Saturday 30th Mar 24
This year’s season has been noted for its wet weather but a little rain on the morning of the 10th March did little to dampen the excitement as Guildfordians Rugby Football Cub welcomed over 1000 children from around the south of England to their Minis Rugby Festival at the Stoke Park, Guildford ground.
The festival gives an opportunity for young rugby players to showcase their rugby skills and participate in a friendly environment allowing them to interact with other teams, learn and have fun and which often leads to lifetime friendships.
The festival was open to children aged from 6 – 11 with squads made up of year groups and played to Rugby Football Union age grade rules which ensures games are played safely to meet the needs of each year group. Each squad had mixed ability players and there were no leagues or knockout stages and no overall winner or a winner’s cup which encouraged the fun element while leaving an element of competitiveness. Children in the Under 7 and Under 8 squads play tag rugby with no physical contact while the older squads play a progressively more traditional rugby like game.
The important ingredients of food, medals and trophies were provided for the children while adults favoured the beer and wine in true rugby tradition. As the Festival was held on Mothering Sunday it was reasonable to observe that a few mums did enjoy more glasses than usual to recognise the sacrifice they made for their offspring.
The exceptional rain during the year left the ground quite muddy which encouraged many children to develop games which employed its unique characteristics but parents, by now, are familiar with transporting and cleaning both the children and their clothes. Praise be for washing machines.
Thanks go to the organisers, coaches, parents, children and volunteers, led by Mark Grubb, whose hard work and dedication made a hugely successful and fun filled day.
Guildfordians RFC will be hosting another Minis Festival on the 29th September 2024 at their Stoke Park ground. Further information can be found by emailing
fixtures@grfc.co.uk.
Guildfordians run a variety of rugby formats which cater for all levels of ability, fitness and age (3 – 70+). These include Minis, Youth, Girls, Women’s, Mens, Touch and Walking rugby. If you are interested in joining us, then more information can be found on the website;
www.grfc.co.uk or by contacting,
minis.chairman@grfc.co.uk.
Tony Wiener
Guildfordians RFC Minis Chairman.