Under glorious sunshine, the players of Bedford Junior Blues enjoyed a return to training at Bedford Athletic Rugby Club and at the pitches at Mowsbury Park.
Age groups from Under 6’s to Under 16’s, Girls Under 13, Under 15 and Under 18 sides and the newly formed Bedford Blues Women’s team all took part in 75 minutes training sessions with staggered start times from 9am to 1pm.
Following the strict guidelines issued by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and England Rugby, the many players enjoyed learning the laws and how to play the newly introduced version of touch rugby.
The players are permitted a maximum 15 minutes of close contact training. Further guidelines ensure group numbers per pitch size are restricted and all rugby balls and hands are sanitised every 15 minutes.
But the restrictions didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the younger players, especially the under 9 age group, who for the last 3, and in some cases 4 years have been playing tag rugby.
Even though only allowed 15 mins of contact training, the players, all wearing their new gumshields, relished the opportunity to learn how to tackle an opponent and put in some crunching first time tackles.
New members to all age groups are welcome, the Under 6’s covers children in full time reception and school year 1. Whilst rugby is mixed up to Under 11’s, then the girls join the Under 13’s.
Also, the recently formed Bedford Blues Women’s side now boasts 28 members, a huge success for our local rugby club as they gear up for the new season.
Interested players can visit www.bedfordjuniorblues.co.uk for more details on how to get involved.