Summer Fun & Registration Day

On Sunday 30th July we will be running a summer fun day for all of last year’s players in P2-P7 years groups. This will be an afternoon full of fun activities and give everyone a chance to come together before the new season commences. During the fun day we will also be running registration for the 2017-2018 season. With the growing size of our mini rugby section this is a great opportunity to secure your child place for the upcoming season. InSport from Newtownards will also be in attendance. This is a great chance to get any kit you will need for the new season, boots, gum shields, shorts, socks and of course, your Bangor colours. Don’t forget, for our new P4’s when the season commences you will need to have gum shields to be able to participate in contact sessions.

Mini Rugby training at Bangor will formally commence on Sunday 3rd September at 2.00. the exciting news this year is that we will be welcoming P1 rugby to our mini rugby section. With the popularity of ‘Rugby Tots’ in our local catchment area we feel there is now the growing demand for mini rugby in that year gap until usually starting in P2.

During last season, the Mini Section had another successful year with teams having over 30 sessions of rugby training and games with all players getting extensive participation. All squads had significant development and over 120 children from P2 to P7 participating. The Bangor Mini Festival in November was one of the highlight of the season with teams visiting from across Northern Ireland for an evening enjoyed by all of their families and friends. My personal highlight is seeing the growing number of young girls getting involved in our Mini rugby section. With Belfast holding the final of the Woman’s Rugby World Cup I am hopeful this will encourage even more girls to get involved going forward. Bangor Mini Rugby Section pride ourselves on inclusion and welcoming all new players along to our club so this is a great positive for us.
As mentioned we are now offering entry level non-contact rugby for P1 & P2 as an introduction to the game with games introduced later in the season as part of the Mini Section. The Club Mini Section operates U7, U8, U9, U10 and U11 groups, aligned with academic years (P3-P7), with between 20 and 40 boys and girls in each age group.

Player Registration
Annual Fees this year are increasing to help meet the increased costs in running our mini rugby section. We are committed to always delivering some sort of rugby training, even when our pitches are unplayable. That along with catering costs means we feel the small increases are justified. This small increase and still keeps us well below other sport clubs and organisations for the year.

Player Fees: £80 for 1st Child, £60 for 2nd Child

This season we need everyone in the club to also complete the IRFU Registration form and provide a copy birth certificate. This is an IRFU requirement for insurance purposes to ensure every child is captured on their database. Forms can be downloaded from the link below on the Website.

Without payment and the completed forms being submitted children in P3-P7 will not be permitted to participate in sessions or matches after Sunday 10th September. Children in P1 & 2 as well as any new players will have until Sunday 24th September to submit forms but it should be noted that early payment and submission of forms will secure your child’s place in the event of over subscription.

Parent Support
Bangor mini rugby relies on parents as volunteers, this can be from coaching your child’s age group to helping with the kitchen and this season is no different. I have to extent great gratitude to all of our coaches for the fantastic effort you all put into last season. Special mention to our P2 team! You guys have all really impressed and it is reflected in the behavior, attitude and enjoyment of the kids in your section.
Please note that everyone involved in the mini section is a volunteer and giving up their time freely. The Coaches commit a lot of time not just to Sundays but also to organizing sessions, attending courses and ensuring arrangements for the forthcoming weeks are communicated.

Please don’t forget, many hands make light work and the assistance provided by parents with the catering etc is greatly appreciated however it would be nice to see a few new faces help out!

Mini Rugby Contacts 2017/2018
Below are the relevant contacts for the mini rugby section this season.

Mini Rugby Convenor Liam Foley 07738460873
bangorrugbyminis@yahoo.com
Child Protection Officer Helen Atcheson

P3 Iain Stirling 07771541469
P4 Nigel Playfair 07711760757
P5 Geoff Thompson 07776228343
P6 Steven Nickell 07734067906
P7 Mark Thallon 07802520008

Finally the primary goal of this year’s playing season is enjoyment. At the end of the season we want every player to have had a great time and to be looking to play rugby the following year and continue a link with Bangor.

Rugby is a game with a long tradition of sportsmanship and self-discipline that is the envy of many other sports. We as coaches and parents have a responsibility to maintain it, please take time to read the attached IRFU Code of Conduct document it sets out clearly what is expected from parents, spectators, players, coaches and referees.

Please remember that when watching a match you should encourage the players on both sides as it’s up to us to set an example to the kids; as a club we have never had a problem with negative comments to either players or referees and we don’t want to be starting this year!

Let’s hope for a great season and continue the fantastic development of the Bangor Mini Rugby section.

Liam Foley
Mini Rugby Convenor 2016/17, Bangor RFC