It is all systems go across the Quins this weekend with all teams taking the field for the 2022/2023 season which we hope will be a full season and back to normality.
Our youth team will be looking to build on their experience from last season and continue to give good accounts of themselves and further improve. The playing numbers have been bolstered with the addition of last seasons Under 16s which means that the majority of this coming seasons youth team have already been Quins players for many years with most of them starting at Under 7’s and coming through the ranks.
The same can be said of the coaches with last seasons coaches Gary Evans, Wayne Proctor and Cen Powell now being joined by Deiniol Jones and Meurig Rees who have also brought the players through the age groups so consistency is the name of the game.
We kick off our league season this coming Saturday with a home game against Lampeter RFC with the other teams in the league being Carmarthen Athletic, Burry Port, New Dock Stars and Newcastle Emlyn this will be a keenly contest season and one the Quins are looking forward to. Our first four fixtures for the youth are:
3rd September – Lampeter Home
10th September – New Dock Stars Away
17th September – Burry Port Home
24th September – Carmarthen Athletic Away
With two pre-season fixtures under their belt with wins against Cwmafan (33pts to 12pts) and Gorseinon (43pts to 7pts) the Young Guns of the Quins will be looking to maintain momentum and hit the ground running on Saturday.
Head Coach and Quins stalwart Gary Evans has given us his thoughts on pre-season and a look ahead to the season:
“It has been a good block of pre-season with players and coaches gelling well having come together as a group in early July. We have worked hard together and are working well on our game plans. It is never easy when two groups come together but in the Quins we are blessed that we all have one aim and that is the development of not only players but coaches as well. For me personally whilst also coaching the Youth last season I kept a regular eye on the Under 16s so I knew what to expect for this season. To be fair the transition has been seamless and everyone is keen to put their hand up for selection.
We had two tough work outs in the friendlies and had to work hard for our scores and we know there are bigger tests to come but if we can take the same attitude in to the season proper then the guys will do well. We are no where near the finished article but that is a good thing, if everything was perfect at this point then it can lead to a team becoming stale and complacent which causes no end of problems. The boys are keen to learn and improve and with a mix of coaches we are able to provide a challenging environment for them to continue their development.
Our ultimate aim is of course to bring some silverware back to the club but we all know that this is not an easy thing to do and if it happens then that’s great but more importantly for us is that these players develop to the best of their ability so that they have further opportunities to represent the Club at a senior level.
As a coach I would like to ask that if you are at a loose end on a Saturday and we have a game then please come and give the boys some support as I know they and us as a coaching group would appreciate it.”
All at the club would like to wish the youth team all the very best for the coming season and we will catch up with players and coaches on the website as the season progresses. Good luck one and all.