Our under 15 captain, Davis Jensen, has been selected in the NSW Country squad following outstanding performances for the Far North Coast team in the country championships held in Bowral over the week end of 7 and 8 May. The Bangalow juniors have been well represented in Far North Coast teams in past years, but Davis is the first player to make it the next step to NSW country rep status.

What a fantastic achievement for Davis and a real accomplishment for our junior club, especially given the fact that it was only formed in 2007.

In another strong turn out for the Club, more than 70 boys (and one girl) aged from 6 to 15 have registered to play rugby with Bangalow in 2011. We are fielding five teams: under 7s, under 8s, under 10s, under 12s and under 15s. This will be the first year that Bangalow has had an under 7s team.

The numbers are strong across the older age groups, but we are still looking for a few more players to join the mighty under 7s and 8s. The under 7s play touch footy and the 8s play tackle with modified rules, both with an emphasis on fun and participation. If anyone knows any kids who might be interested, encourage them to come along to training on Tuesday afternoon from 4.15pm.

After the first round wash out, the u8s and 15s had byes in the second round played on Friday 6 May. The u7s and 10s played at home against Lennox and WAR. The 7s had great fun and the 10s had a very good win 41 points to 33. The u12s had a tough night at Wollongbar against a much bigger side going down bravely 63 nil. The Club is seeking to shift our team into the u12B competition which plays under the u11 pathway rules and will be better suited to our small, young squad, most of whom are under 11s.

The under 15s can’t wait to get on to the paddock next Friday against Casino. After playing in three consecutive grand finals and losing each one by small margins, this team surely deserves to take out the competition this year.

Bangalow Rugby President Richard Kelly (centre) at the recent UNCLE surfing day

The Bangalow Rugby Club is lining up to support the UNCLE project.

President of the Bangalow Rugby Club, Richard Kelly, said the Club was keen to help expand the range of activities for boys without active fathers.

“Bangalow Rugby has an active, successful junior club so we are already providing healthy, fun physical recreation opportunities for lots of boys from the Byron Shire. Teaming up with UNCLE is a natural extension of what we are already doing,” Mr Kelly said.

The Rugby Club aims to support UNCLE by increasing the number of men who volunteer for UNCLE activities and by helping to organise events.

“We also hope to see some of the UNCLE boys on the playing field for Bangalow Junior Rugby this year,” Mr Kelly said.

Junior sign on for Bangalow Rugby will be held from 2.00pm to 4.00pm this Saturday, 26 February at the Bangalow Bowling Club. Parents and players interested in playing junior rugby with the Bangalow can contact Dave Phillips on 0412 080 614.

Cost of Entry – $40

1st, 2nd and 3rd place receive cash prizes.

The competition will be run online and managed by Investec Super Rugby Challenge. It’s extremely easy to set up your account and pick your winners.  If people are late at registering (ie. they miss the first few rounds) they will be allocated home winners as per the Investec ruling.

If you miss putting your tips in prior to kick off the same applies. Each player will have 7 Home win defaults after which they lose points. There are also bonus points for picking margins & perfect rounds. All the rules are noted and accessable on the web.

So, come join our Super Rugby prediction game on the Investec Rugby Challenge! It’s free and loads of fun. Just click here:

http://rugbychallenge.investec.com/superrugby/pool.asp?p=40793

Pool name: Bangalow Rugby

Pool code: hightuna