Students with hearing impairments from across Cardiff recently descended on the Arms Park for the Community Foundation’s annual Wales Deaf Rugby Day.
Pupils from Llanishen High School, Cantonian High School and Coed Glas Primary Schools all swapped their pens and pencils for rugby balls and boots in the hugely successful event.
Members of the Wales Deaf team also attended to help deliver the session, while Cardiff Rugby first team stars Liam Belcher and Theo Cabango also dropped into the session.
It was yet another example of the Community Foundation’s mission to ensure rugby is an accessible sport for people of all backgrounds and abilities.
Craig Enticott, the Foundation’s Inclusion Officer said: “It was great to have so many pupils here at the Arms Park for our annual deaf rugby day and be able to show everyone that rugby is an inclusive game and accessible to those with hearing impairments.
“We have had some of our first team players and members of the Wales men’s and women’s deaf rugby team here, who are proof that there is a pathway there and there aren’t barriers to participation.
“For a lot of these children, it is their first experience of rugby or their first time coming to an iconic stadium like Cardiff Arms Park, so it has been great to put on this event and give everyone a really positive experience.”
The pupils enjoyed a skills carousel on the pitch including passing, agility and tag rugby before a Q&A with the Wales Deaf Internationals.
Callum Digby, Vale of Glamorgan Rugby Officer, said: “It was a little bit different based on the participants. We had two different groups here. With the secondary schools you can do a bit more advanced stuff, looking at techniques more while with the primary school kids, it’s a bit more of an introduction.
“All the kids here have hearing impairments so how we as coaches deliver was a little bit different. We had a little microphone for one of the groups that we wore around our necks and for the other group it was just making sure that you were visibly in front of them so they could see you and read some cues rather than just just shouting.”
Bethan Bruma, a teacher at Llanishen High School added: “It was a great opportunity for students to try rugby out here at Cardiff Arms Park. They were able to mix with students from other schools, learn different skills and just have the opportunity to get involved with the national sport of Wales.
“It’s a different life experience for them in a different social environment where they can improve their ability to play as a team, improve their hand-eye coordination and gain some confidence in physical activity.
“For some of the children it is similar to what they may already have done in school but to be able to come together at the Arms Park with lots of other pupils with hearing impairments is great.
“The opportunity to meet and ask questions of some of the Wales Deaf players was also brilliant. It shows them if rugby is something they enjoy that they can carry on in their day-to-day lives.”
For more information about Cardiff Rugby Community Foundation’s Disability and Inclusion programme, please contact [email protected]
