International stars join First Class Supply celebration
Newcastle Falcons international stars Mark Wilson and Sonatane Takulua descended on Churchill Community College during the first week of May as the Falcons Community Foundation celebrated a successful inaugural season of the First Class Supply Schools Connections programme.
England back row Wilson and Tonga scrum-half Takulua spent a morning coaching 30 boys and girls from year 7 at the college, who have benefited from the programme by receiving additional coaching from Falcons players and foundation coaches.
The Falcons stars took it in turns to coach the groups, playing both contact rugby and wider skills based games to put into practice some of what the students had learned over the course of the delivery offered thanks to First Class Supply.
Launched at the start of the 2017/18 season, the First Class Supply Schools Connections programme has seen over 300 young people receive additional rugby coaching as part of the programme and 250 students and teachers attend Falcons’ home games at Kingston Park.
The First Class Supply Schools Connections Programme aims to develop strong partnerships with schools in Northumberland, Durham, Cumbria and Teesside by supporting affiliated schools.
Educators can tailor their own delivery programme within their allocated number of contact time, which can be used to include player visits and guest coaching sessions along with numerous benefits and incentives, including priority booking on CPD events and entry into schools competitions at Kingston Park Stadium.
Following a successful season of delivery, Schools Connections is set to return for season 2018/19, with any school interested in becoming affiliated with the programme encouraged to get in touch by emailing at schools@newcastle-falcons.co.uk
Steph Boulton, director of First Class Supply, said: “The end of year celebration session was a fantastic opportunity for the pupils at Churchill Community School to train and learn new skills from two incredible rugby professionals.
“The First Class Supply Schools Connections programme enables children to experience new activities and discover skills they perhaps didn¹t realise they had, and the beaming smiles throughout the session made it clear how much they enjoyed it!
“We enjoy a close partnership with Newcastle Falcons and they have provided rewarding coaching sessions for young people across our region; we can¹t wait to continue working alongside them in the future.”
To see more of the session at Churchill Community College, [**click here**][1] to visit Falcons TV
[1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxr6aUfezrQ
