Confessions of a Vietnamese Rugby Coach – Nghia Mai

I’ve been involved with the sport of rugby union for the last 14 years of my life and in almost every facet of the game. I’ve played, refereed, translated the word ‘scrum’ into Vietnamese (spoiler alert: it’s mai rùa tranh bóng, ‘ball-contesting turtle shell’), and even started a podcast.

Yet, I would have never imagined that I would get into coaching, let alone being a coach to kids, let alone being a rugby coach in my own country, Vietnam, where rugby remains an alien concept.

Guest Contributor – Nghia Mai / Photo Credit – Rugby Cùng Nhau

Introduction to Coaching Rugby

My venture into the world of coaching was almost by accident or a twisted turn of fate. After spending half a decade abroad, I made the decision to return to the motherland, Vietnam, last Summer.

During my first month, while I was job-searching and soul-searching, I decided to get involved with Rugby Cùng Nhau, a social project founded by Francois Trịnh-Đức, the former French rugby international of Vietnamese descent.

As many of the project’s team members were also involved with the junior section of the Saigon Geckos Rugby Club, they told me to meet them on a crisp Saturday morning. There, I had my first taste of coaching rugby. Doing things like demonstrating a drill, or simply showing someone how to pass the ball. It’s a different feeling altogether. Previously, all I had to do was follow the coach’s instructions. Now, I’m the one giving the instructions.

From that point on, I became a junior coach for both the Rugby Cùng Nhau project and Saigon Geckos Academy. At times, that can take up my entire weekend. The first few months were a learning curve. I’ve realised now that coaching is more than just blowing a whistle and arguing with the referee on the sideline.

It requires a lot more than that. There’s a science behind it. It’s how you prepare a session, set expectations for your group and how you communicate those expectations. At times, it’s just balls and cones. However, what truly counts is what you do with those balls and cones.

Coaching kids is a different ball game altogether. Kids get bored easily, and in 2026, there are a lot of distractions for them. You have to make sure your game is their only distraction. Thus, how to effectively communicate with them is important. To understand their worldview to build that rapport.

A part of my professional experience has been in stand-up comedy, which involves communicating certain ideas, very funny ideas, to a group of people. Even then, motivating a group of 10-year-olds on a Saturday morning is more daunting than slinging punchlines in a low-ceiling comedy club on a Saturday night.

Coaching Progression in Vietnam and the Challenges of Coaching Rugby

In general, for the first few months, a lot of my experience was learning on the job, particularly through working with other coaches, observing how they work, and how they interact with kids. As well as reading at least 10 pages of ‘How to Coach’ before every session.

Eventually, I began to gain more confidence in my coaching ability, and eventually, I even stepped up to run sessions when other coaches were away.

One particular challenge about coaching rugby in Vietnam is the lack of familiarity with rugby within the country. In Vietnam, rugby remains an extremely niche sport for most of the population, often confused with American Football to much chagrin.

It remains one of the few countries in the region with neither a national team nor a federation. Although this reality might change in the next few years due to exciting developments happening at the moment.

Presently, it’s still quite a small sport. I’m the only Vietnamese national on the coaching ticket at the Junior Geckos, so there’s a bit of pressure and a bit of imposter syndrome thrown in.

Whenever there are Vietnamese parents who want to bring their kids into rugby at the Junior Geckos, I’m the person they go to for guidance and reassurance.

I became the accidental ambassador for the sport in the country. Within the social project, the pressure became greater as we now have Vietnamese speakers in our team. I remain the go-to person due to my extensive rugby experience. So yeah, there’s added pressure to being a rugby coach in a country where rugby remains in relative infancy. However, I still relish the challenges and the opportunities that come with it and hope that I am laying the path for others to follow.

Key Takeaways – Nghia Mai

Six months since my coaching debut, I’ve had plenty of highs and lows.

One highlight that stood out for me was when my colleagues and I took a team of underprivileged kids to their first touch rugby tournament. While there was plenty to work on, and the fact that we suffered some uneven results, it was a great joy to see the kids progressing nicely, as well as being able to showcase their skills on a bigger stage.

At the end of the day, it’s what it’s all about. To give the tools to the kids to have fun. As for me, there’s more to come from coach Nghĩa. Watch this space.

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