Kent plan to break into rugby big time
KENT, the second biggest rugby playing county behind Yorkshire, currently have no top-notch Championship or Premiership club.
But ambitious plans by Old Elthamians could change all that.
The OEs have underlined their bold ambition to bring top-flight rugby to Kent by creating a new rugby academy in conjunction with St Mary’s University, Twickenham.
USA Sevens boss Mike Friday will head up the OEs academy, supported by former England, Gloucester and London Irish scrum-half Peter Richards and ex-Wasps fly-half James Brooks.
The five-year agreement between the university and the National One club begins with immediate effect and the academy will seek to attract players from across the country who will study at the university and become part of the Men’s Rugby Performance Programme.
North Kent-based OEs aim to build on their remarkable recent progress by winning promotion to the Championship and potentially going beyond that – if plans for a Premiership standard stadium come to fruition.
Richards is the academy’s head coach and the 2007 World Cup finalist told
The Rugby Paper: “A start-
up from scratch is exciting and we’re ecstatic to tie-up with a great place like St Mary’s, who are very keen to grow rugby within the university and get up into the BUCS Super League.
“Old Elthamians are hugely ambitious, so it’s a good opportunity for young guys to come in and feed into our sides, with the emphasis on development.
“Premiership clubs can have 60 kids in their U18s programme, with only six or seven contracted to the club the following season. The others get cut and many of the so-called late developers can be lost to the game, but now we’ll have a programme where they can carry on.
“We’re not in competition with the likes of London Irish, Harlequins or Saracens, we just want to give kids another chance of achieving potential.”
The academy is being backed by OEs’ main sponsor, Secure Trading, principal sponsors of England Sevens. Richards added: “Getting a pathway for young guys to come through is key to our development, rather than having to buy in all of your talent.
“The ambition is for OEs to become the best club in Kent, with a big investment in the ground to go with it.”
OEs have a planning application lodged with Bromley Council to redevelop their home ground in Mottingham, which includes a new grandstand, 4G pitch, floodlights and an enlarged clubhouse to bring facilities up to Championship standard.
Rugby director Gavin Lach said: “Kent’s never had a professional team and the long-term aim is to move higher up the rugby ladder. We’re hoping to change the rugby landscape and our academy is a big part of that.”