Yesterday evening, at New River, London Skolars hosted the second of ten weekly Touch events. I thought I’d stick around and take a look at what is fast becoming an incredibly popular derivative of the sport we love and work in.
The photograph above was taken just after everyone had taken part in a twenty minutes each way game of Touch and I think the smiles on the faces of those who took part says it all. Many had tired limbs but the overwhelming reaction was they’d had a great evening of sport.
The Touch evenings are run very professionaly, with the assistance of Skolars own Community RL team and Jenny Morris from the RFL. The cost of playing is only £30 (£3 a week) and all particpants receive a team shirt.
On the few occasions I have watched Touch Rugby the one thing that strikes me the most is that it’s a very inclusive activity, which means that players of both sexes, all ages and levels of fitness take part. Last night was a great example of this with Skolars Head Coach Joe Mbu taking part, as well as first team player Neil Thorman, and they played in a team that included Skolars Commercial Manager Rob Noble, who’d never played before! 
The more experienced players were always offering words of advice and encouragement so that even first timer players were made to feel not only welcome but not out of place.
The tired limbs I referred to earlier were able to muster up one last effort – to take themselves to the pub for a well earned pint!
All in all a really entertaining and fast moving sport that welcomes all comers. I’m even thinking of dusting off the cobwebs, applying some WD40 to the joints and joining in next week – we’ll see . . .
It’s not too late to come along and get involved. If you’re interested in playing Touch just call Paul Thorman on 020 8888 8488 or e-mail him paulthorman@skolarsrl.com
Howard Kramer
General Manager, London Skolars
