Third year Psychology with History student Olly Draisey has helped to increase awareness of women’s rugby through his volunteer work as Forwards Coach for Newcastle (Staffs) Women’s Rugby XV, supporting the team as it joined an official league for the first time in the club’s history.

This season the squad has competed in the Inner Warrior Series (IWS); the first step to organised regular rugby where local teams come together to decide the format and structure that they want to play. From next season, they will move up to play in the NC3 Midlands (West) league.

Players range from those who have never played rugby before to a player-coach who’s competed in the women’s premiership. The team of 20 trains once a week at Newcastle (Staffs) Rugby Club on a Thursday from 7pm-8pm and is working towards having fortnightly games, both within the league and friendly matches.

As the Forwards Coach, Olly works with the team on the scrum, breakdown and line-out parts of the game. The coaching team also includes Keele alumna’s Fiona Murphy as Manager and Rachael Squire as Backs Coach/player. Olly said, “The club aims to expand access to the game for women. Everyone in the coaching set-up has been involved in rugby and has a deep love for it; we just want to facilitate it so that others can experience that. Women’s rugby is still a growing sport, and more and more women are interested in giving it a go.”

He continued, “The issue women’s rugby faces in the local area is that there isn’t much opportunity outside of the university teams. Before we established this team, Stoke Rugby Club’s female team, Stoke Sirens, was the only local one. Although others are available, they require substantial travel, which creates a barrier. By establishing this team, we feel like we’ve removed that barrier. The half a dozen players who have never played before that now play for us shows that we’ve been able to achieve it.”

Olly started playing the sport when he was just four years old to spend time with his dad, and the pair developed a mutual admiration for the sport. He says, “Until I was 18, he and I went religiously to every training session, every home and away game.” It was in his last year of high school that Olly started to coach, helping to support the younger teams. During this time, he realised how much he enjoyed the coaching side of the sport, going on to qualify as a referee before finishing his A-levels. Olly then studied at Swansea University for a year, where he represented the Ospreys region as a referee before realising that Swansea wasn’t the university for him and deciding to relocate to Keele.

He said, “I came to Keele because I was at a crossroads whether I should go down the teaching route or the psychology route. Keele’s option of Psychology and History gave me the freedom to pursue multiple options without restricting myself whilst I decided which route to take.”

Sadly, at this time, Olly’s dad passed away and he lost the love for the sport. However, he brought his boots with him when he moved to Keele, attended one of the sessions held by Keele Men’s Rugby Club and found his love for rugby once again. Olly said, “After my dad passed away, my childhood club Dursley RFC supported me and helped me deal with it, and Keele welcomed me with open arms. I love the community and how welcoming it is. The thing about rugby is that you can walk into any club with a pair of boots and within a couple of weeks, you have a chance to play once you’ve learned the structure and calls.”

After impressing his teammates and securing a place on the team, Olly was elected by his peers to become Welfare Secretary in his first year, Development Captain in his second year and was re-elected again at the start of this academic year. He has also recently received the England Rugby Coaching Award (ERCA), which was funded by the University through the Athletic Union and Rugby Development Officer for both Keele and University of Staffordshire, Rich Thomas. The two-day course involves participants preparing a demonstration of the coaching process which is then assessed by accredited coaches and is an official qualification.

After asking Rich about coaching opportunities in the area, Olly was directed to Newcastle’s newly formed women’s team. After helping at a few sessions last season, Olly was officially asked to join the coaching team at the beginning of this season. He says, “There’s so much I enjoy about this role. Watching the improvement of players who train with us is so rewarding. I love watching and helping the players with the psychology of habit-forming, strategy, technique, and general improvement as well. Coaching the ladies is the highlight of my week.”

Olly has enjoyed his time coaching the team so much that he’ll be pursuing an MSc in Sports and Exercise Psychology at Manchester Metropolitan University after his graduation in July. He says, “I would love to continue to coach and have it as a career. However, the chances of this are slim due to the nature of coaching. Sports Psychology is a true passion of mine and the masters will allow me to align myself with coaching opportunities.” He also plans to stay in the area so that he can continue to support Newcastle’s women’s team alongside his studies.