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Interview with Henry West - Recent Junior transitioning to Senior Rugby
Justin English28 Jan - 22:54
@rfu @yrfu
What’s your first memory of playing rugby for Sandal? Giving up football and coming to Sandal training for the first time – I was in Year 6 at school.
Who is your rugby idol and why? Marcus Smith – the way he creates something from nothing. It would be great to have his vision.
How do you find captaining both the u18s and Silcoates 1s XV? It is great. They are different teams with different capabilities, but I am super proud to do both.
What’s kept you coming down to the Dal? I love to play at the weekends and honestly, without the training I’d run out of energy in the first half!
How have you found the dispensation challenge of playing senior rugby? Honestly getting it sorted took a while, but Rich was super helpful. I’m pleased the club were prepared to back me.
You recently played for the second team, how did you find it? Little bit anxious before the game, but once I got on, I loved it. I was pleased with how it went and obviously scoring on my debut was special. The lads were really welcoming which made it so much more enjoyable.
Do you think the RFU dispensation process that you’ve recently done works? I think it probably does. It’s right that the club is careful about how I make the transition to senior rugby but equally, I’ve really enjoyed training with the senior squad, and ultimately playing my first game.
What difference have you seen so far between Junior and Senior rugby? The senior squad is bigger than the academy side, and I guess the training and play is quicker, more intense and more physical. There’s more structure to what the seniors do which I like.
From the current players you’ve seen at Sandal, who would you most like to emulate your progression after? Well I’m in the sixth form at Silcoates and one of our teachers is Tom Hodson who plays fullback for the first team – that would be a decent goal.
What’s your aspirations for playing rugby? I know there’s a lot I’ll learn in the next few years, but playing for a university side and then Sandal first XV would be great.
Who is your rugby idol and why? Marcus Smith – the way he creates something from nothing. It would be great to have his vision.
How do you find captaining both the u18s and Silcoates 1s XV? It is great. They are different teams with different capabilities, but I am super proud to do both.
What’s kept you coming down to the Dal? I love to play at the weekends and honestly, without the training I’d run out of energy in the first half!
How have you found the dispensation challenge of playing senior rugby? Honestly getting it sorted took a while, but Rich was super helpful. I’m pleased the club were prepared to back me.
You recently played for the second team, how did you find it? Little bit anxious before the game, but once I got on, I loved it. I was pleased with how it went and obviously scoring on my debut was special. The lads were really welcoming which made it so much more enjoyable.
Do you think the RFU dispensation process that you’ve recently done works? I think it probably does. It’s right that the club is careful about how I make the transition to senior rugby but equally, I’ve really enjoyed training with the senior squad, and ultimately playing my first game.
What difference have you seen so far between Junior and Senior rugby? The senior squad is bigger than the academy side, and I guess the training and play is quicker, more intense and more physical. There’s more structure to what the seniors do which I like.
From the current players you’ve seen at Sandal, who would you most like to emulate your progression after? Well I’m in the sixth form at Silcoates and one of our teachers is Tom Hodson who plays fullback for the first team – that would be a decent goal.
What’s your aspirations for playing rugby? I know there’s a lot I’ll learn in the next few years, but playing for a university side and then Sandal first XV would be great.
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