La Mare claim sponsors' award

LA MARE DE CARTERET claimed the top prize at yesterday's Investec Schools Rugby Festival played in front of the Garenne Stand at Foote's Lane. The west-coast school won the sponsors' award for the secondary school that scored the most points over the day.

They were helped by the fact that their Year 7 and Year 9 teams won their respective seven-a-side competitions.

The younger age group won their final against St Sampson's, while the under-14s went through their round-robin with a 100% winning record. St Sampson's were also runners-up in that tournament.

The Grammar School also claimed the honours in two age groups - Year 8 and Year 10.

Two tag rugby tournaments were also held with St Martin's winning the Years 3 and 4 event and Vauvert taking the Years 5 and 6 crown.

'It has been a wonderful,' said Tim Davison of the Guernsey Mini/Youth Rugby Club and organiser of the Sweet Chariot Tour Guernsey leg.

'The teachers, the children and the parents have all enjoyed the rugby and they have had the World Cup trophy thrown in for them to have their picture taken with.

'It has all been promoting rugby, which is what we are trying to do.'

Despite the tournament taking place during school holidays to ensure it coincided with the visit of the William Webb Ellis Trophy, there was still a good turn out from the schools.

Davison was delighted with the standard of rugby on display and emphasised that by getting the sport back into local secondary schools, senior rugby on the island will benefit greatly in the future.

'Schoolboy seven-a-side rugby is probably the best version of the game you can watch because they are all fit and eager which makes for a very fast game.

'Several of our schools now are benefiting from having teachers who are very keen on rugby and you could see the skills coming out in the kids when they were playing today,' he said.