Ryan Roberts

Rugby Pathways Director

 

Ryan Roberts or “Robbo” to all who do and don’t know him arrived in 2004 in Australia after playing with various clubs in New Zealand. Trouble was he arrived to play at Bond Pirates and not the Alleygators.

 

After a successful season there, although not winning the Grand Final, he made the move to Alleygators the next year and has been involved here ever since. Some people change clubs to win Grand Finals, not Robbo, he moved as he worked for an Alleygator’s sponsor and had workmates who played at Alleygators. He did it to stop the ribbing he got each day at work!

 

In 2005, the club’s 25^th year, we won the Grand Final and Ryan played a huge part in the success. He showed he was a talented 5/8 with his kicking with both feet and game sense ensuring the team got around the park. How he has an ear like a front rower is still unfounded.

 

From there Ryan moved to Navan in Ireland and had a successful stint playing and coaching until returning to Australia and eventually back to our club. In 2011 and 2012 he was Player Coach and had success winning the Grand final in 2011 and 2012 and runners up in 2013. Since then, he has married and settled back into life on the Gold Coast.

 

Ryan then moved into Coaching full time realising age can weary them and was instrumental in starting the SCRA being put in charge of Development of players from the juniors to seniors and through various schools in the region. He has successfully run our programs that has seen players progress from Junior to Senior ranks. In the past 2 years the club employed Ryan full time to work in the role of Player Development and Pathways Director. He has taken on coaching various ages from 6’s to Seniors and has put many kids through the new Gymnasium to improve their Rugby.

 

We look forward to many more years of Robbo at the helm and know success is not measured in our results but through the fact our number of teams and players improves.