Great Fun At Athy Rugby Camp-Out

Munster clubs were again well represented at the Athy Rugby Camp-Out for the 3rd year in succession, with 13 of the 65 Teams participating coming from seven Munster clubs.

Courtesy of:- Athy RFC

The Athy Rugby Camp-Out is becoming a firm end of season fixture for clubs like Shannon, Bantry Bay, St. Mary’s, Waterpark and Midleton who were returning after previous visits and joined for the first time in 2015 by Rugbaí Chorca Dhuibhne and Fermoy.

The 2015 Rugby Camp-Out set new records with the added inclusion of girls' teams and a team from the UK for the first time. A record number of 65 teams participated at U-10 and U-11 grades for boys, and at U-10 and U-12 for girls from a total of 25 clubs from all Irish provinces.

The Rugby Camp-Out is a unique event which provides an ideal opportunity for an affordable end of season trip for minis players, coaches and parents, incorporating a rugby blitz with an evening of fun, team-building games and an over-night camp-out on the pitches.

In keeping with the inclusion of a girls section, the event was officially opened by current Ireland Women’s Captain, Niamh Briggs, who was highly impressed with the excellent standard of play from the girls.

In spite of a rainy start to the day, the sun soon came out and the standard of rugby was very impressive across all sections. Attention then turned to the eagerly awaited evening’s activities which saw the coaches, parents and players duelling it out over a series of activities designed to encourage team-work and to build bonds with the groups, such as ski-races, tug-o-war and obstacle courses.

The teams then set up camp for the night to round off an enjoyable day for all of the participants but the work of the 100 Volunteers was not complete as there were Breakfasts to prepare for the following morning before the Teams left for home.

The Rugby Camp-Out has continued to grow and evolve with each passing year and preparations for 2016 are already commencing.

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