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Opportunity to be an Athlete Mentor was a Privilege” – by Vicky Macqueen

‘I was very privileged to be recently selected to be an athlete mentor for this year’s National School Games at Loughborough University.

The four-day event was a fantastic taste of a multi-sport event on a huge scale for young athletes. It basically amounted to a Mini Olympic Games!

The young athletes had come through several rounds of competition within the school games competition pathway before they reached the pinnacle of National school  games.  There were teams representing Ireland, Wales and the different England regions ; North, the Midlands, south east and south west . I got the privilege of working with them all…

The young athletes enjoyed the whole experience from wearing accreditation to gaining access to areas where media and press conferences are held.
Athlete mentors delivered sessions to inspire and motivate the athletes with the core values of the games such as: honestly, respect, team work, passion, determination and self-belief.

We also delivered an athlete mentor Q & A session to hundreds of athletes that opted for the workshop on ‘gaining the edge’.

It was a fantastic experience to be involved in such an occasion. I had the privilege to make an impact on the performance and experiences of young athletes that will remain with them throughout their career. Hopefully, it will also inspire them to achieve success in their chosen sport.

My highlight was when the Ireland squad won the final, and came running over to me to thank me for their talk in the morning which they say inspired them to victory!

I am not sure it was down to me but it was lovely that they felt that they had gained from me being there as a mentor for them. And it was great to know that I had made a difference to those determined young athletes”

didi rugby is moving onto the next stage of its development and becoming a franchise.

The business, founded and devised by former England Women’s international, Vicky Macqueen has grown at a rapid rate since its inception in 2015.

Now, just two years later, more than 1,500 children are enjoying didi rugby classes on a weekly basis all around the country.

And a number of franchises are about to launch around the UK. Opening up a didi franchise will not only enable interested parties to develop their own businesses but it will be done with all the branding and infrastructure of the didi family already in place.

It will also give franchisees the chance to learn ideas and structures from founder, Vicky Macqueen, whose knowledge and skill-base gleaned from an international career, an RFU Level 3 Coaching qualification, and a teaching degree in physical education, has helped to devise the didi coaching guidelines for each separate age group.

Franchise owners will become part of a tight-knit and dedicated didi family.

didi rugby franchises aim to create active, confident and skilful children in a safe and fun environment. That physical activity they enjoy then will provide a base for them to remain active in later life.

“We are all very excited about hopefully giving more children access to the game of rugby and the fun and skills it can provide,” said Vicky.

“The success of the didi family so far has delighted us and enabled us to open dozens of centres around the country.

“I believe in what we are doing and so I want to keep pushing and have more and more people in place to get more and more children involved in the fun and values that rugby offers.

“We are hopeful that children who both try and enjoy didi rugby will go on to play for local clubs when they have come through our learning environment.”

“A normal yearly intake of Reception and Year 1 tends to be around half a dozen and they are normally siblings of older children who have trained with the Under-7s.

“This season has seen 40 children of this age range join us so we have had to create a brand new age group of Under-6s.

“I have been really impressed with the ability of these children, most are in possession of great motor skills, with the ability to listen and follow instructions well.

“The major positive I have found, is they can already catch and pass which helps a long way to making our sessions active, purposeful and enjoyable.

“The children that have graduated along the pathway are true testament to the fantastic work that Vicky Macqueen and her team are doing at Didi Rugby.”

Vicky is the founder of Didi Rugby and said she was delighted that so many children had taken the natural pathway and joined club rugby after enjoying their sessions with Didi.

didi Rugby founder Vicky Macqueen took her boots and Deep Heat over to Ireland to return to the playing field once more in an England shirt after being invited to play in a Ireland Legends v England Legends game ahead of the Women’s World Cup final.

“Not only for the fact that my competitive senses had been heightened by the promise of a hit-out and some competition.

But also because I was seeing so many friends and former team-mates in an environment that was so special to all of us.

In fact, the first person I bumped in to when I arrived at the ground was legend Carol Isherwood and it took me back to when I was first selected for the England Academy in 2002 when Carol was the women’s programme’s performance director.

When I went into the team meeting room, there was time for some proper goose bumps though as I was surrounded by the very people I had looked up to when I first came into the England squad as a youngster.
The likes of: Gill Burns, Giselle Mather, Helen Clayton, Maxine Edwards were all there, as was Amy Turner and my ex-England captain Catherine Spencer. Seeing them all again brough back memories of the camaraderie and friendships that were born in a rugby shirt and will never go away.”

As the team was announced, we were all told our red rose number and mine was #119. It was a very special moment because we and seen all the Women’s World Cup squad tweeting about their red rose number and how special it was for them ahead of their World Cup final against New Zealand the following day. It really made me feel part of history.

As we warmed up, got our programmes and shirts in the changing rooms, had team photos and signed a few autographs on the way out for warm-up, I felt like I was in a time warp.

All of my senses were heightened and the distinctive smell of Deep Heat even registered in my memory banks. Then seeing the Irish team all lined up at the start reminded me of a great game against them in 2006 when we won the Six Nations Grand Slam in England. I scored a try on that day and enjoyed one of the best games of my life, so I felt very fired up”
“I ended up playing 80 minutes too. A fact that my lungs totally disagreed with! I absolutely loved every minute of it and came off the pitch knowing I had given my all in a great display of women’s rugby.”

“The game finished 12-12 – referee Alain Roland saw to that (in Ireland on his birthday) but the result really didn’t matter. What was more important was the legacy we have left and the way we felt a part of the England family and the World Cup! Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be for the England girls, led by Sarah Hunter, the next day in the World Cup final. The best two sides in the world put on an amazing display of rugby in Belfast on Saturday night. Unfortunately, for England fans, New Zealand got the upper hand but they deserved their win. I headed to the ‘friends and family bar’ after their final to meet up with them and then back to the hotel to remind them just how well they had played. It was a wonderful weekend”