Six year eight Wellington students have been selected for the U13 Somerset Rugby DPP.
The County Developing Player Programme will build their skills and give them opportunities to work on their rugby with expert coaches and high-flying teammates.
They join two year 11 pupils who are in the U16 Somerset DPP, one who is in the Bath Academy and two who are in the Exeter Chiefs Academy.
“The strength of our rugby provision is growing and is tied in with the new Sport and Wellbeing Department which looks at the whole athlete, “commented ex-professional rugby player and cricketer, Steffan Jones, Head of the Department. “We have some superb coaches and our Elite Development Programme tailors specific programmes around the pupil. Skills are obviously a key element top athlete development, but we also cover sports psychology, nutrition, SAQ, strength and conditioning. The results speak for themselves”.
Wellington pupils have also excelled at the County Hockey Squads this season. Five girls and seven boys have been selected to represent Somerset in the JAC, representing a successful season for Wellington. Pupils were selected across the age ranges with a split of girls and boys.
“Wellington School is extremely proud of this outstanding result from all the pupils” said Director of Sport and Wellbeing, Steffan Jones. “Hockey is a strong tradition at Wellington, and we are proud to maintain this standard of excellence.”
The Junior Academy Centre (JAC) is run by the England Hockey Club and players are assessed in stringent trials. If selected, the players attend regular training sessions and receive coaching on the core skills of hockey from appropriately qualified coaches.. As well as training, there will be competition between academies. The combination of training and competition allows players to develop in a variety of situations and ensures that they are assessed over the whole programme in more than just the competition environment.
