Tag rugby catches on - in a big way

CATCH me if you can were the tag words as a record 36 teams entered the 10th annual junior tag rugby festival at Foote's Lane on Saturday.

Five separate schools took home the main trophies, but this was a day when the sport was the real winner.

Not only were hundreds of primary school children smiling at the sheer fun and excitement of a brilliant competition, so were the men and women behind Guernsey's Rugby Academy and the island's new rugby development officer, Geraint Cooper.

'It's good stuff and there's been a good feeling about today,' said Cooper, now two-and-a-half months into his stint at pulling all aspects of the sport together.

'There's some very skilful players out there and what's good is that some haven't played rugby before,' he added.

Geoff Renouf, chairman of the Rugby Academy, was overseeing his second annual tag festival after taking over from the man who had laid the foundations of what is a cracking, heart-warming and natural sporting spectacle.

'I think out there that we've got the best tournament we've had so far with 36 teams,' he said.