Rugby + basketball = athletes
Swilers’ partnership looks to boost club and develop multi-sport athletes
The idea came about, ironically enough, in Germany when the Swilers Rugby Football Club from St. John’s was enjoying a tour of that country. The Newfoundlanders noticed there were a few rugby clubs, but primarily German sport was about athletic clubs, encompassing a number of different sports.
“We thought,” said Swilers executive director Morgan Lovell, “this was something we could be doing to help increase the membership in Swilers.
“We’re not about, and nor do we want, to steal kids from other sports. What we want to do is develop athletes.” Four years later, after reaching out and taking in basketball, the Swilers Basketball Club is experiencing steady growth with upwards of 80 players, from under-11 to U15.
That’s complementing the Swilers RFC, which is hitting 110 rugby players and 250 in total between athletes and social membership.
“In addition to increasing membership,” said Lovell, “we hope to attract multi-sport athletes. It’s these kids who usually get to the top levels of sport. And, of course, we want to raise the community awareness of the club.
“It’s been a good partnership. The first couple of years were a little slow, but now we’re starting to see a crossover in the two sports.”
As Gerry Puddister of the new Swilers Basketball Club recounts, the idea of Swilers hoops came about a number of years ago at a rugby game. Puddister was entertaining an English business client at a rugby match at the Swilers Complex when he struck up a conversation with Noel Browne, a founding father for Swilers and Newfoundland rugby.
From that initial chat with Browne, Puddister and fellow Swilers basketball director Glenn Normore met with Pat Parfrey, described by some as the godfather to rugby in Newfoundland, and one of the movers and shakers with amateur sport in this province.
“He sees the advantage of multi-sport athletes,” Puddister said of Parfrey. “Rugby and basketball are similar in the sense you use your hands and feet, they’re quick-moving sports and you’re moving about in short spaces very quickly.
“He could certainly see the advantages of a partnership … we could all see the advantages.”
In Normore, the Swilers have one of the most decorated basketball people in the province. Besides his Hall of Fame playing career, Normore coached at the provincial and Canada Games levels, was president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Basketball Association, served on Basketball Canada’s executive and was the Basketball Canada rep on the Federation International Basketball Association.
“We believe in Canada’s Long Term Athletic Development model,” Normore said. “We understand the importance of developing multi-sport athletes.
“Basketball, hockey, rugby, track and most sports are late development sports. The best athletes in the world do not reach an elite level by specializing or limiting their sport involvement at 12 years of age. We’re pretty passionate about this at Swilers.”
It is Normore’s hope the basketball club system grows in the province, as he contends a “bigger pyramid” is desperately needed.
“”We need to have many children playing sports,” he said. “We need to develop the masses. The elite will still rise to the top.
“We have to cast a wide net because if we don’t, the catch will be very small.”
Normore contends there are still too many coaches whose need to win is sometimes placed ahead of the Long Term Athletic Development model.
“We want to follow the model of competitive excellence set by Pat Parfrey and Noel Browne years ago with the Swilers Rugby Club,” he said. “We need to be a club that takes care of its members, not just a fee-forservice basketball clinic. There has to be a club loyalty component.
“We also want to provide quality coaching, be accessible to all kids but still have a competitive rep team component.”
Puddister said there are still some spots available in the club’s Grades 4-8 program. For more information, log on to swilersbball.ca