Crusaders begin preparation for #RLNewEra

Finally, rugby league is back; it feels like an age since Crusaders walked off the pitch after their final game of 2014 against Leigh Centurions.

After working hard in training over the last couple of months, Crusaders began their pre-season schedule last weekend with a 20-16 victory over their partner club Warrington Wolves’ U19s side at Eirias Parc, Colwyn Bay.

Crusaders and Warrington Wolves’ U19s pack down for a scrum in a recent pre-season friendly at Eirias Parc, Colwyn Bay.

For 2015 at least, the Welsh side find themselves back in the new-look League 1 – formerly Championship One – following their relegation from the Championship.

Along with Crusaders, four other clubs – Barrow Raiders, Keighley Cougars, Rochdale Hornets and Swinton Lions – were relegated last term, while Coventry Bears have also joined the semi-professional game, making League 1 a 14-team competition from this season onwards.

It all comes as part of #RLNewEra, as the RFL look to make all of their professional leagues more competitive with league restructuring.

In 2013, Crusaders’ second year of existence, the Wrexham-based outfit gained promotion from Championship One to the Championship, and although they recruited heavily to build a competitive, challenging squad that season, not many people could hide behind the fact that the success still came rather quickly in the club’s short history.

Last season in the Championship, Crusaders were tipped to do well by many but, unfortunately, that didn’t turn out to be the case. On paper, with the likes of Michael Platt, Mark Offerdahl, Stephen Wild and Craig Ashall signing up with the club, it looked as though Crusaders would have the experience to have a good shot at the Championship.

A shot at the Championship is exactly what Crusaders gave but, in the end, it was an effort that came well short. Indeed, if agonisingly narrow defeats at home to the likes of Doncaster, Dewsbury Rams, Workington Town and Halifax were turned into wins instead, it could have been very different and Crusaders could have had a chance of saving themselves from relegation. But it simply wasn’t to be.

Is it something to be disheartened about? Alright, it would have been nice for Crusaders to stay up and be competing at a higher level but, for me, it came a year, maybe two, too soon. However, one thing that it has been is a learning experience. I think that everyone at the club – off-field staff as well as on-field staff – will have learnt something from last season that will be valuable in the future.

After all, Crusaders go by the moto of #FearNothing – that won’t change. Sometimes, you have to take two steps backwards to take one forward.

Now, on to 2015 in League 1. To start, it certainly won’t be anything like the league that Crusaders won back in 2013. The only other team competing for the title alongside Crusaders that season was Oldham.

Next year, the four clubs relegated from the Championship with Crusaders will all be looking to compete at the top end. Then, you have York City Knights and Oldham, who will both be looking to challenge as they have done in the past, while the newly-named Newcastle Thunder, taken over by Newcastle Falcons and set to play their home games at Kingston Park in 2015, are continuing to improve year on year.

It is by no means going to be an easy season for Crusaders; head coach Anthony Murray has already spoke of how he expects it to be a tough, long season, and a challenge for his squad.

Personally, though, I think Crusaders are in a strong position heading into 2015.

Despite relegation, Crusaders showed at times last season that they could more than compete in the Championship. So, the fact that the North Walians have managed to keep the bulk of the 2014 squad together is a massive boost, although the loss of Toby Adamson, who was one of the club’s best performers last season, to Dewsbury Rams is a downside.

Equally as important as the retention of the majority of last year’s squad, however, is the additions. In particular, what the off-season recruits have brought to Crusaders’ squad is a blend of youth and experience, which is something that, in the past, hasn’t been there.

As well as signing Alex Davidson and Ryan Duffy on permanent contracts for 2015 following their loans last season, Callum Wright and Elliot Davies have also made their way to Crusaders. Nearly all of them have come through academy systems at Super League clubs, which can only be a good thing.

Crusaders’ off-season recruit Callum Wright, who has progressed through Wigan Warriors’ academy system, in action against Warrington Wolves U19s in pre-season.

And add to that the additions of Joe Burke, Mark Hobson, Ian Mort and Alex Thompson, who all have valuable experience at Championship level. Plus, Leon Brennan and Paddy Mooney have also joined the cause.

Thank God rugby league is back. It’s a new era for the sport and 2015 is set to be a fantastic year.

We are North Wales Crusaders. And we #FearNothing. 

Anthony Murray: the life of a rugby league head coach

Different factors can contribute to a team or individual’s downfall in sport. Injuries, suspensions, weather conditions and many other distractions can creep in at one point or another but, ultimately, success or failure tends to fall at the feet of a coach or manager. Ryan Gould speaks to Anthony Murray about life as a rugby league head coach.

At times, it can be a thankless task. When the going is good, praise and compliments often head your way, but the tide can soon change when the going is not so good. In some sports, you can find yourself in the firing line more easily than others, but your job is still inevitably on the line should matters not go according to plan.

North Wales Crusaders head coach Anthony Murray will soon embark on his first full season in charge of the Wrexham-based side, as Crusaders start their League 1 – rugby league’s third tier – campaign in April. The former halfback in his playing days was in the hot seat on a temporary basis last season, taking over from Clive Griffiths midway through the season after it was mutually agreed that the former coach would take up a new role as rugby director. Murray also has to combine his role at Crusaders with a similar one at the University of Liverpool, coaching the university’s rugby league sides.

Anthony Murray following the win at Keighley Cougars last season – Crusaders’ only win under him last term.

As the 37-year-old acted as a temporary fix – albeit now permanent – last term, the pressure wasn’t necessarily stacked on him as much. But, after a full pre-season with the opportunity to build his own side following his appointment, is it now?

“There are definitely elements of pressure”, Murray said. “But, as a coach, no matter what level you’re coaching at, there’s pressure on you. You are judged on results. There’s pressure – there’s no doubt about that – but it depends on how you handle that pressure. I’ve always said the same thing: I treat people as a coach how I would like to be treated as a player. With that, I try to get the best out of all the players. I don’t pretend that I know everything about rugby league; everyone is always learning.”

“There’s pressure – there’s no doubt about that – but it depends on how you handle that pressure.”

 

Head coaches are seen shouting out instructions to their players on the touchline, or passing down information to their assistant from the stand via their radio sets, but the job entails far more than just turning up on a matchday and having to motivate their team. Preparation is just as important as the execution in a sporting environment.

“The hours you put in on the training field and on matchdays don’t cover half of it”, Murray said. “There’s the planning, watching games and footage back and analysing yourself and what you’re doing. You have to look at whether or not you could have done that better or differently when you’re analysing your own performance. Every spare minute of every day, you’re looking to keep on top of things and make things as best as they possibly can be.

“The hours you put in on the training field and on matchdays doesn’t cover half of it.”

 

Murray (far right) on the touchline as an assistant to Clive Griffiths, before he took over from the former Wales and Great Britain boss as head coach at Crusaders.

“As soon as I get up in the morning, I get ready for work and quite often have people ringing me. Sometimes it’s the papers ringing me and asking about different players and what’s going on at the club. Then, there’s the likes of you – press officers – and local papers.

“I’m looking on my phone trying to find different ideas and drills for us to do in the training sessions all the time. You always need to prepare for the training sessions beforehand. You need to think about how things have gone. You need to speak to staff about how they feel it has gone and then you also need to speak to the physio, who will have treated the injured players during the sessions. You do all of that and then repeat for the next training sessions.

“I enjoy the pre-season side of it (the job) as well as when we’re in season. You’re starting from the baseline testing in pre-season and it’s good to see the improvements that the players have made during the pre-season programme. You have to put the tackle and wrestling technique and plans into place and set out what you want from the players. You all have to put your heads together as a group and set targets for what you want to achieve.

“You all have to put your heads together as a group and set targets for what you want to achieve.”

 

“When the season starts, you are in full swing. It’s monitoring most of the time during the season. You’re looking to make alterations and improvements following performances in matches to improve the team. You need to try and fix things quickly during the season as you have games every week, while you have more time on your hands to gradually improve things during pre-season. You need to manage players’ performance individually and that is key both in pre-season and in season. You have to do a lot of work around other teams and you’re looking to see which players they may have brought in on loans or dual-registration contracts. You need to try and combat any threats in the opposition team.”

To be a head coach, it’s important that you have a character and mindset that suits the job. There’s pressure – that’s undisputable. But how you handle that is vital. If you crumble under pressure, it will inevitably have an affect on the team. No pressure, then.

A head coach is the main leader, the main who is seen to be in charge of the team. But without the support of other staff – whether that’s his backroom staff or the other staff behind-the-scenes – his job would be unachievable (below is a behind-the-scenes video showing the other jobs that can be found at a rugby league club).

Leigh pose difficult test for Crusaders

North Wales Crusaders face their toughest test yet since they were promoted to the Championship when they face Leigh Centurions on Sunday.

The Wrexham-based outfit have won two of their opening three league fixtures in 2014, with the solitary defeat at home to Featherstone Rovers, who have been tipped for success this season.

But the Centurions will pose a test on a different scale for Crusaders, as they have arguably the best, and largest, squad outside of Super League.

Crusaders head coach Clive Griffiths, however, has guaranteed that his side won’t be travelling to Leigh to simply “make up the numbers”.

He said: “We’re going up there to give it a real good go; we’re confident that we can give them a game.

“It’s our toughest test to date as Leigh have been battering a lot of teams by 50-odd points so far this season.

“They were run close away at Keighley, but Keighley can give anyone a run for their money at home now and then.

“Leigh are very good on their own patch. They’ve got a great coach who knows exactly how to coach them, and they’ve got a great stadium and facility there.”

Despite Crusaders’ decent start to life in a higher league, Griffiths is hoping that his side can work on certain areas of their performance from past games.

He said: “We had a decent completion rate of 85-per-cent in the first-half against Pilkington [last week] in the cup but then it dropped to 40-per-cent in the second-half, and that’s why they came back in to the game a bit more.

“We really need a bit more consistency in that area and to complete more. We know that if we respect the ball then we can do a lot of damage.

“We’ve only really had one bad half of rugby league so far this season – against Featherstone in the second-half. We did well in the first-half and matched them, but then we let ourselves down.

“We just need that little bit more consistency, especially when we’re playing against clubs that can cause you a lot of damage.”

Photograph, taken by David Walker, of Crusaders fullback Tommy Johnson in action against Pilkington Recs in the Tetley’s Challenge Cup.