Today we introduce Blackbrook Amateur & Junior Rugby League Football Club
Blackbrook Royals Junior Rugby League Football Club aspires to provide high quality sports sessions for young people in St Helens. This is achieved through a programme that provides recreational opportunities for all ages and abilities. The club provides a pathway of performance for junior players interested in competing at a local and regional level.
The club is located in Boardmans Lane in St Helens and is part of Blackbrook Sports and Recreation Club and caters for children of all ages from 6 to 18 year olds, and prides itself on welcoming all children to the club irrespective of ability. The club’s priority is to see young people engage in physical activity, enjoying themselves in a friendly and productive environment. Membership currently stands at 280. The club is supported by a number of unpaid volunteers involved in coaching, game day management and first aid provision. The club has 27 coaches who are all DBS/Safeguarding checked and qualified to coach via the Rugby Football League.
The club is overseen by an Executive Committee providing governance on a monthly basis. In addition to this strategic direction the club also meets with its players twice a year. This meeting, run by the club Child Welfare Officer ensures the views of the children are factored into the decision making process. Regular meetings are also held with coaches to set standards, expectations and to exchange good ideas and best practice.
“The club’s priority is to see young people engage in physical activity, enjoying themselves in a friendly and productive environment”
The club has access to 6 playing pitches, 4 of which are council owned so we have strong partnership links with the local authority, the club owners, our fellow community clubs and St Helens RLFC Community Foundation who assist us with additional training. A key partner for us is St Augustine’s of Canterbury Secondary School who are next door to us. We are currently sharing their facilities.
Rugby League is our priority but we also have a clear focus on helping young people in areas away from the playing field. We have recently worked in partnership with State of Mind raising awareness of Mental Health issues and careers advice. The club charges parents £15.00 per month subscription. This covers playing equipment, pitch hire, travel expenses, after match food and other additional requirements such as the hire of Ruskin Sports Village during winter months.
Blackbrook Royals JRLFC is about enjoyment, making friends and having fun through Rugby League.
We are however, immensely proud of those Royals who have gone on to forge a professional career in Rugby League. Seen here are former Man of Steel and Saints RLFC Captain James Roby, James Graham who made almost 200 appearances in the Australian National Rugby League, Adam Swift of Hull FC and Lee Gaskell of Huddersfield Giants. Aaron Smith and Jack Welsby of Saints RLFC are also former Blackbrook Royals.
Continuous Improvement
One of our key principles is to keep moving the club forward and in 2020 we were fortunate to receive over 15,000.00 pounds in grants from the ‘Created by’ World Cup 2021 funding stream. We have used this to refurbish the club changing rooms and create and more welcoming environment for all and also to acquire playing kit and equipment for our newly formed girls teams. Seen here are members of our Under 12s with Minister for Sport Nigel Huddleston on a recent visit to the club with the World Cup.
Blackbrook Girls
2020 has seen the formation of our girls section, From a standing start we now have 32 players and are looking to work with local schools to increase our membership. In the future the club are looking at the creation of an adult ladies team.
Mental Health
The club have worked with the State of Mind Charity to provide awareness sessions on mental health well being and it is something the club is passionate about.
We are delighted to be able to call upon former Wigan, Castleford, Wakefield and Huddersfield professional Danny Sculthorpe for his support and expertise on this vital issue. For the future our intention is to train our own volunteers in mental health well being to act as a point of contact for those who need support.
The Future
Blackbrook Munchkins New for 2021 the opportunity for 3 to 5 to join in fun and games and start on their pathway into the game of Rugby League.
Careers Guidence
We are looking to work with local authority partners and local businesses to deliver sessions on careers advice for our young players. Not everyone can progress to play the game at the professional level so as a club we would like to support those players at school leaving age with guidance and advice about their options beyond Rugby League. The girls teams and Under 12 Blues and new starters are particularly keen to recruit new players.
