Team Hud welcomes rugby experts
Fri, 13 Mar 2015 12:09:00 GMT
Sports teams here at the University of Huddersfield have been benefiting from specialist knowledge from sporting experts visiting campus.
Earlier this year Team Hud welcomed Keir Wenham-Flatt, a strength and conditioning specialist with Los Pumas Argentina and Argentina Rugby Union. Keir is originally from Northampton, but now lives in Sydney and works for six months of the year in Argentina.
Keir came to the University to deliver a workshop to our rugby league and rugby union players on all aspects of physical preparation for rugby. He coached the students on how to build strength and power, including a practical session on techniques used by international rugby players to build acceleration and high speed running. This was a valuable experience for both rugby league and rugby union players especially after being involved in the University’s ‘focus sport’ system for the last six months where they have been exposed to strength and conditioning training twice per week.
The ‘focus sport’ system not only gives students access to individualised strength and power programmes created from testing and movement screening, but also gives them a coach for training and matches. The strength and conditioning provision has allowed all teams to build a solid base of movement competency from which strength and power can be built later on in the programme. General exercises have been used at the beginning of the programme with the demands of each sport dictating exercise selection as the programme progresses.
George Ford, fullback at Sale Sharks, has also been assisting in developing the University’s rugby union team by coaching them once a week. This has again allowed one of our focus sports to be exposed to players and coaches who are playing at the highest level of professional sport.
