Full name: Aron Pritchard
Nickname: Dragon
Place of birth: Wales
Current city: Metro Manila
Years in rugby: 21 years
Position: Full back
Superpower: None, but I’ve been told I’m the kind of guy you’d want by your side in an apocalypse.
When and how did you start with Manila Nomads?
I started with Nomads in 2016. I researched all the teams in Metro Manila and decided to join the Manila Nomads by sending an email to Jim Salter-Duke who was Captain at the time. The rest is history.
What is your favorite rugby move, skill or position?
I enjoy playing an expansive entertaining game of rugby and throwing the ball around. Favourite skill is the basics, drawing the man and creating space. I occasionally also like to run through people too. Full back is my favourite position.
Tell us of any unforgettable or funny experiences you had in Manila Nomads.
Winning the Fatboy 10’s 2017, winning the Manila 10’s 2017 plate, and winning the SPI 15’s 2017. Also, all the great friends I’ve made and lots of funny experiences and good times at the socials and parties too!
What can we expect from you as this year’s Nomads’ captain?
After the Manila 10’s 2019, the captaincy for the men’s team was handed over to me, and the women’s team captaincy was handed to Melissa Jacob.
To recap on what happened last year, the club gained some momentum with the founding of our women’s team, captained (and should we say founded) by Bianca Natola. Some of the guys generously gave their time and passed on their knowledge to the girls—hats off to Fetala’i Taua’a, Nick Jones, and Chris Anderson, who all helped with setting up our women’s team. Most, if not all the girls learned the game from scratch with us—some never played rugby before, while others already had a little experience from playing touch rugby. The “Manila Nomads Rogue’s” girls have now managed to play 7’s, 10’s, and 15’s versions of the game and will be touring for the first time this year. The men’s team managed to tour to the Palawan 7’s, Fatboy 10’s, Saigon 10’s, and the Cebu 10’s (winning the plate). We also hosted our first “Nomad’s Day” at our home ground at San Lazaro, Cavite.
This year, our focus on the pitch will be winning, aiming to get as much silverware as we possibly can. We are all looking forward to the upcoming tours: Pangasinan Beach Touch, Saigon 10’s, Fat Boy 10’s, and possibly more.
We will be helping to drive forward the development and involvement of the game of rugby here in the Philippines as usual through our rugby clinics, recruiting new players, and teaching the game to as many as we possibly can.
Off the field, we will remain to be loyal to our traditions, being the rugby club who have the most fun at our socials and after game parties. This is part of the reason why many of our members become life friends to one another and continue to stay in touch, even if they’ve moved on to live in other countries or retired from playing the game. Indeed, this is part of the club’s unique selling point in comparison to the other teams. Also, the bonds we form off the pitch help us on the pitch too. Once a Nomad, always a Nomad.
Our committee will continue to develop our newly revamped website. Look out for news and updates on our Instagram and Facebook pages. We have also set up a YouTube channel where we’ll be showing highlights of our games and interviews of our players. We will be setting up an Online Shop on our website to sell Nomads merchandise and a Job Board to help players recruit or find jobs. Good times ahead, can’t wait.
Any message to anyone who wants to try rugby?
If you want to try rugby, we will welcome you with open arms and teach you all there is to know. Come join us at our training sessions:
Every Thursdays at 7:30 pm at the Terra 28th Park, BGC
We also train some Saturdays at the British School Manila, BGC or NAISM/King’s International School, Pasay
Send us a message on Facebook to confirm our training times.
You know it makes sense,
Aron
