The Dragons played their first game against another club today. They played against Gwernyfed RFC Under 6's in Underhill Park. We then mixed with the visiting team and the Predators for another game.

I was really impressed with the Dragons they got stuck in and enjoyed themselves. That's really impressive especially when playing against bigger boys.

If anyone has photos please send them to me and I will put them on the blog.

I hope you will join us next week for our last training session. I need to collect the jerseys at the end of the session so please make sure the kids wear a T-Shirt under their jerseys.

See you on the beach,

Mark.

End of Season Newsletter

Last training session
The end of the season is almost with us. Our last training session will be at 10:30 on 15 May at Caswell.

What happens next year?
If your child will be 6+ years old on 1 September 2011 they will stay with the Dragons and start playing against other teams. If they are under 6 they can stay on the beach for another year.
The first event for everyone will be the Rugby Fun day on the ‘Cracker 7’s’ weekend. This will take place on Saturday 27 August in Underhill Park.

Welsh Rugby Union Registration
The Dragons (players over 6) need to register with the Welsh Rugby Union before they can play next year. This registration also covers personal injury insurance. We will be handing out registration cards. Please complete these, with photographs, and return them to Mark as soon as possible.

Who will the Dragons play?
We will play against other under 7’s teams in the Swansea and Gower area. The club also hosts touring sides from all over the UK. The Dragons first game next year is against South Gower (away!) on 4 September. The provisional fixture list is enclosed. All our home games will be held at Bishopston.
Communications

The Dragons have a new blog page: www.mumbles-dragons.blogspot.com

For beach players the blog address remains un-changed: www.mumblesbeachrugby.blogspot.com

The Dragons will continue to use the ‘Teamer’ web site to send you text messages about events.

Are you able to help next year?
We are looking for volunteers to run the beach rugby next year.
Nigel and I would also appreciate help with the Dragons.

If you would like to help with coaching please let Mark know. Mumbles Rugby Club will pay for you to do a tag leaders course. The courses are run by the Ospreys development officer. They are good fun and very informative. These courses are suitable for complete rugby novices. At this age it’s all about having fun.

Thank You!
I hope that your kids have enjoyed the rugby and will continue to play next year. I was really apprehensive about becoming a coach but have really enjoyed it.

Looking back at the photographs on the blog confirms just how much passion and effort the Dragons put into their playing............when they weren’t building sand castles!

Mark

Because of the high tides we played at Bishopston this week with the older tag teams. The weather was fantastic.

David won the bulldog game and scored a great try to finish.

We split into 4 groups and practiced the 'tag and pass' sequence. Will, Oliver Sam and Luca really impressed me with their passing skills.

The relay race was good fun. The Dragons passing and catching was great. Well done.

The Dragons finished by playing their first match. We joined the Mumbles Predators and played in 2 games. Nigel Grant and I were really proud of how well everyone played.

A few parents have asked if they should get 'togs' (rugby or football boots). I think it's a good idea. The kids love them. We will be playing on the grass again this year. You can get a really good quality pair for a reasonable price in discount sports shops such as Sports Direct in town.

Nigel found a child's Fat Face coat. He will bring this next week.

Well done Dragons you were great!

See you on the beach next week. We will return to Bishopston on 27 March.

Nigel, Grant and Mark.

On 27 February The Dragons played some really good rugby despite the poor weather.

We thought the ospreys and ostriches game would help develop reaction times and tagging skills. What it did do was to identify those Dragons with initiative; more commonly know as cheats!

Last week, 6 March, Dexter won the bulldog game, again! Sam really impressed me with the quality of his passes. Will and David scored fantastic tries in the tag game.

Next week the tide is in and we will need to play at a different venue.

Training times are now displayed on the right hand side of the Blog page.

See you next week.

Nigel, Mal and Mark.

Some fantastic photos from Luca's dad

We had a great session last week. It was nice to be back on the beach after a couple of cancelled training sessions.

We were joined by some new Dragons.

I was really pleased with the rugby, especially the tag game at the end.

After the rugby we went back to the club for hot dogs.

Hope to see you on the beach next Sunday.

Nigel and Mark.

Dragons hit the beach again after the Christmas break

The Dragons were back on the beach today after the Christmas break. We had a great time in lovely weather.

The team looked fantastic in their new jerseys.

We welcomed a new Dragon to our team today. Roan played really well and scored 2 tries in his fist game. Well done!

Dexter won the bulldog game and then beat the rest of the team who were trying to tag him. Luca did some fantastic tagging.

I was really pleased with how everyone played today but we still need to improve our passing and catching. If you get a chance try and practice this at home.

See you on the beach next week,

Mark, Nigel and Mal.