THE weather played ball for Saturday’s rearranged Ards Rugby Charity Touch Rugby Festival at Hamilton Park.
The number of teams taking part was reduced due to the change of date, but 18 teams still took part in either the social or competitive sections. There was a real family feel to the social section with mums, dads, aunts and uncles either playing with or against their kids, nieces or nephews and the players ranged from 10 to 70 years old.
Stuart Stevenson’s team of Ards Legends with a combined age of over 700 years proved that experience trumps exuberance by winning the social section and the Millsy Cup in a nail biting final that went to penalty kicks.
The competitive section and the Charity Cup was retained by the BR Barbarians. Off the field there was plenty of entertainment including bouncy castles, face painting, live music on the deck and an all day barbeque.
This year’s chosen charity was the Ards and North Down branch of the National Autistic Society and a presentation will be made to them in due course. Thanks go to event sponsors CORE Fitness, Fayre by Corries and Fitness Matters, as well to all those who supported the event and volunteered over both dates to ensure everything was able to run smoothly.
