Top Tips: How to Recruit Rugby Players
We all know that there’s nothing quite like grassroots rugby. However, others need a slight push in the right direction! We often hear of frustrated grassroots clubs struggling with recruitment, new engagement and finding new players. And, as with everything grassroots, clubs need bootstrap ideas which cost very little money to execute.
Here are a few tips we’ve compiled of where to find new players in every nook and cranny!
Open days and “bring a mate”
Starting with your club and existing infrastructure, clubs often run free open days and trials at the beginning of pre-season.
“We take it one step further and introduce a ‘bring a mate training day’ once a year”, says one English Rugby coach. “This way, some of the responsibility is handed down to the players themselves to ensure they’re playing for the best team possible, and hopefully side-by-side with some of their best mates”
Top Tips:
Keep it casual – Some potential players may feel slightly apprehensive when deciding to come to open days, not only is the game physical, but the rules are quite tough to follow especially when you’re starting out.
Don’t play rugby – This one might seem counterintuitive, but introduce the sport via games, assault courses and different activities to test strength, agility and athleticism
Bring Food – Who doesn’t love a free meal? Entice players by holding a BBQ, sandwiches or picnics after the session. Great way for players to network and speak to the team
Include a presentation – Sit everyone down either before or after the session to highlight some of the best bits of being at your club. Going on tour this year? Tell them about it!
Project: Won for Won™
One for you, one for grassroots
Won for Won.
Schools
A brilliant way to get the new generation excited about rugby. Schools (especially primary) are happy to host coaches and players to come in and host taster sessions and presentations for kids.
Top Tips:
Reach out to Sports Teachers and P.E. Teachers in schools directly. Speaking to a general school mailbox or phone number might not get passed on to the right people. Your local school website will even have the teacher’s direct email address.
Involve current players - Bring players in a mix of positions to inspire kids and teens of all shapes and sizes.
Tell stories and inspire - Why should kids start playing rugby anyway? You’re competing with a Playstation after all.
Socials
Easily the best way to reach a very wide, varied audience. However, we know that not everyone knows how to navigate the social media world and it can get tricky. New apps are appearing every day and it can be hard to keep up.
Don’t get too worked up about it, yes it can be difficult at first, but these apps are incredibly intuitive, have an easy user experience and can be grasped quite quickly. Social media is a very powerful tool for recruitment so skill up!
Top Tips:
Webinars and Workshops – Everyone is in a similar boat to you and luckily there is tons of help out there. Keep an eye out for talks and online meetings such as this one; “Using Tiktok to recruit and retain female rugby players.” This one is a past event, but get in touch and follow Stella Mills and Charlie Willett for more tips and tricks. They would be more than happy to help!
Join forums and discussions on Facebook and Reddit. There are loads of groups available, from Coaches, teams, players, countries and everything in between.
Follow different social channels - Whether it’s the Official Welsh Rugby Union, RFU or Rugby Australia, they often post tips on engagement and recruitment for grassroots clubs.
W RUGBY Instagram - We post a lot of tips and tricks for grassroots teams and it’s a great way to engage with our community.
Gyms/Bootcamps/Other sports
A lot of players, especially at grassroots, dedicate their time across multiple sports. A great way to recruit players is to attend gyms, bootcamps and similar sports to see if players would be keen to try rugby. After all, they’re already interested in sport and have an athletic ability – your coaching is half way done!
Speak to people – It’s often as simple as that. Looking for a strong prop? Head over to the weights at the gym. Need a speedy winger? Stop the person running in the street or the cyclist having a coffee halfway through their cycle.
Pubs/Bars/Social Events
A personal favourite of ours for obvious reasons – and a real winner amongst the people we asked. One reddit user wrote:
“Honestly, best ways I've found is just chatting up people at bars in my area. You'd be surprised how many people would be willing to try it and just need someone to get their number and text them the location and practice time. Pretty much how I helped start up our women’s team.”
