Legendary Rugby Player Nicky Little is on the Staff at the Langton!
The Langton has taken the unprecedented step to appoint our own Director of Rugby. The appointment is part of a sports partnership with Canterbury High and
Canterbury Rugby Club and the man chosen is one of the most experienced players of all time with an international career spanning 3 decades – Nicky Little
Nicky Little is Fiji’s all time record points scorer and a veteran of four world cups. His appointment is the first of its kind anywhere in the country, a unique collaboration between the schools and the Club.
“The school is merely fulfilling its duty to its students” said Headteacher Matthew Baxter. “ If a boy at the age of 11 has an aptitude for a particular sport, just as he may have an aptitude for a particular academic subject, you should not allow that to wither. We have lots of boys with a talent for rugby but outside the school there is not a lot of opportunity for them to have a coordinated and comprehensive approach to upping their rugby skills. Because of the way we will be working with our partners in this venture, we think we can do something about this. The school has married its timetable with Canterbury High to ensure that students from all academic backgrounds can reap the rewards.”
It’s not just students at the two schools who will benefit. Langton’s Director of Sport Darren Watson wants to boost provision for school rugby across all ages in East Kent. “Nicky will head up a development centre based at the school, and will haveopportunities to work with other schools in the area, including primary schools. Andy Prat from Canterbury Rugby Club will help ensuring that we develop primary school rugby as well as in secondary schools across the area, not just at the Langton, not just at Canterbury High and not just at the Club.
The programme is being jointly funded by the RFU and both schools and is hoped that the knock on effect of such a venture will drive the sport to new levels.
World Cup winner and former England Captain Lewis Moody believes that Little’s
experience makes him the ideal candidate to develop youth rugby in the area. “As a rugby player, as a sportsman, you have to start somewhere and we have all been at that grass roots level. Having someone like Nicky, who
understands international rugby, has played in the premiership and has a wealth of experience, will be invaluable. He will be learning as he goes as we all do when we start a new job, but in terms of coaching it can only be a good thing to have someone of his calibre to develop the next generation of players in Kent.”
Nicky is excited that he has a blank canvass , a job that he can mould into his own. “I want everyone to know that you don’t have to be a tough guy or a superman to play rugby – there is a place for anyone who enjoys the game. I carried on learning about playing until the final day of my career and I expect to
continue learning about coaching right up until the time I stop”.
What of the reaction of the students and staff to having one of the most decorated rugby players in their midst? “A lot of the boys have spent a lot of time looking at You Tube to see clips of Nicky playing. When he came into the Langton recently and walked around the school, both students and staff stopped to have a chat with him and shake his hand – but they stopped short of asking for an autograph!” said Mr Watson. “It is a little bizarre to think that a sportsman of Nicky’s standing will soon be adding his mug to the shelf in the staffroom!”