Excitement is building in the Irish Touch Rugby community for the upcoming Atlantic Youth Touch Cup which will take place at the University of Limerick from 1st – 3rd August. This will be the largest international Touch Rugby tournament ever hosted in Ireland with 45 teams from 12 countries due to travel to Limerick.
There are nine categories of competition across U15, U18 and U20 age groups. All three age groups will feature male, female and mixed teams with players travelling from as far away as China, South Africa and the Cayman Islands. Newcomers Ukraine will be playing in their first ever international competition while Portugal will take part in their first ever youth level international tournament.
Ireland will field six teams in the competition, double the number of teams that they have fielded in recent years with a whole host of new players introduced to the international game.
The planning for this tournament has been ongoing since late last year led by the Federation of International Touch (FIT) Chief Operations Officer, Chris Simon, and Ireland Touch Association (ITA) Chairperson, Michelle Mulcahy. The organisers have got a committee as well as a large team of volunteers in place to run the tournament smoothly. If anyone is interested in volunteering at the tournament, please register here
Ireland Touch Association Chairperson, Michelle Mulcahy added: “I’m delighted to welcome so many countries to Limerick. It is going to be a great competition, with so many teams competing across all categories. We have seen the growth of the women’s categories, which is great to see.
This is such a great opportunity to introduce spectators to Touch Rugby, given that it could be an Olympic sport in 2032. We hope this will get lots of new players both young and old to join.
As a small organisation, we were delighted to be given the opportunity to host so many countries who will experience the Irish welcome and to showcase the Touch stars of the future. I must also mention our partners Failte Ireland and Limerick County Council who have been very supportive.”
Meanwhile the Irish Junior Squads have been preparing for this competition since early this year. Led by the ITA Head of Junior Touch Rugby Tania Rosser and Billy Ngawini, the initial trials in January led to the selection of extended training squads. Since then, regular training camps have taken place in various venues around the country. Tania is also coaching the Mixed 18s Squad and is very much looking forward to the tournament,
Head of Junior Touch Rugby Tania Rosser said, “We’re delighted to be sending our largest-ever contingent to the Atlantic Cup this year. It’s fantastic to see our Girls 18s back in action and to introduce a new Boys 15s side to the tournament. A heartfelt thanks to all the parents, families, and sponsors who make this possible.”
Anyone who is interested in following the Irish Junior Squads can find full details of fixtures, results and live streams here. Spectators will also be very welcome to come along and watch the action live at the playing pitches beside the UL Arena.
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