News

The Saracens U.17 Age Group are hosting a Christmas Fayre tonight at the Clubhouse to raise funds for their 2012 Tour. Saracens legends Kevin Sorrell and Richard Hill will both be making an appearance, and getting their Christmas shopping done early!

Please make a big effort to get along to Bramley Road between 1830-2230 to support the event. There are a large number of stalls offering great variety of gift items ideal for you and the family for Christmas! 

It is with great sadness that the Club announces the death of Roy Fawden on Friday 4 November at the age of 84.

Roy was the first recipient of the Bryan Smith Supporter Award in May 2011 as recognition of his long standing support and service to the Club that he joined in 1952. He was delighted to receive the honour and thoroughly enjoyed the evening, meeting various players as well as old friends.

He was Honorary Secretary from 1967 to 1981 when he became President, an office he held until 1984. His input to the Club however went much further than these two important roles. An architect by profession he gave generously of his time and his skills for many years without asking for or receiving any fee. The development of the clubhouse and stand at Bramley Road owed an enormous amount to his input both in design and construction and in guiding us through all the complexities of planning applications.

From the moment he became President he was tireless in his efforts on behalf of Saracens, serving on not only the London Senior Clubs Committee but also representing us and making sure we retained our voice amongst the National Clubs in the years prior to professionalism.

He also continued to be a vital member of a number of other Club working committees especially those involved in Forward Planning, Finance and Marketing.

He became a season ticket holder from the moment professionalism came in and even though he retired to Somerset a few years ago he continued to make regular visits not just to Vicarage Road but also to anywhere that Saracens were playing, particularly of course Bath, Gloucester and now Exeter. The latter’s promotion to the Premiership meant he had first class rugby virtually on his doorstep and he had already bought tickets for this season’s match in September prior to his being taken seriously ill.

He will be remembered by many not only at Saracens but also in the world of rugby especially the other London clubs.

Charles Portsmouth

Honorary Secretary

Are you an aspiring rugby coach who would like to get involved in your club and local community? Why not attend the RFU Tag Rugby course at London Scottish RFC next Sunday 13th November and take your first steps?

The cost of the course is only £21 - but I need your feedback THIS WEEKEND if you wish to attend? Contact Colin Veitch by email or on 07785 396126 to register.

Tag Rugby is a non-contact version of the game, designed to be suitable for both children and adults new to the sport. At Saracens, our u.7s and u.8s both play Tag before moving up to Mini rugby and starting the contact version of the game.

The Start Coaching Tag Rugby course lasts for approximately three hours and is practical-based. There is no formal assessment, and the course is delivered by an accredited coach educator.

The course is delivered through a game sense approach, and is accompanied by a supporting DVD. At the conclusion of the course you will have gained:

• An understanding of how to deliver a safe and enjoyable practical session
• Knowledge of how to coach and improve skills through games
• An understanding of the application of a game sense approach
• Knowledge of the rules of tag rugby
• The ability to apply the rules of tag rugby (refereeing)

Reminder:

The cost of the course is only £21 - but I need your feedback THIS WEEKEND if you wish to attend? Contact Colin Veitch by email or on 07785 396126 to register.

On the evening of Wednesday 30th November, Bramley Road, home to Saracens Amateurs RFC will play host to a number of Saracens Players, all with International experience behind them...

The Alan Day Volkswagen Internationals Player Coaching Events are Saracens premium coaching experience. The programme now in its fourth season has proven to be a fantastic success generating positive feedback from parents and participants alike. Saracens highest profile players are able to attend these evenings to pass on their expert coaching tips to young players across the community - most of these players are often unable to attend our traditional rugby camps due to their training commitments. 

The Saracens players will install some of the values that drive them, urging young talent to play with passion and commitment, respect and discipline whilst working together as a team. Each child will receive there very own limited edition t-shirt to train in and the evening will conclude with an opportunity to collect autographs plus have photos taken with some of the biggest names in the Aviva Premiership.

Course: Alan Day VW International Players Coaching Event
Venue: Saracens Amaterus RFC (N14 4AB)
Date: Wednesday 30th November
Time: 18:00 – 20:15
Ages: U7 – U17
Online Price: £25.00

The session is open to all players aged U7 – U16 and will provide an opportunity to work on a number of skill stations alongside award winning coaches and Saracens high profile players all with Intentional experience.

The evening will allow young players to work in a fun and enjoyable environment developing individual concepts such as catch & pass, tackling technique, evasion and contact skills. Players will also work on unit development including areas such as rucking, leaching and defence organisation.

The one and a half hour coaching session will be followed with an opportunity to collect autographs and mingle with the players responsible for some of the most expansive and entertaining rugby in the Aviva Premiership. To book, visit the Saracens website

Two sides from famous clubs striving to maintain their amateur sides fought out a close draw on Saturday. It could have been the old days at Bramley Road as Harlequins kicked off against Saracens to start a fiercely contested match. Most of the first half saw both sides trying to run the ball, but good defence kept play within the opposing twenty twos.

The Quins gradually built up pressure and only some excellent last ditch tackling kept the visitors at bay. Saracens were growing in confidence and missed out on taking the lead when a long range penalty attempt just went wide of the posts. From the restart Saracens set up a series of attacks that put the Quins on the back foot and only a long kick saved them.

The kick seemed destined to find touch, but no-one took into account the perverseness off the rugby ball. It hit the ground inches from the touch line and then bounced high and to the right, over the heads of the cover defence and onto the feet of the onrushing Quins. The ball was hacked on and the visitors won the race to the line for the first try of the game.

This spurred the Quins who started putting in even bigger hits on the Saracens and winning more ball. Though the Saracens forwards were starting to put the Quins under pressure in the scrum, poor kicking from the backs allowed the Quins to keep the ball in the Sarries 22. Despite some good tackling the pressure told and just before half time the visitors scored in the right corner.

If Harlequins though this late blow would see Saracens heads drop, they were soon proved wrong. The Saracens pack was beginning to dominate in the loose and in the set piece, while the backs were running more ball and the Harlequins only response was to kick long. A Sarries driving maul took the ball near to the twenty two and the Quins were forced into conceding a penalty which was converted.

The Quins responded with a flurry of attacks, but were going nowhere and with the Sarries forwards turning over the ball with ease it was only a matter of time before the pressure told.  After winning a line out in their own 22 the Quins were forced into an error, the ball was spread to the backs and Taylor Shaw was across the line.

Straight from the restart the Saracens ran the ball from deep in their twenty two into the Quins half and the ball was kicked ahead. This time the chase was won by the Sarries with Tom Alison touching down in the corner. Saracens were 13-10 ahead.

With time running out the Quins hurled themselves into the attack, but the Sarries defence held and the forwards continued to win turnover ball in the rucks.  Poor clearance kicks meant the Quins were able to win line out ball and keep up the pressure. Eventually Quins were awarded a penalty just inside the Sarries half which was converted by a magnificent kick.

In the remaining moments both sides fought to gain an advantage but cancelled each other out so the final score remained 13-13.

Saracens coaches and managers can now access new materials from the Coaching Support Resources library on this website, to assist them with the planning and preparation of their training sessions and game plans.

New materials are being uploaded each week, and are available to read, review and download for all Age Group coaches.

You need to Log In with your User Name and Password to access the information, which is explained in more detail in the 'Coaching Support +' section of the site. If you need to upgrade your user rights to view this section, please email Colin Veitch to receive the correct password, or make contact on 07785 396126

ALL WELCOME

Tickets available behind the bar or on the door.

FANCY DRESS......

London Welsh RFC are hosting an RFU Coaching Development session at the Old Deer Park rugby ground on Tuesday 1st November at 6:45pm, focused on developing Minis back play from the set piece. Full course content details can be found by clicking here

The cost of attending is £15.50, and an application form should be downloaded and completed if you would like to take part.

The course is suitable for all Saracens coaches working in the u.7-u.12 Age Groups