Tag Rugby
The primary schools game of choice is Tag rugby, which is a fast, fun and safe way of providing rugby union for all, regardless of gender, age or ability. Tag is non-contact; players wear a belt with Velcro ribbons on which the opponent simply needs to remove to make a “tackle”. This encourages running, passing, catching, evasion and co-ordination skills to be used and means bigger children don’t have the advantage they might in contact rugby.
Tag rugby gives schools a great way to engage children in a fun and flexible team sport. RFU support tools and training resources are also mapped to the national curriculum and directly deliver the primary invasion games outcomes.
Lunchtime or after-school clubs where boys and girls can play the game together in a non-threatening environment will help engage them more in physical activity. The simplicity of Tag also gives teachers a great way to empower children to do leader practices and manage games themselves.
It’s a great inter-school game with one of the biggest primary school competition pathways around. Over 35,000 children played in the Tag 2 Twickenham competition in 2010/11 from local to national level. Tag rugby also gives clusters of schools a great partnership forming vehicle.
For details, support and ready-made promotional resources on the O2 Touch programme click here.
