Wheelchair Rugby Australia Awarded Grant to Roll Out National Talent ID Plan in 2020

Wheelchair Rugby Australia (WRA) is excited to announce the creation of a new, nationally driven recruitment plan in 2020, having been awarded a game development grant from The Rugby Club Foundation. The grant is designed to allow Wheelchair Rugby Australia to deliver a national campaign targeting athletes with classifiable neurological impairments and encouraging participation with state Wheelchair Rugby programs at a grassroots level, in the hope of widening the player funnel into the sport.

The Neurological Impairment Talent ID Plan is set to commence from July, running for a 12-month period, and involves the collaboration of relevant neurological impairment organisations with their wheelchair rugby state program, a nationally-focused marketing campaign along with state-based “come’n’try” days, all aimed at increasing athlete participation and community awareness of the sport.

Photos courtesy of Playsport and Tom Brassil

Wheelchair Rugby Australia’s General Manager, Chris Nay, said “The Neurological Impairment Talent ID Plan has so much potential to increase our participation numbers on a national level. Most pleasingly, it is a fully aligned plan, having been created in collaboration with the Australian Steelers High Performance Program, through to our grassroots programs, from which the hope is to establish a successful legacy player funnel that feeds up our pathway system”

“The Rugby Club Foundation have demonstrated over the last few years that they are committed to helping drive the growth in wheelchair rugby, and their constant support in developing the grassroots of our game is something that will make a lasting impact to our sport”, Nay continued. 

The Rugby Club Foundation’s Chairman, Angus Bruxner, said, “We are committed to increasing our financial support of grassroots rugby, and are hopeful that the Foundation’s funding and long-standing history of support for Wheelchair Rugby will help to deliver the growth and capacity the sport deserves”. 

Wheelchair Rugby Australia are close to finalising revised dates for the 2020 GIO Wheelchair Rugby National Championship, with an announcement scheduled for July 3.

If you, or someone you know is interested in becoming involved in wheelchair rugby, find the direct contact to your local program here, https://www.wheelchairrugby.com.au/play

Further Information: 
Chris Nay - General Manager, Wheelchair Rugby Australia  
M: 0405 036 727 
E: chris@wheelchairrugby.com.au