In July 2020 ‘Premier 15s’ unlike most of the country, returned to rugby amidst the pandemic, under the umbrella of elite sport. This was of great delight to players and teams, however it meant a change in familiar protocols and training structures. Ensuring a safe covid environment and safe practices, changing habits and the “norm” routine.
In order to go back to training clubs needed to test players regularly and film all aspects of training sessions and games. This was in addition to the normal volume of work for the clubs analysts. There was an added importance to have as much of the sessions recorded as possible. Including off pitch activity and transition time. Capturing accurately was essential in the event of a track and trace incident.
Safety of players and coaching staff is paramount, and the reason for capturing the full picture of the elite training bubble is to ensure that, if one player tests positive for COVID 19, all those who have been in contact with that player can be identified. If necessary, self- isolation may follow, keeping their team mates, coaches, staff and players’ families safe. It also allows the bubble to separate and continue to train, causing as little disruptions to the league as possible. The Premier 15s have found multiple games being cancelled for a number of reasons, the risk to loosing games through covid was a reality even with the league not starting until October 2020.
Veo entered into an affiliation with Saracens in June 2020. Saracens Womens would trial the Veo camera and help Veo develop the product for Rugby. Although initially Veo was used for analysis purposes, it quickly became apparent that Veo camera was the perfect track and trace solution for Saracens. The camera has two lenses and captures the whole pitch, it can run without the need for a camera operator for as long as 4 hours and the interactive mode ensures you can manually track an individual player.
