Bulldog spirit alive and well for Bognor rugby kids

Efforts on and off the field have attracted lots of interest from a number of businesses keen to become the team’s new sponsors.

After dedication and hard work from Sam Pemberton and Craig Simmonds the team have just been handed a new playing kit for the season.

Coaches, players and parents said a big thank-you to all their new sponsors: Design Responsive, Owen Kenny Solicitors, Macleod Simmonds, Matform, BPD Plumbing, Monolution, JS Dalton and Faye Flinn.

A team spokesman said: “The sponsors keep the spirit of grass-roots rugby alive and hopefully the team will continue to make good progress on the field and do all your businesses proud.”

If anybody wishes to join Bognor under-13s, get along to the club in Hampshire Avenue, where they train every Wednesday at 6.30pm. Games are played on Sundays. See contact details at www.pitchero.com/clubs/bognorrfc

* Youngsters from Bognor RFC will embark on the first step towards a dream Twickenham appearance this Saturday as the Land Rover Premiership Rugby Cup returns for its seminal testimonial season, celebrating its tenth year.

The under-11 and under-12 grassroots rugby festival is part of a series of nationwide events which provide aspiring young players the opportunity to play in a competitive event and meet professional players from Harlequins.

With 33 under-11 and under-12 teams competing at Kneller Hall, Bognor RFC youngsters will get a true taste of the professional game.

And for Harlequins and England scrum-half Danny Care, there is nothing more important than supporting youth rugby.

“Grass-roots rugby is huge, it’s where you get the basis for wanting to play rugby, I loved it and my family taking me down there was a huge reason for that,” he said.

“I went down to West Park when I think I was about five, my brother, who was two years older, went down – I was too young to play but I was desperate to get involved.

“I think because I was fairly quick they let me play on the wing so I could play a year above.

“I just used to love the whole Sunday morning, get up and go and play rugby, get a bag of chips and a sausage after and the whole family comes down to watch and it’s a great atmosphere.”

In addition to Saturday’s event, one team from each age group will receive a trip to the Aviva Premiership Rugby Final on May 26, where they will meet a Land Rover rugby ambassador, join in a Land Rover Premiership Rugby Cup Parade at half-time and hear which of them has won a club MVP award.

The events are designed to provide young players with a chance to play completive fixtures in a format that is appropriate for their ages and stage of development, all within the spirit of rugby’s core values of teamwork, respect, enjoyment, discipline and sportsmanship.

Land Rover is celebrating its ‘Testimonial Season’; ten years of the Land Rover Premiership Rugby Cup. The national series of grassroots rugby festivals is testament to Land Rover’s continued support of grassroots rugby through its ‘We Deal In Real’ campaign. Follow @LandRoverRugby #WeDealInReal