Coaches

With growth in playing numbers as high as at Hillfoots (did you know we are the fastest growing rugby club in Scotland for 2 years running?), the Club has had to recruit, maintain and develop an appropriate body of committed, capable and qualified coaches.  In addition to the coaching team, who are all volunteers, we have great support from our Development Officer JP Ward, as well as our team of Duke of Edinburgh (DoE) volunteers from local schools.

Duke of Edinburgh volunteer coaching assistants

Hillfoots has a strong club culture & set of values.  These are written into a Coaching Handbook which we refer to as – “The Hillfoots Way”.  All new coaches are formally inducted into the Club, given an existing Coach as a mentor and are expected to follow the Club standards at all times.

As well as being qualified in rugby coaching to a minimum of UKCC Level 1, our team are “IRB – Rugby Ready” each year and a number have attended courses in First Aid, pitch side trauma managment and refereeing.  All of the coaching team who work with minors have attended an appropriate annual course in child protection and are compliance checked.

Adult Section Coaches

1st XV

Kevin Manson

Kevin (aged 49), lives in Tillicoultry and is the Head Coach for Hillfoots 1st XV.  Qualified to UKCC Level 1, over the years Kevin has coached all age groups of the club from P4 up to U18.  He also coached the Clackmannanshire Colts U18 team.  Kevin joined Hillfoots in 1977 and he has never left!  In his youth he was part of the Hillfoots team that won the first U16 Scottish cup (now The Brewin Dolphin Schools cup) in 1977.  He played a couple of times for the Midlands District and also for the Edinburgh Borderers.  Kevin has 2 sons, Craig and Gregor, both of whom play for Hillfoots 1st XV.  Craig is also 1st XV team manager.

Neil Davies

 Iain Nicolson

 2nd XV

 Alan Aaron

 Cast Tups

Norrie Edgar (Forwards), Norrie Rolland (Backs) & Eddie Inglis (Drinks)

 It’s a big job, so it takes 3 big guys to do it!

 Junior Section Coaches

Coaching Coordinator - Mike Robins

Strength & Conditioning Coach - Steve Hartzenberg

Youth

U18′s

Colin Wright

Colin (age 42) lives in Sauchie, Clackmannanshire and is a UKCC Level 1 coach.  Colin was awarded the Clackmannanshire Council ‘Enid Barton’ coach of the year award last year and started his coaching career at Hillfoots about 10+ years ago when his son Jordan (U18’s) started playing at the tender age of 5(P1) and has coached up through the age grades from P1 now finally as the U18’s coach. 

Colin played rugby for arch rivals Alloa RFC from age 5-17 and also for Lornshill Academy during his secondry education.  There were a couple of years down time due to work commitments but he returned to Alloa aged 22 for a couple of seasons before moving to the heady height of Division 2 and Grangemouth RFC.  He had several enjoyable seasons at Grangemouth before his body gave up the ghost and injury forced retirement.

He has had a couple of turn outs for the Cast-Ups but previous war wounds quickly put paid to that folly.

Jim (Muff) Scobbie

Alledgedly, a famous former Scotland Internationalist who shows our U18′s a thing or two about rugby!

John Ferguson

U16′s

John Higgins

Murray McKenzie

S1/S2

Fred Smith

Calum Hamilton

Andy Peterson

As well as a S1/S2 coach, Andy is a qualified rugby referee.  He now lives in Dollar, Clackmannanshire, but his rugby career started at Grangemouth minis where he was coached by Jack Robertson (an outstanding coach who taught superbly the basic skills to genereations of boys & girls at Grangemeouth).  Andy initially played rugby at school and at University in Glasgow.  He then played in England, the USA, Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan and South Africa!  Sadly Andy’s last game as a player was 3 years ago when aged 41, he snapped an achilles tendon (ouch!).  He has however stretched his legs once or twice in the last two seasons for the Cast Tups and his lifelong involvement with rugby now continues as a coach and a referee as well as suporting both his boys who play at Hillfoots and love every minute of it!

Midi

P6-P7

Paddy (David) Sherrard

Paddy (aged 40) lives in Alva, Clackmannanshire and has 2 boys playing at the club – Huw (P7) & Niall (P3).  Paddy first coached the minis in 2005 when we only had about 20 players and having returned to Alva after a few years away has been delighted at the growth of the Club.  He is a UKCC Level 1 qualified rugby coach who has coached P6-P7 at Hillfoots for the last 2 seasons.  Paddy has played rugby since his youth in Ireland and on joining the Army has played at Regimental level.  He has hung up his rugby playing boots and is now a ‘poacher turned gamekeeper’ refereeing for the SRU, Army and Combined Services.  He is an avid Ulster and Ireland rugby supporter and looks forward to seeing our youth playing for Scotland against his kids playing for Ireland!

Stewart MacLean

Stewart (aged only 36) coaches the P6/7 age group.  He lives in Dollar and there isn’t a drier sense of humour on the Hillfoots playing field.  Sometimes, he trips up the other coaches and then just laughs at them.   Stewart played scrum half through school and University, as well as for London Scottish B’s.  He then had a gap until he turned 35 and makes occassional appearances for the Cast Tups, although he’s only just old enough to do so.  Stewart’s son Bob (P6) & daughter Catrin (P3) play for Hillfoots.  Bob is not only very fast, but also jointly holds the Midi record for the Beep Test.  Stewart holds the coaches record for the Beep Test – it must run in the family!

Mike Robins

Mike (aged 43) lives in Dollar, Clackmannanshire and has 2 boys playing at the club – Daniel (P6) & Charlie (P4).  He hopes that his daughter Freya will join the Tag Tigers next season.  Mike is a UKCC Level 2 qualified rugby coach who has coached P4-P5 & P6-P7 at Hillfoots over the last 3 years.  In addition he was assistant U18 coach for half of the 2010/11 season.  Mike’s school boy rugby playing career ended aged 16, but he did turn out once for the Hillfoots’ Cast Tups as left wing (replacing an injured Mike Power) for some of a game in May 2010, scoring a try (blimey! – how did that happen?), but later sustained a bruise to his rib cage which appears, so far at least, to have ended his playing days once again!

Mike Power

Mike lives in Dollar, Clackmannanshire.  Although busy as Junior Convenor, Club Treasurer, chief cook & bottle washer, Mike (aged 47) can’t resist turning out every Sunday to watch the coaches of the Junior Section in action.  Mike is a qualified rugby coach to UKCC Level 2 and loves to give his son Rory (P7) the odd tip – on & off the field!  Mike’s own playing career started late and has continued with the Hillfoots Cast Tups (on the left wing), even later.  Currently serving oranges on the touch line as a consequence of a vicious foot injury, he hopes to be back playing gently next season.

P4-P5

Alan Douglas

Alan (aged 40something) lives in Dollar, Clacmannanshire and has 3 children playing at the club, Darwin (S1), Toby (P6) and Cecily (P3).  Alan is a UKCC Level 1 qualified rugby coach who has coached P4-P5 at Hillfoots over the last 3 years.  Alan played rugby at school and University and still turns out for the Hillfoots’ Cast Tups now and again; loitering somewhere near the second row.

Jody Mills

Jody, 40 living in Menstrie, Clackmannanshire joined the club in 2009.  He has two children Ellee (P5) and Joshua (Tag Tigers). He has completed the IRB rugby ready course and hopes to complete the UKCC Level 1 this season.  He has had the pleasure of coaching and getting to know the P4/P5 squads last season, and now focuses primarily on the P5 squad.  As a Lancashire lad, played rugby league until switching codes when he went to Stirling University where he played there – the social element being the primary factor!  Trained with the Cast Ups (known as Julie) until his ‘chocolate knees’ gave in, and four operations ensued – apparently will return against medical advice

Iain Johnston

Amongst the Hillfoots coaches, it was Iain (aged 43) who first read Matthew Syed’s book – Bounce.  Iain was already the architect of some of the most exciting and inclusive Tag Tiger coaching that could be imagined.  With “Bounce” under his belt, he set about espousing the ethos of Positive Coaching, before anyone else at Hillfoots even knew what it meant.  He set the Junior Section of Hillfoots on the path that would eventually lead to our mission statement of “everybody plays”, and subsequently to our accreditation in December 2011, by the partnership of Positive Coaching Scotland & The Bill McLaren Foundation.

Iain, who lives in Dollar, has a son Finlay (P6) & a daughter Ellie (P3) who play for Hillfoots, as indeed does Iain – as No.8 in the Cast Tups.  He has the West of Scotland and the British Army as former teams who have benefitted from his playing prowess.

Campbell Calder

P2-P3

Tony Beverage

Tony (aged 43) who lives in Dollar, Clackmannshire is one of our totally inspirational Tag Tigers coaches.  He also takes the lead on First Aid amongst the Junior Section coaches.  His son Joseph (P5) plays at Hillfoots.

He has completed the Rugby Ready Coaching Course and attended several PCS Workshops and an SRU Development course. He is also an SFA qualified Football Coach and a former Territorial Army Physical Training Instructor.  Tony has coached the P1-3 ‘Tigers’ for the last two seasons.  His career as a player was cut short in his late 20′s after a broken nose and broken collar bone persuaded him to retire.  The fact that these injuries occurred during the first and second games of rugby he’d ever played, has not dampened his enthusiasm for the game!

Colin Merchison

Colin (aged 38) lives in Dollar, Clackmananshire.  Colin is another of our totally inspirational Tag Tiger coaches.  Although originaly a convert from soccer, Colin now loves to play with funny shaped balls.  His son Jack (P4) plays for Hillfoots. 

P1 

Barry Mackie