TOUCHLINE The Official Newspaper of The RFU February 2017 Issue 198 FIRST RFU ARTIFICIAL GRASS RFU PARTNERS PITCHES LAUNCHED WITH THE COMMONWEALTH WAR GRAVES COMMISSION The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) has become the Rugby Football Union’s military charity partner for 2017. Remembering all the rugby players who died in the First World War between 2014 and 2018, the RFU’s programme of Great War GEMMA COBB commemorations focuses on remembering, educating and fundraising. Preston Grasshoppers, Aylesbury and Hornets RFCs hope that the flexibility and enhanced opportunities they Said RFU Chief Executive Ian Ritchie: “Partnering with the Commonwealth recently opened the first three RFU Rugby 365 floodlit provide across the regions will open up the sport for a War Graves Commission will build on those themes, drawing on artificial grass pitches (AGPs) as part of the RFU’s wider audience to enjoy the benefits of rugby.” the Commission’s work in their centenary year as they celebrate the Rugby World Cup 2015 legacy of delivering over £47m RFU President Peter Baines opened the artificial grass work of their staff around the world and commemorate the 1.7 million investment over four years into the development of 100 pitch at Hornets RFC in between the Hornets Colts v Commonwealth servicemen and women who died in the two world wars. AGPs across England. Weston Super Mare and Hornettes v Cullompton Ladies “We are grateful to the Commission for their help in producing our The new AGPs will provide their communities with matches, illustrating the variety of games already taking Rose and Poppy Films and hope to grow support for the Commission and year-round rugby through the durability of the all- place on the pitches. encourage the RFU’s member schools and clubs nationwide to remember weather surface, which will enable additional training Eddie Jones was in Lancashire to launch Preston those who left rugby fields for battlefields never to return.” sessions and more flexibility in playing times thanks Grasshoppers’ pitch with a training session for 40 young CWGC Vice Chairman, Sir Tim Laurence said: “Huge thanks go to the to the floodlights. The pitches are expected to increase players from clubs across the community, in front of a RFU for supporting the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in our rugby participation across clubs and community groups, 700-strong crowd. centenary year. Together, we will remember them”. further growing the sport. Said Eddie Jones: “It’s been great to see the whole CWGC Director General, Mrs Victoria Wallace, added: “We hope rugby fans RFU CEO Ian Ritchie opened Aylesbury RFC’s pitch as community come out in force to celebrate the launch and around the world will be inspired to learn more of past players who made the the club took on local rivals Beaconsfield RFC. He said: “It I hope to see clubs, schools and organisations all using ultimate sacrifice for their countries in the two world wars, and to pay their is expected that each AGP pitch will create between 1,500 and benefitting from this great facility.” respects at any of our 23,000 cemeteries and memorials in 150 countries. and 2,000 hours of additional access to play a year and we Continued on page 2 Continued on page 2 TOUCHLINE – FEBRUARY 2017 1 Continued from page 1 Continued from page 1 FIRST RFU ARTIFICIAL GRASS RFU PARTNERS WITH THE COMMONWEALTH WAR GRAVES COMMISSION PITCHES LAUNCHED “The CWGC made a commitment in 1917 that the names of Roses and Poppy films: click here and the First World War As part of the official launches the RFU has introduced a these heroes would live for ever and we are grateful to the RFU Exhibition in the World Rugby Museum click here Pitch for a Pound promotion, giving the local communities for helping us pass on the torch of remembrance to another the chance to book an hour on the pitch for just £1 (+ VAT), for generation in 2017.” January and February, with half a pitch only 5op (+VAT). To book time on the Buckinghamshire, Lancashire or Somerset pitch, go to englandrugby.com The RFU has invested £47m into the Rugby 365 artificial grass pitch programme, with a commitment to build 60 artificial grass pitches on rugby club sites across England over four years. Feasibility has started on phase two sites across the country, with construction due to start on 17 more pitches this summer. There will be further partnership investment to part-fund 40 pitches on community sites, with a guaranteed number of hours’ rugby use, with three university sites currently in development. For more information on Artificial Grass Pitches, and to book a pitch near you, go to englandrugby.com Sometimes you just want to jump for joy! Six-year-old Darcey Fryer-Bovil, a junior member of the England Rugby Club had the time of her life when she was a mascot for England when they took on France in the RBS 6 Nations at Twickenham. Membership is £10 a year at englandrugby.com/club SPORT ENGLAND INVESTS IN RUGBY GEMMA COBB Sport England’s investment of over £100 million of National Lottery and Government funding for 25 national governing bodies of sport, to get more people playing sport regularly and keeping that healthy habit, included £12.6m investment in rugby for the Rugby Football Union. Sport England said that the RFU’s plan to convert school rugby players into committed club members via their successful CBRE All Schools programme, which will by 2019 have worked with 750 state schools without a tradition of playing rugby and in areas with highly-diverse communities, helped players “to move into well-organised and supportive community clubs with good coaching and plenty of playing opportunities. They added that for those that like rugby but not the full contact version, the RFU will create more opportunities to play informal, social and non-contact touch rugby, adding “They’ll also create more chances to play rugby sevens around the country. “With female players currently playing on average fewer than 10 matches a season but 50 per cent wanting to play more, women’s and girls’ rugby is also in for a boost. More ‘pitch up and play’ opportunities will be created. “Around 13,000 university students currently play rugby. The RFU will use its Sport England funding to increase that number, and support graduates to continue playing when they move to the next big phase in their lives. “Finally, they will continue to support young up and coming female players as they progress through the England talent system.” Steve Grainger, the RFU’s Rugby Development Director, said: “We are delighted to secure a significant partnership with Sport England over the next four years. Since the staging of Rugby World Cup 2015 in England we have seen substantial interest in our sport. This renewed partnership will support us in sustaining current rugby participation across England while helping grow the game, providing even more opportunities for people to play all variants of our game.” 2 TOUCHLINE – FEBRUARY 2017 2015-16 PROFESSIONAL RUGBY INJURY REPORT GARETH MILLS The Professional Rugby Injury Surveillance Project (PRISP) report for the 2015-16 season was • There were again no clear differences in the incidence, severity or overall injury burden of published last month (January). The project is the most comprehensive and longest-running time-loss injuries between matches played on artificial turf and natural grass. injury surveillance study in professional rugby and has monitored the injury risk of Premiership • 10 players retired as a result of injury and one retired as a result of illness last season. Rugby players in Premiership Rugby, European and national competition as well as training for • There has been an increase in the incidence of match injuries in the England Senior side the past 13 seasons. last season compared to the previous season. With a greater number of games played in a The key findings from the 2015-16 season include: World Cup year, more match injuries were reported but the average severity of match injuries decreased. With this increased incidence but decreased average severity, the overall risk of • The incidence of match injuries in the Premiership was lower in 2015-16 than reported in any match injury was seen to remain relatively stable. previous season. Data collection during the 2016-17 season will help clarify whether this is the start of a trend towards a lower overall injury incidence or an atypical year. The PRISP report also provides an update on key research projects around concussion • The average time taken to return to play following a match injury in the 2015-16 season was 29 prevention, artificial turf injury risk and how best to manage athletes on artificial turf, training load days, which falls within the expected limits of variation. and injury risk and the utility of the King-Devick assessment in identifying concussed players. • Concussion for the fifth consecutive season was the most commonly reported Premiership Simon Kemp, RFU Chief Medical Officer, said: “The continued rise in the number of reported Rugby match injury constituting approximately 25% of all match injuries. It is the consensus concussions in the professional game continues to be an area of priority focus for everyone view that the continued focus on improving concussion awareness and promoting behavioural involved in the game. Medical staff are all working extremely hard to ensure that we are change, the formal independent post-match video review of all head injury events as well as identifying and managing this complex injury well. While we continue to ‘recognise and remove’, a more inclusive and specific identification criteria within the Head Injury Assessment (HIA) our focus must now be on concussion prevention.” process have all contributed to this continued rise in concussion incidents.