Bahrain Rugby Football Club’s director of rugby Louie Tonkin is surging ahead with preparations for his second season at the helm as he hopes to build on the fantastic achievements of last term.
After years of player-led team management and a talented group failing to reach their potential, his professional approach saw a staggering renaissance in the team’s fortunes as they became one of the strongest outfits in the region.
Despite being ravaged by four season-ending injuries early on, Tonkin guided Bahrain to third place in the West Asia Premiership, before narrowly being defeated by Abu Dhabi Harlequins in the playoff final.
The 34-year-old Welshman said: “The objective when I came in was to restructure things first-and-foremost, and then hopefully develop from there and make the playoffs. The fact we came so close was a bonus, but it reinforces our belief that we need to push on this year as we now know we can do it.
“There were lots of challenges when I came. We had a small squad and the standard of the league increased massively with the West Asia rebranding. There were no easy games anymore, and the only chance of competing properly was to overhaul the management structure and instil a much more professional ethic in the team.”
To combat the smaller numbers in the Bahrain squad as opposed to the wealth of options available to UAE teams, Tonkin has bolstered his options with canny recruitments from Wales, which he secured on his recent summer break back home.
Joining the squad this season are five players who Tonkin coached throughout his previous coaching roles at Pontypool and Cardiff University, and have Welsh Premiership experience. They are second row Jonathan Kenny, centre Iwan Phillips, fly-half Ross Preedy, winger Graham Bishop, and flanker Rhys Fitzgerald.
Tonkin’s off-the-field enlistments have been just as vital, as he looks to instil a professional set-up that will leave a legacy for the future generations of the team.
He explained: “Last year, I was doing everything on my own. I was the team manager, assistant manager, strength and conditioning coach and practically everything else too!
“Over summer, I’ve appointed team captain Adam Wallace as a player-coach, so he’ll be taking over the backs. Tom Hanratty is now the team manager and he will do a great job, having had experience managing the Arabian Celts Gaelic Football team. We are currently in the process of interviewing physios, and we will have one in place ready for the season.”
After a year of bedding in, Tonkin isn’t beating around the bush when it comes to his goals for the 2017-18 season. With a strong squad of around 30, his new charges full of enthusiasm, and some of his best talents he was denied the services of last time raring to go at full fitness, the only way is up.
He said: “This year our sights are higher; we want to win the league. The biggest drive is to take every game as it comes, as last year we were guilty of concentrating on particular fixtures rather than each one individually. This meant that we lost three home games last year by a narrow margin. Whether it was a bit of complacency or just not being fully-focussed, we won’t make that mistake again. We want to go unbeaten at home, which I’m sure we can do with the support of the best crowd in the region!
“I know most coaches say that their current lot are the best they’ve ever coached, but I really mean it. These boys are the best group of lads I’ve worked with, and we’re like a big family. They live together, travel together, and they have great camaraderie whether that be at the rugby club or when they travel abroad to play.”
After a brief summer respite, training started in earnest last week and the team are preparing for their first test: the Asian Champions League in early September, before the West Asian Premiership kicks off with a mouth-watering rematch between Bahrain and the Abu Dhabi Harlequins on September 29.
A large, raucous crowd is expected at the rugby club for that fixture, and Tonkin hopes that both long-time rugby fans and newcomers just getting into the sport will come down and cheer the team on.
He explained: “We’re really looking to prove that we’re a great team to come and watch and to put on great events for the family at the rugby club. It’s the highest level of rugby in the region and we’re looking at ways of introducing hospitality packages and other benefits so that more people come down and make the rugby club the place to be in the kingdom.”
