E.ON UK helps Warwickshire girls rugby team to the top of the league

Energy company E.ON has stepped in to replace equipment stolen from Mid Warwickshire Girls’ Rugby Club – the comets - and help make 2007 the club’s most successful season yet.

Mark Dobson, the club’s treasurer and whose daughter used to play for the club, works for E.ON as an accountant at the head office in Coventry.

He also helped organise the Leamington-based club’s successful summer tour to Newquay, where the girls reached the quarter finals of the UK’s largest beach rugby festival. E.ON donated the cash to the youngsters in recognition of his volunteer effort.

“We were devastated when our rugby balls and kit were stolen last year,“ said Mark.

“The club has been running for five years so we were determined to replace what was taken as quickly as possible and concentrate on playing again.

“The girls are currently top of the West Midlands tag league, and get a real buzz out of playing, and it’s great to see their efforts helped by E.ON.”

The club coaches girls aged 8-17 years to play both tag and contact rugby and new players are always welcome. Training sessions are held at Old Leamontonians, Leamington Spa, on Wednesday evenings and matches are played at weekends, visit www.cometsrugby.co.uk for more information.

EndsNotes to editors:

• E.ON is the UK’s largest integrated power and gas company – generating and distributing electricity, and retailing power and gas – and is part of the E.ON group, the world's largest investor-owned power and gas company. We employ around 15,000 people in the UK;
• E.ON UK supports its employees’ favourite charities by matching funds raised through sponsorship and other activities undertaken in employees’ own time. Since October 2005,E.ON UK has donated £165,000 through matched funding and in recognition of employees’ voluntary efforts.

For further information contact:
Jane Branscombe on 024 7618 3681

COMETS ROUND OFF 2006 IN STYLE!

The Comets girls tag rugby team finished off 2006 in great style, winning the fourth festival of the season at Evesham on Remembrance Sunday, and coming runners up at the fifth and final festival in November, at Yardley & District. The girls of the match at Evesham and Yardley festivals respectively were Grace Lambert and Rhiannon Cory.

The team is top of the West Midlands Girls Tag Rugby league, with 24 league points earned out of a maximum 25 points. A further nine festivals are to be played in 2007, and the Comets girls are determined that the league trophy shall be theirs this season!

The quality of the tag rugby played by the Comets was also underlined recently when no less than nine Comets players were picked to represent Warwickshire County, at a representative tag rugby festival against Greater Birmingham. This match was held in December at Moseley Rugby Club and the County was also represented by girls from Kenilworth RFC and Old Coventrians RFC. The Warwickshire County teams won six, drew three and lost only one fixture.

The team now look forward to the next girls’ tag rugby festival to be held at Nuneaton RFC on Sunday 14th January.

2006 success was complete with the launch of a shiny new website, designed and launched by local webmaster Annie Astill with wide input from the players. “The new website is a huge leap forward for us and will make a massive difference in communications; it will also provide a great shop window for the club to potential new players” said Chairman Paul Ford.

Formed in 2002, the Comets Rugby Football Club is the leading girls rugby team in Warwickshire. The Comets tag and contact rugby teams train at OLRFC, every Wednesday night at 6.30pm and Sunday morning at 10.30am. Girls interested in trying out the game can call Mike Vallance on 411762 or check out the website www.cometsrugby.co.uk.

Mike Vallance
Vice Chairman
Comets Tag Rugby