Rishworth School

Rishworth School

THE FORD RUGBY ACADEMY AT 

Rishworth School 

WELCOME 

The Ford Rugby Academy at Rishworth School aims to allow promising 

young rugby players the best possible opportunity to develop as a player 

and possibly even follow in Old Rishworthian, George Ford’s footsteps into 

the world of professional rugby. 


We believe that alongside hard work and personal dedication, Rishworth’s 

programme of technical, tactical and athletic development gives young players 

the best possible chance to truly become the best rugby player they can be. 

• Individualised training programmes delivered 

by outstanding coaches, focus on personal skill 

development. 

• The athletic development programme enhances 

essential rugby fitness components such as 

strength, power, speed and agility. 

• The adopted style of play encourages 

participants to be forward thinking and requires 

them to perform not only position-specific skills 

but also those needed in the more expansive 

modern game. 

• The team rugby programme allows players to 

implement appropriate skills in an environment 

which is challenging yet supportive. Current 

provision includes 15 a side rugby in the 

Autumn Term with both midweek and Saturday 

fixtures and involvement in the National Schools 

Cup. In the Spring Term, the emphasis is on 

Rugby Sevens including involvement in 

competitions such as the North of England, 

Fylde and Roslyn Park Sevens. 

1 2

“ 

I got quality 

rugby coaching 

on the field and 

in the gym and 

a big emphasis 

was always 

placed on the 

core values 

of hard work 

and respect. 

“



GEORGE FORD, LEICESTER AND ENGLAND RUFC 

Rishworth School played an unbelievable part in my 

development as a rugby player. As a promising player 

at the school I always felt supported. I was given the 

opportunity to train and work on my game on a daily 

basis. I was given excellent support from my academic 

teachers at a time when I had to balance the demands 

of training, travel and education. 

Rishworth School played an unbelievable part in my 

development as a rugby player. As a promising 

player at the school I always felt supported. I was 

given the opportunity to train and work on my game 

on a daily basis. I was given excellent support from 

my academic teachers at a time when I had to 

balance the demands of training, travel and 

education. The support I received from the PE 

department allowed me the best opportunity to 

achieve what I had dreamed of growing up. I got 

quality rugby coaching on the field and in the gym 

and a big emphasis was always placed on the core 

values of hard work and respect. We were all 

encouraged to become the best we could be, 

irrespective of ability. This is why I think the rugby 

programme at the school will be a success. During 

my time at Rishworth I enjoyed everything the 

school had to offer and I can only see the rugby at 

Rishworth going from strength to strength with the 

introduction recently of Chris Stone and Jacob Ford. 

others and respect for the traditions and spirit of 

the game. Once that is in place, rugby should be 

enjoyable for kids playing the game. They should 

play with a smile on their face and be given an 

opportunity to express themselves with the ball in 

their hands. I'm a big believer that this comes from 

having an attacking mind-set in rugby and having 

the ability to make the right decisions at the right 

time. You only become all these things if you are 

coached by good people who understand the game. 

George Ford 

I believe the key to being a good rugby player is to 

be, first and foremost, a good person - a person 

who has respect for rugby values, respect for 

3 4

“ 

I cannot think 

of another 

school in the 

country where 

they will get 

such a 

personalised 

programme. 

“



MIKE FORD, DIRECTOR OF RUGBY, RC TOULON 

AND PREVIOUSLY BATH RUGBY, SARACENS, IRELAND AND ENGLAND 

Rishworth School has played a big role in the Ford 

family life and continues to do so. All my boys have 

attended the school at some stage in their life and all 

thoroughly enjoyed their time at Rishworth - especially 

the rugby programme. The way the school encouraged 

the boys to get better every day certainly helped 

Joseph and George become professional players. 

Rishworth School instilled confidence and 

self-belief in my children which is a huge asset in 

life. Having seen the current rugby programme that 

has been put together by the coaching team, I'm 

hugely confident that it is going to be very 

successful. This is because the programme focuses 

on the individual development of the player, seeks 

to create a winning environment and encourages an 

attacking style of expansive rugby. 

I cannot think of another school in the country where 

they will get such a personalised programme. 

Continuous rugby is essential to a young player’s 

development. This means lots of game time for the 

players so that they can learn and understand the 

game for themselves. Through their outstanding 

links with local clubs such as Old Rishworthians the 

programme will allow players a further opportunity 

to play competitive rugby fixtures if needed. 

For these reasons I believe Rishworth is the best 

place for young aspiring rugby players to come to if 

they want to develop and improve their game. 

Mike Ford 

The isolated programme of gym work is incredibly 

important. Younger players who are familiar with 

the movements of the lifts being taught and who 

have the correct technique will make an easier 

transition from the school environment to the elite 

environment. 

Players from Rishworth School will be in a unique 

position because they will have the necessary 

mobility, flexibility and strength as well as the 

individual skills and competitive game knowledge 

that professional rugby academies value so much. 

5 6



PROGRAMMES 

SKILL DEVELOPMENT 

ATHLETIC DEVELOPMENT 

Through team training sessions, small group 

sessions and position-specific sessions, players 

are given the opportunity to develop their level 

of technical competence in all rugby skills. 

Sessions take place on a daily basis including, 

before and after school sessions and at 

lunchtimes. Chris Stone is a forwards specialist 

whilst Jacob Ford and Tony Anderson are backs 

specialist. Old Boys such as Liam Parfitt (England 

U18 Flanker) George Ford (England) and Joseph 

Ford (Leicester Tigers) also come in to school 

from time to time to coach at school when their 

professional playing commitments allow. 

The Athletic Development Programme (ADP) 

has been running in the school for over 4 years 

and seeks to maximise the athletic potential of the 

school’s most talented athletes by teaching them 

a variety of compound exercises that look to build 

strength, develop flexibility and enhance agility 

and speed. The Head of Human Performance for 

England Rugby League, Old Rishworthian Richard 

Hunwicks has helped devise an in-school 

programme that is age specific and progresses 

athletes appropriately as their bodies grow and 

helps players on our programme to move well and 

efficiently whilst minimising the risk of injury both 

in the short and long term. 

Sprint times, power output tests, strength tests 

and flexibility scores allow for fitness analysis 

and help us to track player progression and 

improvement. 

7 8



COACHING STAFF 

Jacob Ford is an Old 

Rishworth and Harrow School 

student and one of the most 

promising young coaches in the 

country. At Harrow he was part of 

a highly successful winning rugby 

culture and from there was 

selected to be part of the London 

Wasps Academy. 

After three years Jacob 

transferred to the Bath Rugby 

Academy for a further two years. 

His experience and understanding 

of youth development is therefore 

first hand and he has also been 

fortunate enough to learn from 

his father Mike Ford at Bath Rugby, 

England, Saracens and Ireland. 

Jacob is now working with 

Yorkshire Carnegie as an 

Academy Coach. 

Chris Stone is an Old 

Rishworth School student and 

RFU development coach. 

His experience and knowledge 

of developing young talent is 

exceptional. He has playing 

experience with Preston 

Grasshoppers and is the 

current player coach at the 

Old Rishworthians. 

He has created a strong link with 

the club and school with pupils 

playing club rugby in connection 

with the school. Chris is a forward 

specialist and a leading practitioner 

for scrummaging. Chris also 

heads up the BTEC in Sport for 

students in Years 12 and 13. 

Tony Anderson is an 

ex-professional Rugby League 

Player and Coach with over 25 

years of experience in the game. 

He won the League Championship 

and Challenge Cup whilst playing 

for Halifax RLFC in the 1980’s as 

well as a Grand Final win with the 

Canterbury Bulldogs in Australia. 

After playing, TA had coaching 

stints with Huddersfield, Halifax, 

Gateshead Thunder and Hull FC. 

Since leaving Rugby League in 

2004, Tony has coached at 

Rishworth School, George Ford, 

Gareth Widdop, Joe Ford and 

William Milner amongst others. 

9 10



OPPORTUNITIES 

TOURING ABROAD 

SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMME 

Senior students in the school take part in a major 

overseas tour every three years. This gives our 

senior sports players the chance to test their 

sporting ability in a different environment whilst 

sampling new cultural experiences. 

Tours are also a great vehicle for developing 

independence in our young players and learning 

how to live with others in an intense sporting 

environment. Recent tours have visited North 

America and Canada, Sri Lanka, South America 

and Australia with a tour to South Africa being 

planned for July 2018. 

Sport Scholarships are available to students on 

entry to Year 7 and to the Sixth Form. Scholarships 

are awarded on merit and represent a real 

accolade to successful candidates who must not 

only demonstrate a high level of ability but also 

future potential. Scholarships are awarded on the 

understanding that a pupil will fully involve 

themselves in the sporting life of the school. 

For further information please contact Mr Andrew 

Thomas, Director of Sport. 

11 12



EDUCATION 

The Ford Rugby Academy at Rishworth School seeks 

first and foremost to nurture, enhance and accelerate 

a student’s development in a manner ideally suited to 

meeting the demands of higher education, the work 

place and modern life 

sport as an academic discipline or possible career 

pathway. To this end we really look to develop the 

vocational qualities of our BTEC students by 

starting them on key coaching and officiating 

pathways and by giving them access to excellent 

opportunities in professional sport and leisure 

settings. 

Through an excellent personal development 

programme, individual pastoral care and advanced 

responsibility opportunities, Rishworth turns boys 

into young, successful, purposeful men. 

The independent and mature progress new 

students often make following their entry into 

the School can be quite remarkable and is a 

consistent and positive observation made by 

parents. 

The School offers a broad range of GCSE subjects 

and pupils achieve outstanding results - value 

added scores at GCSE particularly highlight the 

school’s commitment to each individual achieving 

their full potential. 

Sixth Form classes are small allowing students 

to access an enviable level of individual care and 

support alongside high quality teaching. 

The recent introduction of a BTEC in Sport to 

complement the existing A Level in Sport and PE 

provides further opportunities for students on the 

rugby programme who have an obvious interest in 

13 14

CLOSER THAN 

YOU THINK 

A6033 

Hebden 

Bridge 

A629 

A6177 

BRADFORD Bradford 

M606 

travel time 

Approximate travel 

times by car. 

10 minutes 

15 minutes 

A671 

A671 

A681 

A646 

Todmorden 

A6033 

A646 

Luddendenfoot 

A646 

Sowerby 

B6138 

Bridge 

Rishworth 

B6113 

School & 

Heathfield 

HALIFAX Halifax 

A629 

Elland 

A58 

Brighouse 

A644 

Dewsbury 

25 minutes 

ROCHDALE 

BURY 

A58 

Littleborough 

Hollingworth 

A58 

Jct 

22 

A672 

A672 

A640 

Rishworth 

A62 

M62 

Marsden 

Slaithwaite 

A629 

HUDDERSFIELD 

Huddersfield 

A642 

A629 

MANCHESTER 

Oldham OLDHAM 

A6052 

Delph Diggle 

Saddleworth 

Holmfirth 

0 

M60 

Mossley 

30 minutes from 

Manchester Airport. 

Direct flights worldwide. 

Around 2hrs to 

London via train.d 

CONTACT 

M 

If you would like to find out more about our 

rugby programme or would like to arrange a 

visit where you can see the school and meet 

the coaching team, please contact the school’s 

admissions officer Julie Sutherland by email 

at admissions@rishworth-school.co.uk 

or on 01422 822217. 


Rishworth, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom HX6 4QA. 

Tel: +44 (0)1422 822 217 Fax: +44 (0)1422 820 911 

E-mail: admissions@rishworth-school.co.uk 

Website: www.rishworth-school.co.uk 

Rishworth School: a company limited by guarantee 

Registered in England: Company Number 05855479 

Registered Office: Oldham Road, Rishworth, West Yorks HX6 4QA 

Registered Charity Number: 1115562 

‘Outstanding ’ 

Designed and printed by 0161 303 9482

Rishworth School

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