All Black greats highlight pioneering coaching programme
Josh Kronfeld, Ian Jones, Jeff Wilson, Jamie Joseph, Grant Fox, Dave Rennie, Murray Mexted, Richard Loe, Dave
Loveridge... just some of the All Black greats involved in the International Rugby Academy's June High Performance
Players' Course.
This Tuesday (June 8) the Academy holds an open day at the Rugby Institute in Palmerston North. The day will showcase
the work of the Academy with emerging players and coaches and will feature intensive, position-specific training
sessions hosted by some of the game's finest players.
The open day will end with a feature match between the 23 players currently in the Academy course and a Wanganui
Development Team. Media are invited to attend throughout the day and the public are invited to watch the game, starting
at 5.30pm.
IRANZ Founder and Managing Director, Murray Mexted, said the open day was designed to highlight the world-class work of
the Academy in high performance development of emerging players and coaches from across the country and the world.
"The Academy is using world class players and coaches to develop the skills and the performance of the next generation
of rugby stars through a pioneering and intensive approach to positional coaching.
"In particular we concentrate on one-on-one coaching and player development, and we are using some of the world's best
coaches like Laurie Mains, David Nucifora and John Boe to develop up and coming coaches."
Murray said the open day was an opportunity for the media and the public to come and observe this approach in action
with some of the game’s emerging talent and some of the country's greatest All Blacks.
He said while the Academy frequently works with many players and coaches from overseas, the June intake primarily
featured New Zealand players, with one player from England, one from South Africa and one from Fiji.
"What the Academy is doing is professional performance development of a quality and intensity not seen anywhere else in
the world. We have players coming from across the world to take our courses because of the quality of our people and
programmes.
“We are currently working with exciting young players from one end of the country to the other which is fantastic news
not only for the depth of New Zealand rugby, but for the health of rugby in the regions," he said.
“This is a unique formula. We have courses running in tandem for both players and coaches, and we have top quality
applications for both courses from around the world - including major academies in England, Scotland and South Africa,
the regions in New Zealand, and from countries like USA, Argentina, Chile and Japan.”
Murray Mexted: 021 502 298
Fact sheet on the International Rugby Academy
The International Rugby Academy of New Zealand provides world-class rugby tuition to coaches and young players
throughout the rugby world who are aspiring to make a living through professional rugby or who want to make a difference
at the level they coach or play.
The Academy uses some of the best players in the world to provide unique and intensive one-on-one coaching and player
development, and uses world-class coaches to develop up and coming coaches.
The Academy's alliance with the New Zealand Rugby Union allows it to use the best and most current coaches available in
New Zealand in conjunction with invited coaches from overseas. Courses are based at the adidas Institute of Rugby
(Palmerston North) and the Royal New Zealand Police College (Wellington).
The International Rugby Academy team includes former All Blacks Murray Mexted and Sean Fitzpatrick, former IRB and New
Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU) Chairman Eddie Tonks and Kevin Roberts, former NZRFU board member and current
Worldwide CEO of Saatchi and Saatchi.
The International Rugby Academy offers the following:
Coaches and Specialist Experts
Major emphasis is placed on each player's position and the role of that position. Specialist experts and position
specific coaches at our June and July courses are Laurie Mains, John Boe, David Nucifora, Dave Rennie, Sean Fitzpatrick,
Hika Reid, Richard Loe, Ian Jones, Josh Kronfeld, Graham Mourie, Murray Mexted, Jamie Joseph, Dave Loveridge, Nick
Farr-Jones, Grant Fox, Tim Horan, Allan Hewson, Kieran Crowley, David Campese and Jeff Wilson.
Players' Courses
Advanced and Elite High Performance courses are available for players aiming for the top in their sport. These are
intensive courses that cover crucial physical, mental, position specific and core business skills required to become a
successful professional rugby player.
The seven-day Students' Course covers the same content but targets the younger player (15 to 18 years) with aspirations
to be professional players. The aim of the Academy is to build a solid foundation for these players that will better
prepare them for the rigours of professional rugby.
Coaches' Courses
At the high performance level, Laurie Mains, Peter Thorburn, John Boe and Dave Rennie, manage intensive two-week courses
for professional coaches, and those aspiring to reach that level. The High Performance Coaches' Course covers all
aspects of professional coaching from tactics and preparation to team structures and motivation, and problem solving.
The Practical Coaching Course for Coaches is a three-day course designed specifically for club, school and under-age
representative team coaches. Course tutors will include the likes of John Boe, Richard Loe, Ian Jones, Jeff Wilson,
Murray Mexted and Dave Rennie.