Beach rugby a big hit

Beach Rugby returned to Great Yarmouth Central Beach last Saturday as Broadland-Great Yarmouth RFC hosted its third tournament.

As well as teams from across East Anglia, there were local work-based and family teams.

The event, which is part of the National Beach Rugby series, was supported by the Rugby Football Union, Eastern Counties and Great Yarmouth Borough Council.

Leicester Tigers’ promotional trailer with the Tigers’ speed passing game was also a welcome addition to the event.

Play began just after midday in warm and sunny conditions, with the afternoon split into two parts, the first part being open leagues and the second part moving all into leagues for the Cup, Plate, Bowl and Shield depending upon finishing positions.

The was a heavy downpour, which fortunately came during the mid-afternoon break, with the sun returning for the secondtage

Overall winners were the Skegness Sharks winning the Cup, with a combined Southwold RFC/Broadland–Great Yarmouth RFC combined team in second place. In third place was another combined team On Yer Bike, made up of players from Broadland and Beccles rugby clubs.

The Plate was won by Billy Whizzers, with players from Great Yarmouth, with the Bowl being won by West Bog Trotter from King’s Lynn and the Shield by a young Southwold RFC team.

Caesars Bar on the seafront hosted the award ceremony.

Event organiser, Asa Morrison from B-GY RFC said: “ A brilliant day for Broadland-Great Yarmouth Rugby Club and for the town. It was great to see a wide age range of players from six upwards and particularly players from different local clubs.

“A really big thank you to the event management team, referees and pitch managers, who worked hard to make this possible.”

Seventeen mixed teams from Norfolk, Suffolk and Lincolnshire competed against each other on four pitches on central beach in the tag rugby contest.

The team were made up of 10 players with five being on the pitch at any one time as hundreds of spectators cheered on the sides.

The youngest competitor was six while the oldest were veteran club players in their 50s.

Saturday’s display of ball handling skills and tackle avoiding runs was organised to promote rugby to people who have never played the sport before.

A snap shot survey of the teams showed that 30pc of members were novices or had only played a few games before.

Broadland-Great Yarmouth’s RFC pre-season training is under way. Sessions continue for the duration of July and August, taking place on Monday and Wednesday nights 7pm-9pm.

Broadland-Great Yarmouth’s pitch can be found at Cobholm recreation ground, just off the A12 between Breydon Bridge and Gapton Hall Roundabout, Great Yarmouth.

Senior fixtures begin in late August and players old and new are welcome to go down to training.

Youth training for five to 16s starts in September on Sunday mornings 10am-noon, again at Cobholm recreation ground.

For further information visit www.broadlandrfc.com