The Crusaders International Academy is developing the next group of high school, college and club rugby coaches and coaches are invited to apply for US Rugby Foundation grants for their online coaching course.

All coaches selected will go through an in-depth immersion in an all-encompassing rugby environment through the exclusive online program, March 28 - April 8. The Crusaders, based in Christchurch, New Zealand, are the most successful Super Rugby team ever, having won 10 league titles, including the past three, since the competition began in 1996. The past two seasons, the Crusaders have also won the Super Rugby Aotearoa, New Zealand's domestic Super Rugby competition which took place during the COVID pandemic.

For more about the Crusaders International Academy, go here>>

The US Rugby Foundation is offering up to 10 matching grants to eligible applicants to take part in this course at a special discounted rate. Due to the Foundation's history of working with the Crusaders in the past, the price per coach has been discounted to $1,500US. Grant recipients are being asked to pay $750 and the US Rugby Foundation will cover the rest of the fee.

Participation in the course includes:

• Maximum of two speakers & instructors per day with the daily duration of the program being about 3 hours. 
   
• Speaker timings will be NZ based with each day starting at 8am through to 11am (at the latest), which would be 2:00 pm ET to 5:00 ET the previous day (8am Wednesday in Christchuch is 2pm ET Tuesday in Pennsylvania.)
   
• The course will entail about 25 hours of valuable teaching and instruction you can't get anywhere else.
   
• No pre- or post-course work is required. Just come with a willingness to learn, listen, contribute and enjoy.
   
• USRF will host a pre-course Zoom catch-up to enable all the coaches taking the course to meet each other and to ask questions.
   
• A coaching WhatsApp group will be set-up to enable course participants to communicate with each other.

Attend and listen to see the secret behind the world class environment at the Crusaders and meet the people who strive for success in their everyday roles.

"I have been paying attention to the Crusaders organization for quite some time, so to be able to partake in their virtual coaching course was a valuable, unforgettable experience," said Life University Head Coach Colton Cariaga, who is also Head Coach of the USA U23 7s men's team. "Hearing from and having a dialogue with Head Coach Scott Robertson as well as current All Black, Jack Goodhue, was insightful and at times, affirming."

"The Crusaders course was an amazing opportunity to connect with rugby coaches from all around the world and learn how to build a club culture that results in excellence on and off the pitch," added Carolina Meckel, Head Coach of the Simsbury HS girls team." The course inspired me to launch a new summer 7s program for high school girls and reinforced the importance of sticking to the core value: when your culture focuses on putting the players first, the rugby takes care of itself."
 

Be sure to take advantage of this opportunity and apply here>>