Scottish Rugby gives backing to Trust Rugby International

Scottish Rugby has today announced its official support to Scotland’s only unified rugby team, Trust Rugby International (TRI). Scottish Rugby will give financial backing of£10,000 to the organisation, which runs teams – the Ayrshire Clan and Edinburgh Clan – in association with Kilmarnock, Edinburgh Accies and Broughton rugby clubs.The partnership funding from Scottish Rugby will initially go towards developing and strengthening the Edinburgh Clan, allowing a development team to be established and making funds available for the core running costs of the team, such as training and transport costs.Unified rugby is where players with a disability train and play in the same team as non-disabled players, promoting equality, diversity and social inclusion through participation in the game.Trust Rugby International believe that by engaging in a team game like rugby, it can provide an outlet for those who wouldn’t normally be engaged in sport, getting people with learning disabilities to get more active.Today’s announcement comes as part of Scottish Rugby’s drive to ensure rugby is a game for all, and that it is equal, diverse and inclusive in Scotland.Scottish Rugby’s outreach and equality manager, Pete Young, said: “I’m delighted to confirm that Scottish Rugby will provide financial support to Trust Rugby International.”Their work is extremely valuable and opens up our sport to people who would have had no opportunities to be involved with rugby before.”We hope that by working together and sharing our expertise we will see more and more people getting involved with a sport they love.”Jamie Armstrong, Trust Rugby International’s founder and development director, said: “We have been building a relationship with Scottish Rugby over the past three or four years, in order to understand how our progression can fit in with Scottish Rugby’s developments and strategies within the club game.”It’s fantastic now to have Scottish Rugby standing behind this unified version of the sport. They are one of the first Unions around the world to do so.”Having this backing will allow us to further establish the quality of the work that we’re doing.”We want to develop a model that is sustainable and, which in a few years’ time, will see unified rugby part and parcel of the clubs that The Clans are operating in.”This partnership is a result of the hard work that Scottish Rugby are doing to make rugby a game for all, which marries perfectly with our tag line, ‘rugby unlimited’.”This August, The Clan – a Scottish national team made up of the Ayrshire and Edinburgh Clans – will represent Scotland at the 2015 Inclusion World Tournament in Bradford.This tournament is being held as part of the legacy for the 2015 World Cup and will be contested by ten countries including England, Wales, Ireland, Italy, France, Spain, Serbia, Romania and Belgium.Armstrong continued:”This is the first ever mixed ability world rugby tournament to take place and unlike England and Wales, who will compete as club teams, we will be bringing together our two squads to make a national team.”With the support of Scottish Rugby we hope to wear the thistle at that event.”