Blues Assistant Coach Paul Tito is keeping his coaching tools sharp in the off-season, taking the reins as Head Coach of the New Zealand Schools programme.  

Tito, a former New Zealand Schools player himself, said it’s a privilege to be back in the school arena once again.

“It’s a space that I’m really passionate about, it’s where my coaching career started with the New Plymouth Boys High School First XV,” said Tito.

“We’ve been working with great people around New Zealand to make sure we’re looking at every player that’s eligible to represent the country at secondary school level. It’s been a big job, but we’ve finally selected the team and now we can get on with coaching,” he said.

Tito identified the main difference between Super Rugby and New Zealand Schools coaching is the level of detail they need to ‘coach in’.

“There will be a lot of explaining, a lot of slow rugby [in training] so we can get the boys really clear on their roles and they can just go out there and play rugby. I’ve got two teachers involved as Assistant Coaches so I’m sure they’ll be able to give me a helping hand in that space,” he said.

Keeping his hand in the game is a key element in making sure Tito keeps his coaching tools sharp.

“When you’re out of coaching you can get a bit rusty at times, so to jump back in and to have to get into the detail like we’ve spoken about will be good for me.”

Tito is excited at the prospect of working with an eager group of players and wants a team that is clear on their objectives and can express themselves on the park.

“The players love it! They’re not afraid to have a crack, they’re pretty confident these young guys, [often looking for the offload] so we just need to harness that a little bit - it’s an exciting space and a good challenge for us as coaches,” he said.

Always with his Blues hat on, Tito knows he’s in pole position to unearth the next talented youngster.

“[At the Blues], we’ve always got our eye on the future; we still watch a lot of 1st XV Rugby as it is. There’s some great talent in this space, as there is every year, and I’m sure we’ll have a good, deep look at that!”