WASPS backs transition coach Scott Barrow insists he is “grateful” for the opportunity to lead the club when they travel to Newcastle Falcons in the Premiership Rugby Cup this weekend.
Barrow steps in for head coach Lee Blackett over the two-week cup window in which Wasps are set to play Newcastle and Leicester Tigers.
And as the club’s injury problems continue to mount – Wasps are expected to ring the changes at Kingston Park on Saturday afternoon.
The backs transition coach is pleased to have the opportunity to nurture Wasps’ young talent and is excited to see how the club’s young stars perform this weekend.
Barrow said: “Lee asked me eight weeks ago – I’m pleased because I’ve been getting to know these young lads and I’ve seen some of them out on loan, it’s nice to see them in a Wasps shirt.
“It’s a good opportunity for me to develop myself as a coach as well – I’m thankful and grateful for the opportunity.
“There’s quite a few young faces coming in which will be exciting to see where they are at in terms of their development.
“There’s a few guys who are due mandatory rest as well – we’ll have a good competitive squad – it doesn’t look like we’ll have too many coming back from injury this week.”
Despite the anticipated changes – Barrow insists he still wants to win the game and feels the blend of youth and experience is crucial to their success in Newcastle.
Barrow added: “We want the lads to develop by playing these games but we’ve still got to be competitive and still want to go out and win every game – we never send a team out to not win.
“We’ll see where lads are in their development and we’ll take stock of that after the game – leading into the game we need to win, we want to win and that’s the mentality we need to have.
“The young lads are learning as they go but we’ve got experienced lads in there who will guide us around the field and set the intensity level – it’s about matching that and going together as a group.
“We won’t make decisions on the lads just on these two games – it’s part of their development.”
And despite taking over head coach duties for the fixture, Barrow feels his primary job as backs transition coach is a rewarding one.
He said: “Some of the staff have got a bit of time off – Lee is in but he’s asked me to lead this week – it’s a different coaching team altogether really.
“You’re going from sitting in and listening to what’s been said every meeting to planning every meeting and saying everything that is being said.
“I deal with the backs in the senior academy – I look after their one-to-one development – their playing programme, their loan club stuff, their individual development daily, it’s just being their guide.
“You’re more guiding them and coaching them than you are telling them – I was also asked to do some positional coaching for the centres – it’s a good job, it’s a rewarding job because you can see the improvement.”
Wasps travel to Newcastle on Saturday, November 13 with kick-off at 3pm at Kingston Park.
