By Elliott Josypenko
October 22 2004

Players from National One leaders Pertemps Bees linked up with Prince Harry at a recent kicking clinic at Rugby School.

 
The Prince is spending six weeks as an assistant rugby development officer with the Rugby Football Union and his duties took him to The Close at the school, the birthplace of rugby. It was on The Close that Williams Webb Ellis first picked up and ran with a football, so giving birth to the sport that now carries the birth of the Warwickshire town.
The Prince, working under the supervision of Ian Bletcher, the Rugby Development Officer for Warwickshire and Pertemps Bees' forwards coach, helped former England full-back Simon Hodgkinson run a kicking clinic for the kickers from Rugby School's various age group sides.
Pertemps Bees' players Nick Baxter, Tim Walsh, Dave Knight, Simon Martin, Mark Woodrow and Alan Hubbleday were also involved in the two-hour clinic. Hubbleday was involved as one of the RFU's rugby development officers for North Midlands and Woodrow as Community Rugby Coach for Greater Birmingham.
Baxter, Walsh, Knight and Martin were involved as part of their Professional Players' coaching award, a scheme that allows professional and semi-professional rugby players to obtain coaching qualifications while they are still playing the game.
Among the youngsters involved in the kicking clinic was Alex Grove, son of Pertemps Bees' director Lawrence Grove. Alex is Rugby School's first team fly-half, a member of the Scottish Exiles Development Squad and a product of the Birmingham & Solihull youth system.

Pictures of the event are viewable here: http://beehive.fotopic.net/c319573.html