Rugby World first for Swindon

Tomorrow - Saturday 27 July - sees Swindon St George Masters hosting the world’s first ever fully sanctioned Rugby League Masters Nines Festival.

It will be absolutely free for spectators to attend, and a fully licenced bar will be open at the event, which takes place at Swindon RFC, Greenbridge Road.

A barbecue will also be provided.

A spokesperson said: "Masters is a unique form of Rugby League, strictly for 35s and above, and has a shorts colour system which sorts players into their appropriate age bands. 

"This then determines the level of tackling allowed by each group. Those in the younger brackets are permitted to use a physicality akin to that employed in the open age game, but only on those of a similar age. 

"Meanwhile, the over 70s can only be tackled by being ‘tagged’ and can record a tackle merely by touching the ball carrier. It sounds complicated, but it works superbly well in practice.

"The staging rights for this groundbreaking event are a real coup for the Powerwash Contractors backed St George club, and secretary (also referee) Rod Evans is delighted, enthusing ‘We are very proud of being selected for this, great recognition after just 3 years of running a Masters side’. 

"Teams from as far afield as Brixton, Aldershot and Southampton will be among the entrants and the first game of the Festival will kick off at 1.30pm."

The spokesperson added: "Meanwhile, the junior Dragons have had a really good weekend themselves, with the under 15s claiming silverware, defeating Oxford Levellers to lift the annual Francis George trophy. 

"In a tight game St George were behind for most of the match but battled back to score two tries in the last three minutes, taking the tie into extra time, when superior fitness and determination saw them swamp the visitors. 50 pts to 34 was the final score, Swindon’s tries coming from Josh Jones (two) and Logan Parsons (two), with one apiece for George Cooke, Ollie Pengilly and Seb Wootton. 

"Seven conversions from Alfie Bowers helped him earn a joint man of the match award from coach Daniel Burns, which was shared by Henley Duncan. 

"In addition to the under 15s, St George’s under 13s and under 12s also had decent run outs during the weekend, so the future prospects for Rugby League in Swindon certainly look bright!"