Accommodation: Host Family or College
Location: Historical College in Dublin, providing numerous sporting facilities including an indoor swimming pool
Special Features: Players will learn new techniques and develop new skills; Irish and International youth Players participation. Professional Rugby players attending the training and interacting with young players.

Skills Development Programme

At the Rugby Academy athletes focus on all aspects of the game and performing skills under pressure.
The Rugby Skills Development Programme is designed to develop players, based on the core four skills.

1. Catching and Passing or Kicking
2. Tackling
3. Support and Evasion
4. The Breakdown (Defensive and Attacking with individual, mini-unit and team skills assessment and progressive development )

All sessions will have one of these four core skills as its main focus, which will be assessed and developed progressively.

Particular emphasis will be placed on the following topics:

• # Communication and the ability to make decisions under pressure
• # Leadership activation; mental strength; tactical intelligence

Additional aspects include (when appropriate):

• # Functional assessment and development
• # Speed, Agility and Quickness
• # Game related fitness
• # Strength and conditioning

As an addition to content, there will be a nutritional talk on how best to eat to be healthy while playing sports. This will be both general and also around match time and hydration. Secondly, we will be giving increased education around strength and conditioning, and what is appropriate for young players at stage 1 (11-12) and stage two and over (13+).

Players who attend the Rugby and English Camp will be coached by Professional Rugby Coaches that all have a vast amount of experience in providing top quality coaching to young athletes. To facilitate the appropriate attention given to each participant during their stay, players will be split into groups of 15 depending on their age and ability.

All Camp Managers are fully accredited IRFU coaches and have additionally completed IRFU Safe Rugby and the World Rugby First Aid in Rugby.

Rugby Player Development –Stage 2-: Learn to Train, Play and Compete

Date: January – February & July – August
Athletes Ages: 16 – 18
Accommodation: Host Family or College
Location: Historical College in Dublin, providing numerous sporting facilities including an indoor swimming pool
Special Features: Players will learn new techniques and develop new skills; Irish and International youth Players participation. Professional Rugby players attending the training and interacting with young players.

Skills Development Programme

At the Rugby Academy athletes focus on all aspects of the game and performing skills under pressure.
The Rugby Skills Development Programme is designed to develop players, based on the core four skills.

1. Catching and Passing or Kicking
2. Tackling
3. Support and Evasion
4. The Breakdown (Defensive and Attacking with individual, mini-unit and team skills assessment and progressive development )

All sessions will have one of these four core skills as its main focus, which will be assessed and developed progressively.

Particular emphasis will be placed on the following topics:

• # Communication and the ability to make decisions under pressure
• # Leadership activation; mental strength; tactical intelligence

Additional aspects include (when appropriate):

• # Functional assessment and development
• # Speed, Agility and Quickness
• # Game related fitness
• # Strength and conditioning

Players who attend the Rugby Camp will be coached by Professional Rugby Coaches that all have a vast amount of experience in providing top quality coaching to young athletes. To facilitate the appropriate attention given to each participant during their stay, players will be split into groups of 15 depending on their age and ability.

All Camp Managers are fully accredited IRFU coaches and have additionally completed IRFU Safe Rugby and the World Rugby First Aid in Rugby.

Hi-Performance Development Programme

The Rugby Academy will provide players and teams with an opportunity to experience a development programme which will be tailored to the team and/or the individual.

The rugby academy programme includes:

• # Technical skill assessment and progressive development
• # Tactical skill assessment and development (including analysis where appropriate)
• # Strength, Power and Conditioning assessment and development
• # Nutritional appraisal (assessment) and consultation
• # Access to expert coaching and fitness training
• # Access to top-level coaches and playing facilities
• # Medical and Functional Assessment and support (where and when applicable)

Optional:

Scrum Academy Programme (minimum stay 2 weeks)

The Scrum Academy provides a scrum coaching development programme that includes the most current and up to date trends in the game. The programme is delivered by highly qualified & experienced coaches in a professional and engaging manner.

The programme follows a traditional developmental model including the following Key areas :

• # Foundation Blocks
• # Bindings
• # The Power Position
• # Safe Scrumming

• # Scrum coaching
• # Scrum Consultancy
• # Scrum Analysis

We provide a high standard of scrum specific coaching that will increase and improve players and coaches’s scrum knowledge, scrum specific skills and overall qualities and abilities to perform and deliver under pressure.