The Heineken Cup continued its journey around the province last week when it created great excitement by visiting St. Mary’s Rowlagh Primary School in Clondalkin…
The trophy was very well received in the school and all the children, including junior infants, knew what the cup was and that Leinster won it by being the best team in Europe.
The area is mainly dominated by GAA and soccer, with the majority of the pupils never having been exposed to the game previously.
Great work is being done in the secondary schools to take them on a bit further in their rugby development with the idea that a pupil started rugby in 5th/6th class and the introduction continues from 1st year and onwards.
Three Community Development Officers visit over 60 schools each year, while two years ago the Swords Project was introduced and has proven to be extremely successful.
A similar project has been running in Tallaght for a number of years and many secondary schools there now have Junior and Senior cup teams who compete in the Tallaght Cup, and are now trying to expand it into non-traditional areas, such as Clondalkin.
From the tiniest of seeds grow the largest trees and it is hoped that the stars of tomorrow will one day emulate the heroes of today.
