St Mary's Farnham Royal School pupils 'blown away' by Twickenham
Sportsdesk • Published 4 Jun 2012 12:07
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Action from St Mary's Farnham Royal School's trip to Twickenham where pupils had the chance to play on the pitch at half-time.
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PUPILS from St Mary's Farnham Royal School in Slough got the chance of a lifetime when they competed in a tag rugby tournament at half-time in the Aviva Premiership final at Twickenham.
The teams strutted their stuff not only in front of a packed out crowd but also under the watchful gaze of World Cup winning pair Will Greenwood and Matt Dawson.
They were then able to watch as Harlequins claimed the Aviva Premiership title with a 30-23 victory over Leicester.
The pupils were able to experience playing on the Twickenham turf as part of the Aviva Premiership Rugby Schools Programme which is being implemented at 650 schools around the country.
Head teacher Andy Tagg revealed the pupils had been talking about little else in the weeks before the big day.
He said: "It's a fantastic opportunity for the kids to come up here and enjoy this.
"They're absolutely blown away by the size of the place because they've never been anyway near it before, it's a real treat for them.
"We've got one or two budding stars in the group, we're hoping that some of the kids take a wider interest and join their local rugby clubs as well.
"Hopefully from these small acorns will grow a few good players over the years."
Pupil Tarun Rahelu added: "I'm really excited to be here, the stadium is really good.
"I'm pretty lucky because I think there were a lot of children from my school who wanted to come."
And Dawson, who started at scrum-half when England won the World Cup back in 2003, admitted he had been impressed by the standard on show.
He continued: "It's been great to be back at Twickenham and running around on the field with a bunch of very enthusiastic kids.
"At that age I remember being involved with curtain raisers meeting former players in the park, watching them play so it's nice to do it back for them.
"This is fundamental, we had a great boost after the World Cup and sponsors have been vital really, it's got to continue if we want to see the next Owen Farrell and Ben Foden."
The Aviva Premiership Rugby Schools Programme is designed to increase participation in the sport and unearth young England stars of the future. Find out more at avivapremiershiprugby.com
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