Russian talent identification more than just “Pasha”

Russian sevens coach Pavel Baranovsky is a deservedly a legend in the game, his half-time talks invariably featured on TV coverage of the World Series despite the fact that most viewers will not understand what he is saying. ??Pasha?? is passionate about the game, with a capital ??P??.

One of the great legends associated with Pasha is his talent identification system which he ?˜memorably summed up for us at the last London Sevens in 2013. ??Often I see in the street girls who look strong and athletic,?? he told us, ??and I simply say ??come play rugby????. And there is also the story of his fabled trip into the mountains to seek out the Khamidova sisters??

However, as the success of the Russian women??s team continues it seems that, in some cases at least, more conventional systems of talent identification are proving fruitful. We spoke to Masha Anderson, who is PR manager in Rugby Union of Russia when she is not playing for Moscow Dragons.

??The Russian team that played in last round in Langford was one of the youngest they have fielded with several new faces including the two Darias - Fefelova and Lushina ?? who had both represented Russia on U18 7s European Championship, where they lost 5 ?? 22 to Netherlands in the 3rd Place Play-Off last autumn. Both girls were spotted when they played in the first U18 7s Russian championship in Kazan 2010.

?˜??Daria Lushina started to play in Dolgorpudni (Moscow region) with boys at the age of 13 and just before that tournament had joined Slava RC (Moscow), while Daria Fefelova had played with her twin sister for the team from Monino in 2010.

?˜??Monino is a big rugby centre in Russia. The VVA-Saracens team is based there, so rugby is well known in the town, and there was no need to explain to girls and their parents what that strange game with the strange ball is.

?˜??There are six teams U18 who play in domestic competitions. Some of them are in existing club structures, like VVA (Moscow region), which is a ??farm?? club of ten-time Russian champions RGUTIS??Podmoskovie. Others are afterschool rugby clubs.

?˜??It is a long pathway, but a lot of things has been done by the general manager of women??s 7s Russian team Gregory Malytin to make this structure work. All the coaches of Premiership clubs are interested in girls who already can play rugby, so most of the players who want to continue with a professional career now have a good opportunity to do that. Today Russia??s sevens team already have two girls in the squad who started to play rugby in the age of 14 or even earlier, and a number of players who are U18 at the moment participating national team training camps.??

?˜??Does that mean that ??Pasha?? is no longer patrolling the streets, hills and mountains of Russia looking for new players??? we asked.

?˜??No, he is still doing that. You can meet a potential player everywhere, you know!??