HASKELL TEAMS UP WITH RETURN TO RUGBY
James Haskell and Trigger Happy TV’s Dom Joly have joined up to kick off this season’s Return to Rugby sessions which begin on August 18 across England.
Comedian and former player Dom Joly has also found his own unique way of getting people back into the game, drawing inspiration from his popular TV show ‘Trigger Happy TV’.
Focussed on 18-30 year olds, the ten week Return to Rugby programme will take place at 100 clubs nationwide from August 18 to October 30. The sessions hope to give people who used to play rugby, the chance to rediscover their love of the game and get them back into the sport within a fun and social environment.
James Haskell said: “If you’re a little rusty on your old drop kicks and tackling, Return to Rugby sessions are the ideal introduction back into the sport. It might be too late for you to go for gold in Brazil but it’s never too late to get your mates together, dust off your boots and have fun playing our great game.”
This year’s Return to Rugby campaign follows on from a successful first year of the programme which saw 2,500 people sign up for the sessions and 800 players re-introduced back into the game, playing rugby regularly as a result of the programme. The RFU’s long-term ambition is to get 10,000 players engaged in the programme by 2019 across 250 venues.
Dom Joly knows the struggles to get back into sport after some time away but encourages people to bite the bullet.
“Being a lapsed rugby player myself, I fully understand the challenges of returning to the game – being too unfit to play, time constraints, not having the right gear. That’s why these Return to Rugby sessions are so important because it is getting players all over the country back in the game at their own pace.
“Return to Rugby is all about having a laugh with new and old friends while having a chuck around and getting fit. What more can you want?”
With the England men’s and women’s team achieving successes in recent times and the upcoming summer of sport set to catapult interest in rugby sevens, it is exciting times for rugby in England.
“There’s no time like the present to get back into rugby”, said Steve Grainger, Director of Rugby Development at the RFU.
“This year we’ve doubled the amount of Return to Rugby venues based on last year’s success and our ambition is to quadruple the number of engaged players by September 2019.
“Whether you’re missing the camaraderie from teammates on and off the pitch, the competitive nature of the game or the fitness element, Return to Rugby sessions are the ideal way in building up confidence within a fun and social environment.”
Throughout the ten-week programme, the new-look Return to Rugby website will provide information to potential recruits, video content and rugby challenges for players to take on in order to win prizes.
To find out about Return to Rugby sessions in your area, and to sign up, go to www.returntorugby.com or follow @EnglandRugby, using the hashtag #ReturntoRugby.
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