A TORFAEN sports team is appealing for help in recruiting new players and sponsors to fund specially-adapted wheelchairs.
Torfaen Tigers Wheelchair Rugby League Team was launched by its parent club Torfaen Tigers in 2020. It became the first community club in Wales to launch a Wheelchair Rugby League Team and is currently in the Championship West League.
The team, which is made up of both disabled and non-disabled male and female players, trains every Friday night at Pontypool Leisure Centre. There are currently 15 registered players from a range of backgrounds; including a Pastor, veterans and students from across South Wales.
The team’s head coach, Lyndon Price, said they ideally need another five players.
Mr Price, a veteran who competed in the Invictus Games with his son in 2014, said: “Until this year we only had five players. It’s fantastic that we now have 15 as matches are five-a-side, 80-minutes long and fast-paced. We need to be able to have enough substitutes and more players to make training more realistic.”
Wheelchair Rugby League is an inclusive sport that offers both disabled and non-disabled players the opportunity to compete both with and against each other on a level playing field.
The rules are nearly identical to the running game of rugby league with slight adaptations.
It’s played on an indoor court with a slightly smaller ball and a player must remove a tag from the shoulder of an opponent to tackle them.
“Anyone from the age of 14 can play,” said Mr Price.
“All you need to be able to do is to push a manual wheelchair and take instruction from the coach.”
“It’s a fun and inclusive sport that helps with both mental and physical health, bringing together players of mixed abilities.”
He said sponsorship would help support the team in funding lighter and specially-fitted wheelchairs, kit, training and away game costs. The players currently cover the cost of the indoor court hire and travel to away games themselves.
“We desperately need sponsorship,” Mr Price said.
“We use ten second-hand wheelchairs, which were made possible by grant, but they are much heavier and slower. The cost of a competition-standard, specially manufactured rugby wheelchair frame costs around £3,000 without wheels - which cost an additional £200 to £700”.
“The wheelchairs are made-to-measure for the player, weighing seven kilos, compared to our 15 kilo chairs. Being able to upgrade our equipment would mean that we are on a level playing field with our competitors.”
He said: “This is a great opportunity to get your business name on Torfaen Tiger’s wheelchairs, kit and banners at an exciting time for wheelchair rugby league.”
“It has continued to increase in popularity as a Paralympic sport with Team GB winning a gold medal at the Tokyo games in 2021 and England winning the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup last year,” he added.
The team has been invited to Wrexham in May to take part in the Peacock Cup 2023, an annual tournament which will see them play against the North Wales Crusaders, Sheffield Eagles and Rochdale Hornets. The team has been approached to become founding members of a new Welsh League with plans to launch it in the summer.
For details of sponsorship opportunities or to come along to a training session (held on a Friday night between 7pm and 9pm) contact Lyndon Price at Lyndon@tigerswrl.co.uk
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