Sport

Gabby Clarke from Glinton is eagerly looking forward to the new rugby season, after three years of sport being affected by Covid.

The 14-year-old, a student at Arthur Mellows Village College, is a key member of Peterborough Rugby Club’s under-16 girls’ team, who had more matches cancelled than not last season, after two years completely wiped out by the pandemic. Now, the team is looking to re-establish itself as one of the top sides in the country and is looking for new recruits to join the great adventure that they’re on. The Fengate-based club has girls’ teams in under-18, under-16, under-14 and under-12 age groups, along with a dozen junior boys’ teams from under-18 down to under-6. The closest other clubs offering regular match play for girls’ teams are in Cambridge, Grantham and Northampton. “We’ve got a great Girls Academy,” said Lee Clarke, Gabby’s father who coaches the under-16s, “but all of the teams have space for another player or two and we’d offer a warm welcome to anyone who fancies trying out the sport.” “The team spirit is unbelievable and it’s always good to have a circle of really good friends from somewhere other than school. The girls have the chance to let off steam by clattering other teams on the pitch but the wonderful thing about rugby is that everyone’s good mates in the clubhouse afterwards.”

Girls’ rugby is said to be the fastest growing sport in the world and England is at the forefront of that, with the national side winning five of the last six Six Nations titles and currently being ranked number one in the world rankings. All of the girls’, and boys’, teams adhere to the ‘50% rule’ which means everyone plays at least half of every match so there is no frustration in not getting picked for matches. All of the coaches and first aiders are fully qualified and DBS-checked, with massive emphasis being placed upon player welfare and safety. Peterborough Rugby Club celebrates its centenary in two years’ time and although female rugby has only been a part of that history for 25 years, the girls’ section has already been a part of the National Rugby Awards and played overseas.

Potential new recruits can have three weeks trying out the sport without any obligation or cost and can contact Girls Academy team manager Simon Potter, also from Glinton, at simon_potter@outlook.com