Sat, 22nd March
Tag Rugby, Bwerenga, Entebbe Road
Saturday will mark a special day for the development of the game of Rugby from the grass root stage in Uganda. Over 20 primary schools across the nation will converge at Bwerenga to participate as well as compete in the Tag Rugby gala.
“Tag Rugby is mostly for young boys and girls. Its an interesting game that helps the children learn the basics of the game without or minimal contact”, event co-ordinator, Fortunate Irankunda tells Kawowo Sports.
The participating schools are Entebbe schools:Kiwafu Primary,Chadwick Namate Primary School, St Tereza Primary School, Bugonga Boys Primary School, Lake Victoria Primary School, St Agnes Primary School, Kids of Africa, Conbert Primary (Nkumba), , UMEA primary (Kitubulu), Divine Child School (Nkumba), Wambwa Primary (Mbale), Walukuba Primary (Jinja), Nakulabye Orphanage School and many others.
About Tag Rugby
Tag rugby is a non-contact, fast-moving game that is suitable for adults or children, and for boys and girls to play together. Its safe, non-contact nature, combined with the fun and liveliness of the sport, means that tag rugby is now the Rugby Union’s official version of the game for under-7s and under-8s.
Its basic Rules include: No contact (but gumshield advisable), No kicking of any kind, when a tag is made, the tagger stops running, holds the tag above their head and shouts “TAG!”. When the ball-carrier is tagged, the ball must be passed to a team mate within three seconds, Competitive matches should not be more than seven a side.
The use of a either a tag belt or tag shorts replicates a tackle and is clearly seen when an effective tag has been made. Teams are seven-a-side with a preferred gender mix of at least three men and women playing at one time. (Teams can choose the gender of the seventh player).
The game has suggested progressions to allow the development of players and introduce more elements of the 15-a-side game. Coaches should use tag rugby to make their players see where space is and encourage evasive running into spaces and not faces.
Tag is a fast-growing version of the game, and the international Rugby Union encourages all clubs and playing organisation to look to organise regular tag rugby activity to increase fitness and participation.
In Uganda, the game was started in the year 2002 by a few British volunteers, under the name XCL group. The game started in Mbale, then spread to Kampala, Bushenyi and it is fast spreading to the other parts of the country.It has continued to attract the young blood on board under the Tag Rugby Development Trust.
