This was the first course of its kind to be held in the area and was well attended by people from within the local community and local rugby clubs. In September, Ulster Rugby in partnership with City of Derry RFC and Derry City Council, created a Community Rugby Club in the area for boys and girls aged 6-12 years old. By running this course Ulster Rugby has now trained ten local community and youth workers who will hopefully continue to run this rugby programme for the boys and girls in Creggan.
The course was also attended by coaches from Armoy RFC, who hope to launch a new mini section later this year ,as well as coaches from Strabane RFC, City of Derry RFC, Tir Chonnail RFC, Letterkenny RFC and Ardnashee Special School.
Community Rugby Officer Shaun Bloomfield commented: “This was a great course to be involved in. I am delighted with the response we had from the local community and hopefully these new young coaches will give boys and girls the opportunity to continue to play rugby. We had a real mix of rugby knowledge on the course which proved to be an exciting dynamic.”
Ulster Rugby would like to thank the staff of the Old Library Trust and Bishops Field for their help and assistance in organising the course. This initiative was made possible by the generous funding from DCAL through the ‘Promoting Equality, Tackling Poverty and Social Exclusion through Sport’ programme.