Young Mayfield rugby players heading to Wales

February 27, 2018 · 0 Comments

By Bill Rea
There’s a tradition that sees rugby players at Mayfield Secondary School take trips to the British Isles every other year, and that’s going to continue come March break.
There were be 46 students and their coaches heading for Wales, and last Friday night saw a fundraising event at the school to collect money to help cover the costs of the trip.
Parent volunteer Simon Brooks said there will be male and female players making the trip. They will practise there and get to have some matches with local teams. There are also hopes they will get to take in a soccer game, and there are plans for lots of sight-seeing.
Kirk Robertson, one of the coaches of the girls’ team, said they will be staying in hostels and hotels while away, and they will get to travel a lot in south Wales.
“Wales is a hotbed for rugby,” he declared. “It’s a rugby culture in the U.K.”
He added the United Kingdom is a very hospitable place to take tours like this.
The tradition started in 1996, he said, and this will be the 11th trip students from Mayfield have taken.
“It’s just become a growing tradition at our school,” he said.
While it might be a rugby culture across the ocean, Robertson said Mayfield players in the past have been able to hold their own against their hosts on the field.
“We’ve had good success,” he observed. “We compete hard and play well.”