The Leeds Rhinos game against Catalans Dragons saw Leeds Rhinos Foundation provide a glowing example of the impact of the Sky Try Rugby League programme with close to 200 under 7s from local community clubs taking to the pitch at half time at.
The Leeds Rhinos Foundation’s commitment to the development of Rugby League has seen the charity engage with a wide range of areas over the past ten years with grassroots Rugby League high on the agenda through the charity’s Rugby League development plan sponsored by MEARS and further supported more recently through the Sky Try Programme.
In 2012, only three Leeds clubs had teams for the under 7s age group but three years on, thanks to the hard work of the city’s community clubs and Leeds Rhinos Foundation, there are now 14 Under-7s teams; a figure for the Leeds Rhinos Foundation that highlights some of the hard work going on in Primary Schools across Leeds.
This year, the charity has been grateful to the support of the Sky Try programme, whose funding has empowered the charity in their work to deliver new opportunities to play, watch and become involved in the sport and has alone brought in over 100 players from under 7s taster sessions at local community clubs.
The taster sessions delivered by Leeds Rhinos Sky Try Ambassador Zak Hardaker and Leeds Rhinos Foundation coaches Matthew Nicholson and Sam Horner are the product of a series of coaching workshops delivered in the school catchment area for the clubs where often children are playing the sport for the first time.
Grassroots Rugby League in the city of Leeds has undergone a period of consistent development and improvement over the past decade, due in part to some of the initiatives that have been put in place to bring clubs under one umbrella, such as the Leeds Rhinos Foundation Ambassador Scheme – allowing all 30 Leeds clubs in the scheme a chance to collaborate effectively on all development matters at monthly meetings.
The Catalans game provided an opportunity for the Leeds Rhinos Foundation to showcase the development of the under 7’s age group across Leeds with over 15 clubs represented on the pitch on 18 small sided pitches during the half time interval, playing small sided Primary Rugby League matches.
Represented on the night were Garforth Tigers, Leeds Underdogs, Farnley Falcons, Guiseley Rangers, Chapeltown Cougars, Whinmoor Warriors, Drighlington ARLFC, Stanley Rangers, Dewsbury Moor, Stanningley ARLFC, Birtstall Victoria, Oulton Raiders, Shawcross Sharks, Hunslet Club Parkside, and Kippax Welfare.
Many of the clubs also brought along their ‘Minis’ age groups to take part in a pre-match coaching workshop with Leeds Rhinos Foundation staff demonstrating the spread of Rugby League to children aged as young as 4 and 5 and promoting the next generation of Rugby players likely to benefit from the development plan in years to come.
For more information on the Club Ambassador Scheme contact Sam.Horner@leedsrugbyfoundation.org