This morning the Waratahs training field was packed with excitement as dozens of students from the Royal Institute for the Deaf and Blind (RIDC) were given their first lesson in rugby from the codes’ top teachers.
The Tahs took the students through some basic drills and weaved into the training were some important messages about the game.
Waratah’s player Nick Phipps said ‘’It’s great to have the kids come out here and give Rugby a crack. It shows them that Rugby is a game for everyone and hopefully it inspires them to keep playing.’’
Joining them on the field were players from the Australian Deaf Rugby team who will next week take centre stage at the World Deaf Rugby 7s Tournament at the David Phillips Sport Complex in Sydney.
Player and Vice Chairman of World Deaf Rugby Nick Marlor said he understands some of the difficulties children who are deaf or hard of hearing can face, but for him Rugby was a place where none of that mattered and you could just get on with the game.
“Australian Deaf Rugby’s motto is “inclusiveness” and we want to show people that no matter what level of hearing you have you can pick up a rugby ball and have some fun.
‘’Our goal is to show any child that they can be involved in a team sport and even potentially represent their country one day. ‘
’It’s also great to have this competition and test on Aussie soil to hopefully get the message out to the Australian Deaf community,’’ said Nick.
It will be the first time in more than 15 years Australia has hosted the tournament with more than 180 athletes taking part who come from all corners of the world including England, Ghana, Japan and Wales.
In another historic moment, it will be the first International Deaf Women’s tournament ever staged with three female teams set to battle it out for the top spot.
The event will kick off with an opening ceremony on Sunday April 22 at 09:30am at the Wanda Surf Lifesaving Club in Cronulla where players will be welcomed with a Fijian cultural dance.
On Monday April 23 the games will begin at 10:00am with the England Men’s team taking on Japan.
A final twilight Test match will be held on April 27 between Australia and Wales followed by a closing celebration and barbeque.
Tickets are just $5 for children and $10 for adults.
For more information visit worlddeafrugby7s.com
World Deaf Rugby 7s Fixtures:
Monday April 23; 10:00am – 6:00pm
Men’s and Women’s Sevens matches
Tuesday April 24; 10:00am – 4:30pm
Men’s and Women’s Sevens matches
Thursday April 26; 10:00am – 3:30pm
Men’s and Women’s Sevens matches
Friday April 27; 5:00pm – 9:00pm
Australia v Wales Test Match BBQ and closing celebration.
