Tickets

Rugby in Manitoba - Growing and Thriving in the Midst of Change

Written by Karen Gasbarino
Community

Across Canada, rugby bodies are picking up and dusting off after what has admittedly been a very rough 18 months. It’s a long time-out for athletes, and the risk is always that young players will lose interest or find other pursuits.

Across Canada, rugby bodies are picking up and dusting off after what has admittedly been a very rough 18 months. It’s a long time-out for athletes, and the risk is always that young players will lose interest or find other pursuits. To prevent or reverse this, each of the regions is employing unique tactics to reinvigorate the rugby community and get the players back out on the pitch.

In Manitoba, the Union is working in concert with their biggest and most forward-thinking supporters to bring rugby back to existing players, while also introducing our sport to new players or athletes looking to broaden their sport horizons.

One such supporter is Adam Porte, born and raised in Plum Coulee Manitoba with, as he says, very limited options for sport. “Rugby was not one of those options,” He laments. With no family interested in rugby or former players to pass the love of the sport on, Porte had no frame of reference. “I had to wait until I was 26 to first experience the great sport of rugby in Australia. I wish I would have had the opportunity to play rugby at a younger age and believe that many people in the Pembina Valley will also find that desire.”

Currently, Adam plays for the Winnipeg Wasps. He realized that there was a gap that needed filling, and sought to do that. To introduce rugby to a younger generation was one of his motives, but to get rugby to communities that otherwise would have to travel distances to play was another. He wanted to share his love of the game with those who would otherwise not have the opportunity.

He explains. “With the communities in Plum Coulee, Morden, Winkler, and Kleefeld, the towns were enthusiastic to have someone facilitate a program that would add to their offerings.” Not knowing themselves where to begin, the communities left it to Adam and Rugby Manitoba. Porte praises the help he got. “Gord and Patrick at Rugby Manitoba were instrumental in the Try Rugby Days success in that they were ready and able to answer any questions and assist in lifting any barriers that would have inhibited that success. I am confident that the programs would not have succeeded without them.”

When Porte took his plans to Rugby Manitoba, he was pleasantly surprised at how receptive to his ideas they were. He spoke with Patrick Ryan, Executive Director at Rugby Manitoba, who got him in touch with Gord MacInnes, who had been the Union’s former Director of Youth Development since 2018, having brought valuable experience from his time as Youth Development Officer with the Irish Rugby Union. In his new role as the Rugby Development Officer, MacInnes had the experience needed to help spread the word of rugby in the region, especially when it came to introducing it to younger players.

Porte and MacInnes combined forces to help reach more people than individually they could do on their own. MacInnes explains. “When I was Director of Youth Development, I was trying to get youth flag rugby up and running again in Winnipeg. Patrick had told me that Adam had run a youth program in Winkler in the summer of 2019 and had some success with numbers. In

2020, he didn’t run a program due to the pandemic. Having discussions with Adam, he was very ambitious about starting up 3 or 4 programs this summer. With my position as RDO I agreed to help as much as I could to get these programs up and running.”

Porte relied on the networking he had been working on for the last couple of years. MacInnes praises the efforts: “Adam did a fantastic job of advertising these programs through social media and word of mouth in those communities. It was evident in our first Try Rugby Day in Kleefeld where we had 38 kids come out. Among the 4 programs that Adam started (Kleefeld, Plum Coulee, Morden, and Winkler) there are 102 kids registered for flag rugby this fall.” The numbers are impressive in these fairly small communities.

Rugby Canada’s Rugby Development Manager, Ryan Jones, agrees that the work done in Manitoba is impressive. He says “I was fortunate to support the try rugby day in Plum Coulee. Adam and his team did a great job of promoting the program in the local community and managed to draw a number of youth.” Of the fact that the area is new to rugby, Jones adds, “it’s exciting to see youth programs being created in places where rugby hasn’t traditionally been played. I look forward to supporting the growth of the club this year and in the years to come.”

MacInnes is pleased to bring rugby to those who haven’t shared his experience. A former player himself, MacInnes admits that as much as he’d love to still be playing, his body reminds him his playing days are done. He’s grown up with the oval ball. He was a proud member of the Manitoba Wombats from 1993-2007 as was his older brother, who also represented the Provincial side. Happily for him, his two sons, who are 7 and 12, are involved in the youth side, which MacInnes helps to coach. Wombats had a Try Rugby Day recently where 20 new kids came out. The Wanderers also hosted a session with an additional 15 kids. As a rugby person, he knows what youth need and want in order to enjoy and thrive in a rugby environment.

So does Adam Porte.

He is all about the Try Rugby Days. Beyond that, he wants to see competition thrive, which has been his goal since the beginning. Because, as he says, actual play is what will fire the interest in the players. “The plan is to introduce as much competition as possible because, let’s be honest, practice is boring. We will be doing a house league style every Saturday in the Pembina Valley and Kleefeld will meet up with Steinbach every Thursday to play games.”

What pleases Porte most is the awesome support he received from Rugby Manitoba. “I informed Gord and Patrick about my scheme and they allowed me the freedom to put that scheme into action by reinforcing my enthusiasm and helping me overcome any obstacles.” Most impressive to Porte was how far Patrick Ryan and Gord MacInnes were willing to go to help get it off the ground. “They were a massive help in providing coaches for the program, even going so far as to make themselves available for most events.” Porte admits it is a challenge to get people involved when the sport is new to them. But together, they approached and overcame all the obstacles.

And the numbers are impressive.

MacInnes shares that despite some challenges with covid, and having to rearrange some of the planned schedules, the plan is to run 12 youth programs this Fall, an improvement over the Autumn of 2020. “We have 215 kids registered for the fall flag rugby season through 3 Winnipeg programs, Steinbach, and the 4 programs that Adam started up. Also, in the Westman region we are projected to have close to 200 kids register for youth rugby this fall. The Westman region has been running a successful youth program for several years now and we are trying to follow in their footsteps.”

They’ll be running 6 jamborees in the weekends leading up to and including October 16.

But that isn’t all. Rugby Manitoba is working with the high schools to bridge that gap that we in the rugby community know exists between the youth and the University leagues. He says there are plans to run a high school 7s league in Winnipeg this Fall. “Westman plans on running a high school 7s league as well, which they have done for several years now with a girls division. We are planning on doing a provincial high school 7s final in mid October.” The regions in Manitoba are coming together to increase awareness and participation in rugby, which has been the goal of Rugby Manitoba, Rugby Canada, and enthusiastic volunteers such as Adam Porte.

Porte shows no signs in slowing down his involvement. “The plan is to continue to expand. I am hoping to add 3 more programs to the Pembina Valley and 2 more to Eastman in 2022,” he says. He is a firm believer in the values of rugby. “People need to learn what kind of future rugby can provide them, whether that be playing for a Manitoba club, playing at university, or playing domestically or even going overseas to play.” He admits many people aren’t aware of the opportunities that rugby can provide. He’s making it his mission to show them.

“Beyond the fall, we want to keep growing the game at the youth level,” MacInnes says. “We plan on doing Try Rugby Days in schools and hopefully introduce flag rugby as part of the phys ed curriculum in some schools.” Pandemic dependent, they hope they’ll be allowed to get into the schools to facilitate their plan to run a Flag Rugby League in the middle schools in the Spring. “And hopefully,” he adds “our high school programs will be up and running next spring after a two year cancellation due to the pandemic.”

Adam Porte wanted to share that Patrick Ryan as Director and Gord MacInnes as RDO have made a massive difference in Manitoba.

“I cannot say enough what Patrick has done for rugby in the Province and under his tutelage. A massive increase in people being exposed to rugby has occurred in a short while. In the Pembina Valley alone, if we are able to achieve a 30% retention rate of those exposed this year, that is 23 players added to the future senior player pool each year.”

It seems evident that between these three passionate rugby men rugby will continue to grow and thrive in the region. It is yet another fantastic example of how together, the Provincial Unions with the help of their Rugby Development Officers are spreading the word and growing the game.