Game On for Guisborough
In an agricultural community a rugby club often has players unable to turn up to a match because of farming duties.
Team mates may have to work in other jobs and if you add some injury issues it can seem impossible to fulfil an away fixture.
Guisborough had the bus booked to take them to Wensleydale rugby club in the Yorkshire dales but they had only 11 players available. A social media appeal attracted two Acklam players to board the bus and get a game.
In a great example of the FU’s new Game On principles Wenslydale, with a squad of more than 20, then loaned their visitors rotating replacements to play 15-a-side. This included Fijians from the nearby Army base at Catterick, one of them scoring one of the visitors’ four tries.
After the match everyone celebrated a successful day before Guisborough and friends sang their way home.
Said RFU Rugby Development Officer, Alec Porter: “ It’s great to see Game On in action and games that might otherwise have been called off taking place. This was real rugby spirit and a great match which all the players enjoyed.”
