Young rugby players from across Northern Ireland recently got the opportunity to play at Kingspan Stadium as part of Ulster Rugby's Primary School Festival.
The event was sponsored by SPAR NI, Ulster Rugby’s first community partner and the primary sponsor of Ulster Rugby’s Mini rugby activities across Northern Ireland.
Eight schools attended each day of the festival, with a total of 32 schools taking part over the four days.
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Each team got the opportunity to visit the stadium and play against three other teams of 15 players from other schools. A total of 480 children got the opportunity across the course of the festival.
The festival works to promote fun and fairness to the children, with no scores being kept or winners awarded, the players can simply enjoy the experience of playing at the world-class venue.
Bronagh Luke, Head of Corporate Marketing at Henderson Group which owns SPAR in Northern Ireland commented: “It’s at the heart of the SPAR NI brand to support our local communities and this partnership allows us to do that, supporting the next generation of rugby players, coaches and referees from across Northern Ireland.
“The Primary Schools Festival is a great opportunity for aspiring young rugby players to learn more skills, meet new people and of course to play at Kingspan Stadium and our sponsorship of this event allows us to interact with more families from local communities and beyond.”
Jonny Petrie, Ulster Rugby CEO, commented, “We want to thank SPAR NI for their sponsorship of our Mini rugby events this season. Activities such as the Primary School Festival have many health and well-being benefits for the young people taking part, and SPAR NI’s sponsorship enables us to continue holding events like this across the province.
“SPAR NI work to support their communities in the same way we do here at Ulster Rugby, and our ongoing partnership allows us to come together to support more families, create more participation opportunities and have a bigger impact on our local communities.”
SPAR NI’s sponsorship of Ulster Rugby began in the 2022/23 season and will continue for the 2023/24 season, investing in the club’s grassroots community outreach for at least two years.
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