Junior rugby festival back after hiatus
Huge Global Games event returns after two-year break due to Covid
Taupō is brimming with oval-ball excitement this week as thousands of junior rugby players, spread over 107 teams, arrive for the New Zealand Junior Rugby Festival.
It is the largest junior rugby tournament in the world this year with about 2000 players competing.
First held in 2010, the festival has been a muchanticipated annual highlight of the Taupō events calendar.
The impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 and 2021 tournaments.
Tyrone Campbell, director of Auckland-based sporting events company and festival organiser Global Games, says the three-year wait has done little to deter interest in the event.
Most teams who entered in 2019 returned this year, along with several newcomers.
“The impact of Covid has had a terminal effect on many outstanding events both here in Aotearoa and abroad, so we’re both very grateful and hugely excited to be able to resume the festival this year.
“It is an opportunity for teams and their supporters to reconnect and rekindle friendships forged at previous tournaments, and meet new members of our whānau who will be attending for the first time.”
Campbell said in keeping with the Global Games ethos, the focus of the festival was less about competition and more about enjoyment, sportsmanship and the opportunity to participate in a major sports tournament.
For many it would be the biggest stage they have played on.
“Regardless of whether players are playing in their very first season of rugby, or are destined for the All Blacks, our mission at Global Games is the same: to provide every player with a positive worldclass experience that will last them a lifetime.
“The chance to go on tour with their teammates will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for some of these kids, as touring is usually reserved for elite players selected for representative duties.
“For many, just having the experience of being on a bonafide rugby tour will be something they remember forever.”
The New Zealand Junior Rugby Festival is being held at Owen Delaney Park, with the opening ceremony at 4.30pm today, Thursday, September 15.
Games kick off at 9am tomorrow and run until 2.30pm on Sunday.