Contemporary sports coaching studies have moved beyond simple biophysical approaches to more complex understandings of coaching as a set of social relationships and processes. This is the first book to examine what that means in the context of one major international sport, rugby union. Drawing on cutting-edge empirical research in the five most powerful rugby-playing nations, as well as developments in pedagogical and social theory, the book argues for an holistic approach to coaching, coach development and player and team performance, helping to close the gap between coaching theory and applied practice.

With player-centered approaches to coaching, such as Game Sense and Teaching Games for Understanding, at the heart of the book, it covers key contemporary topics in coach education such as:

• Long term coach development
• Experience and culture in coaching practice
• Positive coaching for youth rugby
• Improving decision-making ability
• Collaborative action research in rugby coaching

Informed by work with elite-level rugby coaches, and examining coaching practice in both the full and sevens versions of the game, this book encourages the reader to think critically about their own coaching practice and to consider innovative new approaches to player and coach development. It is essential reading for all students of sports coaching with an interest in rugby, and for any coach, manager or administrator looking to develop better programmes in coach education.

Step back in time to the thrilling year of 1912, where rugby forged its indomitable spirit, and a legendary team emerged to win all five of the international matches they played. "The Forgotten Springboks" takes you on a voyage with this iconic South African national rugby team, as they embark on an extraordinary tour of England, France, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.

Led by Billy Millar, the tour captain, the Springboks embarked on a quest that would forever change the course of rugby's narrative. As they set foot on foreign soil, they were met with a mix of curiosity and skepticism, but these determined men were ready to showcase the strength of their spirit and the finesse of their game. Yet this remained unrecorded, until now.

The book delves into the heart-stopping moments on the field, where every try, every scrum, and every tackle took the spectators' breath away. With unparalleled unity and skill, the Springboks defeated their opponents, carving a path of triumph wherever they went. Each match was a test of their mettle, and each victory became a testament to their unwavering determination.

Beyond the rugby pitches, the book offers an intimate glimpse into the lives of these remarkable individuals who went on to become soldiers, farmers, miners, and doctors who faced major adversity.

This is the story of Widnes RLFC one of rugby's most famous clubs and how it survived administration and returned to Super League. Backed by the club and written by the official club statistician this will appeal to fans of the club and the wider rugby world. The club will use their website and other social media to generate interest in the book. The author contributes to the match day programme and is a committee member of the supporters club. He also has contacts at the local media - both print and radio. Having sunk into Administration in 2007 former World Club Champions Widnes Vikings, under the stewardship of new owner Steve O'Connor, rose phoenix-like to eventually re-gain their place in the top tier of the sport in 2012. Along the way they suffered rejection by the Rugby Football League in the sport's inaugural Licensing process in 2008, only to be successful three years later. Mike Healing's informative account of how the club turned that failure into success takes an in-depth look at the many changes taking place within the club as it was re-structured for success in addition to the new Licensing process. While the main focus is on the behind-the-scenes developments, the highs and lows of the on-field action, including the return to Super League in 2012, also receive detailed attention.

The book is proposed by globally recognised subject leaders in the field. There is a strong collection of contributors across the various chapters. The book covers several key themes that are pertinent to youth rugby including a chapter on tackling which is topical in youth sports and the young female athlete will address the current bias towards male-focused research The chosen chapters cover a good breadth of subject matter across interlinking themes and there are clear practical applications embedded within every chapter.

An effective strength and conditioning program is an essential component of the preparation of any athlete or sportsperson. Strength and Conditioning for Sports Performance is a comprehensive and authoritative introduction to the theory and practice of strength and conditioning, providing students, coaches and athletes with everything they need to design and implement effective training programs. Revised and updated for a second edition, the book continues to include clear and rigorous explanations of the core science underpinning strength and conditioning techniques and give detailed, step-by-step guides to all key training methodologies, including training for strength, speed, endurance, flexibility and plyometrics. The second edition expands on the opening coaching section as well as introducing an entirely new section on current training methods which includes examining skill acquisition and motor learning. Throughout the book the focus is on the coaching process, with every chapter highlighting the application of strength and conditioning techniques in everyday coaching situations. Strength and Conditioning for Sports Performance includes a unique and extensive section of sport-specific chapters, each of which examines in detail the application of strength and conditioning to a particular sport, from soccer and basketball to golf and track and field athletics. The second edition sees this section expanded to include other sports such as rugby union, rugby league and American football. The book includes contributions from world-leading strength and conditioning specialists, including coaches who have worked with Olympic gold medallists and international sports teams at the highest level. Strength and Conditioning for Sports Performance is an essential course text for any degree-level student with an interest in strength and conditioning, for all students looking to achieve professional accreditation, and an invaluable reference for all practising strength and conditioning coaches.

The modern game of rugby football has become gladiatorial, whereby muscular athletic players are involved in a form of collision chess with sophisticated defences smothering the offensive skills that were at one time a more dominant feature of the game. The contributors to this book consider the physical, mental and nutritional demands of the game in its present form and how best to acquire these attributes in the most effective and efficient manner. The inevitable injuries that are associated with collision are considered in terms of prevention and the most effective forms of treatment. New concepts to improve exercise capacity, game preparation and recovery are discussed in conjunction with the modern coaching theories of the game. The possible changes to the rules are discussed by two outstanding International referees, and the future vision for World Rugby is outlined by the President of World Rugby. The Dynamics of Modern Rugby is both a unique and contemporary addition to the rugby literature and, as such, is essential reading for any student, researcher, coach, sports scientist, physiotherapist, nutritionist or clinician with an interest in rugby.

Glory in Union is a pictorial celebration of the Rugby World Cup, taking us on a thrilling journey from the inaugural tournament in 1987 to the present day.

Using stunning stock images, it brings you the greatest and most iconic stars to have ever played the game, including Jonah Lomu, David Campese, Jonny Wilkinson, Sebastian Chabel, Zinzan Brooke, Michael Jones, Brian O'Driscoll, Richie McCaw, Francois Pienaar and many more.

This beautifully illustrated book covers the great matches, the turning points, the controversy, the heroes, the villains and the iconic moments that have made the World Cup the most prestigious tournament in rugby. Glory in Union is an essential piece of World Cup nostalgia for every rugby fan.

From the myth of William Webb Ellis to the glory of the 2003 World Cup win, this book explores the social history of rugby union in England.

Ever since Tom Brown s Schooldays the sport has seen itself as the guardian of traditional English middle-class values. In this fascinating new history, leading rugby historian Tony Collins demonstrates how these values have shaped the English game, from the public schools to mass spectator sport, from strict amateurism to global professionalism.

Based on unprecedented access to the official archives of the Rugby Football Union, and drawing on an impressive array of sources from club minutes to personal memoirs and contemporary literature, the book explores in vivid detail the key events, personalities and players that have made English rugby.

From an era of rapid growth at the end of the nineteenth century, through the terrible losses suffered during the First World War and the subsequent rush to rugby in the public and grammar schools, and into the periods of disorientation and commercialisation in the 1960s through to the present day, the story of English rugby union is also the story of the making of modern England.

Like all the very best writers on sport, Tony Collins uses sport as a prism through which to better understand both culture and society. A ground-breaking work of both social history and sport history, A Social History of English Rugby Union tells a fascinating story of sporting endeavour, masculine identity, imperial ideology, social consciousness and the nature of Englishness.

This is a visual, historical guide to the development and growth of rugby. It includes almost 300 hundred images from the Press Association archives that capture Rugby's finest moments. It also includes background to the most successful teams, greatest matches, a players' hall of fame and guide to the hallowed Rugby grounds. As far back as the 1830s a form of rugby was being played at Rugby Public School, after pupil William Webb Ellis first picked up a football and ran with it. In 1863 the Football Association met to standardise a common set of rules between the kicking and running games but failed to meet with the approval of the rugby fraternity. Twenty-one clubs refused to join the FA and in 1871 set up their own code of practice as 'The Rugby Union'. The popularity of the game quickly spread beyond Britain's shores becoming an international sensation. 100 Years of Rugby in Focus is a visual, historical record of the development and growth of the game, with background to more than a century of the most successful teams and the greatest matches, a players' hall of fame and a guide to the hallowed grounds where the game is played. This story is told in more than 400 photographs from the vast archives of the Press Association, whose photographers were on hand to capture the finest moments of the sport over more than a century.

Since it's first publication, Rugby's Great Split has established itself as a classic in the field of sport history. Drawing on an unprecedented range of sources, this deeply researched and highly readable book traces the social, cultural and economic divisions that led, in 1895, to schism in the game of rugby and the creation of rugby league, the sport of England's northern working class. Tony Collins' analysis challenges many of the conventional assumptions about this key event in rugby history - about class conflict, amateurism in sport, the North-South divide, violence on the pitch, the development of mass spectator sport and the rise of football. This new edition is expanded to cover parallel events in Australia and New Zealand, and to address the key question of rugby league's failure to establish itself in Wales. Rugby's Great Split is a benchmark text in the history of rugby, and an absorbing case study of wider issues - issues of class, gender, regional and national identity, and the impact of the commercialization and recent professionalization of rugby league. This insightful text is for anyone interested in Britain's social history or in the emergence of modern sport, it is vital reading.

"Rugby League in Twentieth Century Britain" is the follow-up volume to the award-winning Rugby's Great Split. Following on from that work, the book offers a social and cultural history of rugby league in the twentieth century, from World War One to the 'Super League' controversy of 1995.
Based on extensive archival research, it situates the sport in the changing culture of the north of England. It seeks to examine the cultural, social and economic basis of the sport amidst the changes to the industrial and social landscape of the north in the twentieth century. Central to this is the book's discussion of the nature of Northern English identity. In addition, it also looks at rugby league's relationship with the British empire (via its links with Australia and New Zealand), its war with rugby union (using the previously unopened archives of the Rugby Football Union) and the centrality of working-class masculinity to northern culture.
Like its predecessor, the book will appeal to sports historians and sociologists, historians interested in regional, cultural and gender history, graduate and undergraduate history, sociology and sports studies students, and followers of rugby league, and sport in general.

This book explores the expansion of rugby from its imperial and amateur upper-class white male core into other contexts throughout the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The development of rugby in the racially divided communities of the setter empire and how this was viewed are explored initially. Then the editors turn to four case studies of rugby's expansion beyond the bounds of the British Empire (France, Italy, Japan and the USA). The role of women in rugby is examined and the subsequent development of women's rugby as one of the fastest growing sports for women in Europe, North America and Australasia in the 1980s and 1990s. The final section analyses the impact of commercialisation, professionalisation and media on rugby and the impact on the historic rugby culture linked to an ethos of amateurism.

The game of rugby has changed significantly in the course of its history. In the early part of the 19th century it evolved from a folk game played by the working class to a recreational activity for public schoolboys. From the 1820s rugby represented an opportunity for gentlemen to demonstrate physical prowess and masculinity and in more recent times it has developed into an activity that reflects the changing attitudes towards professional sport. For the most part of the last one hundred years, rugby union became an important international sport that represented the nationalistic ideals of a number of countries. However, a number of developments, including the increasing influence of a business ethos within sport during the latter decades of the twentieth century, exposed rugby union to the realities of commercialism and all the factors associated with it, especially the demands of a more diverse spectating public. Drawing on interview material with forty-eight elite level rugby union players from England, Wales, Scotland, France, Ireland, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia who participated in elite level rugby union either before, in the overlapping period or after the declaration of professionalism, this book traces the evolution of attitudes towards professionalism from a players' perspective and develops a critical review of the impact that professionalism has had upon the sport of rugby union. Rugby Union and Professionalisation: Elite Player Perspectives is fascinating reading for all students and scholars with an interest in rugby union, sport history, sport policy, sport management and the sociology of sport.

England Rugby On This Day revisits the most magical and memorable moments from the national team's distinguished history, mixing in a maelstrom of anecdotes and legendary characters to produce an irresistibly dippable diary - with an entry for every day of the year. From the first ever rugby international (the 1871 meeting with Scotland) to their exploits at the 2019 Rugby World Cup and beyond, the book covers all the highs and lows of 150 years of international rugby. With a record number of grand slams and triple crowns, England are the most successful team in the Six Nations. They reached the pinnacle of the game when they won the 2003 World Cup but have also suffered heartache in three losing finals. Relive 4 January 1936 when Prince Alexander Obolensky stunned the All Blacks, 5 March 1980 when John Carleton sealed a long-awaited grand slam with a hat-trick of tries, and of course 22 November 2003 - the day Jonny Wilkinson kicked England to World Cup glory in Sydney.

The mention of sport mega-events conjures up images and memories of London 2012 or anticipation of FIFA 2014, the 2016 Rio Olympics and beyond. Indeed, the expanding annual calendar of sport mega-events, both in terms of the bidding process and the actual hosting of the event means that there is rarely time for considered reflection. This is particularly true within the context of neo-liberalism and an obsession with creating world class 'sporting' cities that are propelled by state-private promotional discourses that often silence oppositional voices. This edited collection focuses on Rugby World Cup 2011 in order to examine the contested terrain of one particular sport mega-event with respect to its economic, political and cultural impact both locally and globally. As an event, the 2011 Rugby World Cup was unique in many ways but perhaps the most notable are the nation's remote geographic location and at just over four million people - its small population. This anthology addresses how the Rugby World Cup has changed since its inception in 1987 including a major shift in the globalisation of the game, professionalization, player migration and television and sponsorship rights. The core of the anthology explores how the event impacted on various segments of New Zealand society: from the state to regions and individual citizens. Collectively the implications are relevant for all who are interested in sport mega-events whether it is from a political, economic, scholarly or policy perspective. This book was published a sa special issue of Sport and Society.

The mention of sport mega-events conjures up images and memories of London 2012 or anticipation of FIFA 2014, the 2016 Rio Olympics and beyond. Indeed, the expanding annual calendar of sport mega-events, both in terms of the bidding process and the actual hosting of the event means that there is rarely time for considered reflection. This is particularly true within the context of neo-liberalism and an obsession with creating world class 'sporting' cities that are propelled by state-private promotional discourses that often silence oppositional voices. This edited collection focuses on Rugby World Cup 2011 in order to examine the contested terrain of one particular sport mega-event with respect to its economic, political and cultural impact both locally and globally. As an event, the 2011 Rugby World Cup was unique in many ways but perhaps the most notable are the nation's remote geographic location and at just over four million people - its small population. This anthology addresses how the Rugby World Cup has changed since its inception in 1987 including a major shift in the globalisation of the game, professionalization, player migration and television and sponsorship rights. The core of the anthology explores how the event impacted on various segments of New Zealand society: from the state to regions and individual citizens. Collectively the implications are relevant for all who are interested in sport mega-events whether it is from a political, economic, scholarly or policy perspective. This book was published a sa special issue of Sport and Society.

In the 1980s and early 1990s, David Campese thrilled spectators both in Australia and overseas with his footloose, crazy-brave style of free running. This book tells the story of his rise from humble beginnings to the very top of a global sport.

As a rugby player, David Campese seemed to operate on cross-grained pure instinct, one that left many a defender clutching at him in vain, stranded in the slipstream of his audacity. Hailed as the 'Bradman of rugby' by former Wallaby coach Alan Jones, and the 'Pele' of rugby by others, Campese was a match-winner. The refrain 'I saw Campese play' now speaks to much more than wistful reminiscences about a player widely regarded as the most entertaining ever to play the game of Rugby Union. It has come to represent a state of chronic disbelief that the Wallaby ascendancy of Campese's era has been seemingly squandered.

Campese occupies a unique intersection in rugby's history: one of its last amateurs, and one of its first professionals. He had shown, too, that coming from outside the traditional bastions of rugby - the private schools and universities - was no barrier to reaching the top. Indeed, he challenged that establishment and unsettled it, warning in the early 1990s that the code risked 'dying' if more was not done to expand its appeal.

David Campese revolutionised how the game was played and appreciated. His genius, most visibly manifest in his outrageous goosestep, captured the national and sporting imagination. The rigid, robotic rugby of today appears incapable of accommodating a player of his dash and daring.

THE MOST SUCCESSFUL CAPTAIN IN WORLD RUGBY HISTORY, IN HIS OWN WORDS Richie McCaw, Rugby World Cup winning captain and the New Zealand All Black's most capped player of all time, is unquestionably the greatest player of his generation. He is arguably the most talented player of all time. In his bestselling autobiography, McCaw talks with brutal honesty about the roots of his family life that defined his character and how it gave him the strength to emerge from the lowest moment in his career to lift the Webb Ellis Cup, and become the most successful captain world rugby has ever seen. As the first captain to successfully defend the World Cup, McCaw has set the standard of what a professional rugby player should be. Hugely popular and respected, his sheer presence means that he is a natural leader both on and off the pitch and his story is not just a brutal account of life on the front line, but an exhilarating portrait of modern rugby.