The University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University varsity rugby match this year incorporated an exciting new community imitative involving tag rugby coaching in local schools.

Through the RFU coaching award, 24 men and women became tag coaches, helping 18 local primary schools. Each university held an inter-school tag festival between the schools they had been working in, with an eventual Nottingham Trent University winner and a University of Nottingham winner. The winners from both then played in the children’s varsity match prior to the senior games, which were under floodlights in front of over 3,000 spectators at Nottingham RFC.

Portland Nursery and Primary School played Beeston Rylands Junior School with a great spectacle of tag rugby from some prospective stars of the future. Beeston Rylands (Nottingham University) won the game, starting the trend for the evening with both the ladies and gents adding victories.

Alan Royer, Assistant Rugby Development Officer and Rugby Student Liaison Officer to Nottingham Trent University, said that the Active Community Departments from both universities, Students Activities and Student Union Departments and the Schools Sports Partnership, had helped the student coaches to offer a fun sporting experience to all the schoolchildren taking part.