St Mary's Men's Rugby Union Shortlisted in BUCS Awards 2016

The longstanding Men’s Rugby Union club at St Mary’s University, Twickenham is one step closer to being named ‘Club of the Year’ after reaching the final of the annual British Universities & Colleges Sport Awards (BUCS). The sports club, which competes in the BUCS 1A Division, has made it onto the shortlist for the category after successfully demonstrating notable achievements in several areas, including participation, fundraising and the provision of opportunities for coaching and refereeing. To name just a few feats, the club increased its membership by more than 500% in 12 months, rising from 14 participants in 2014/15 to 85 the following year. Other accomplishments are the almost £3,000 that Men’s Rugby Union raised for the RFU Injured Players Foundation as well as the club hosting a level 2 coaching course, through which 50 students qualified as coaches or referees. Andrew Reid-Smith, Director of Sport St Mary’s, said, “The club has had an excellent year with impressive achievements on and off the field. The students have contributed and benefitted from this, and the partnership with the RFU is helping to establish a club that contributes to the community and the game itself.” Ty Sterry, Rugby Development Officer at Rugby Football Union, added, “What has been particularly impressive is the commitment and values demonstrated across the entire club. There has been some real innovative ideas and actions implemented by the club committee, which has aided growth in participation and opportunities to celebrate university sport. From the succession plan put in place this should guarantee the sustainability into the coming years.” Over the next six weeks judges will decide which university sports club will walk away with the award, before announcing the winner at its annual conference on Thursday 14^th July. The University of Nottingham’s Equestrian club and the University of Portsmouth’s Cricket club have also been shortlisted in this category. For a full list of the award categories and shortlisted nominees, please click here.