Ward delighted with first week back as players return to training

[Broncos News]

 

London Broncos Head Coach Danny Ward was in high spirits following a week in which he finally got his players back on the field and preparing for the 2021 Betfred Championship season.

With the enforced lay off lasting far longer than anyone could have imagined Ward could have been forgiven for having concerns about the frame of mind of the players on their return, however the charismatic coach was delighted with how week one had progressed.

He told londonbroncosrl.com “It’s been a great week back amongst it, the energy and enthusiasm has been awesome from the boys.”

“We have turned the return to Stage one training into a real positive. It has allowed us to work closely with small groups of players, one to one coach and zone in on all the core skills.”

It was the first week at the impressive new Rosslyn Park 1st Team training facility and Ward was impressed with how everyone had settled in. He said “It’s a great set up at Rosslyn Park, the boys have settled in really well and I have been particularly impressed with fellas who have stepped up from our Academy system, they have brought plenty of energy and a real eagerness to learn & improve.”

The mention of those ‘young lads’ poses the question of the roles they will play in his plans for 2021, especially with so many of them still finding their feet in the First Team Squad, however Ward played down the ‘novice’ element for most of these players saying “Everyone is in this squad on merit and have a chance for selection. If I didn’t believe they were good enough to play First Team they would not be here.”

“A lot of these lads like Josh Hodson and Jacob Jones have done Pre-Season with the first team before, they have been exposed to this environment, they know what is expected and it is not such a big step up for them.”

“We also have players like Jimmy Meadows and Sid Adebiyi who have come through the system and have been around a few years now, they are becoming leaders on the field and are great to have around the new squad members.”

With the news of the season start date being in late March Coach Ward was comfortable with the amount of time he has to prepare his side, and had no issues with the length of pre-season he now must work with.

He said, “The start being towards the end of March now gives us almost another month to prepare for round one. Hopefully we will be into stage 2 at the start of February and can introduce contact training and crank it up another level”

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