Brian Ashton Rugby Academy 01.10.2009

Dear Brian,

Following our very productive 5 days at the Chateau I thought I would drop you a short note of appreciation. There are several reasons why the 5 days have been particularly successful for us as a squad with ambitions of making a mark on a national level this season.

The first being the attention paid to the objectives Caleb and I had put together prior to arriving and we felt that every session was highly relevant to these objectives and delivered in manageable chunks to enable understanding and retention by the players. In particular, the simplification of concepts such as attacking space relayed in the classroom were valuable and this style of part theory, part practical is a method we will employ to a larger degree in future. As a coaching team we learnt as much, if not more than the players and this has given us a renewed enthusiasm.

The support we received from Jonathan and the Chateau staff in terms of arranging the logistics made our time much easier as coaches and also allowed the players more time to focus in the planned sessions.

Having the opportunity to step away from the coal-face and observe players while you took on the coaching mantle has allowed Caleb and I the time to discover plenty more about the individual strengths and weaknesses within our squad and get to work on the important areas with more focus. As a squad we have realised the benefits of a structured approach and can make improvements to our existing arrangements.

Finally I would like to add that we would highly recommend a week at the Chateau or anywhere under your valuable guidance and wish you every success with this project in the future. As mentioned you would be made extremely welcome at a future Henley fixture when we can display the progression your effort has helped us make.

Yours Sincerely

Andrew Owen Jones
Head Coach
Henley RFC U17