“ENERGY AND PERSISTENCE CONQUER ALL THINGS”

 The unstoppable Nsa “Junior” Harrison charging downfield against Cote d’Ivoire in Botswana. Photos courtesy of Marie-Louise van der Sandt When Benjamin Franklin spoke these words of wisdom it is probable that he didn’t have rugby in Nigeria in mind…he would at least have had to have had the foresight of Nostradamus to do so.

Still, when we look back at the rugby scene in Nigeria in 2012 his words couldn’t have been more apt. Thanks to CAC 1000 and Bagco for the first time the national side had sponsored kit to play in when they travelled to Botswana and Morocco.

The results on the pitch didn’t go all our way (played two lost two in the Africa Group C1 tournament in Gaborone and third place in Morocco).

Without the luxury of getting the team to get together for a lengthy training camp before running on the pitch for their first game of the season they can hold their heads up high with the way they came back from slow starts in both games to comfortably win the second halves. Some time together and a practice game or two could have made all the difference between winning and losing.

 With a bit more preparation time before the Confederation of African Rugby Sevens in Morocco the sevens side did the country proud with third place. In the semi-final Nigeria lost by 5 points to a more experienced Zimbabwe side that subsequently won the final by 25 over Tunisia. In the process Nigeria just missed qualifying for the World Cup in Russia this year.

 The results were a big disappointment for the Steve Lewis and his team who sacrificed their personal leave to represent the country in both tournaments, but it goes to show the spirit that exists among the players here at home and also in the UK.

Special thanks go to EXP, SGS and The Wheatbaker Hotel who sponsored the “meet the team” breakfast before the team left for Botswana. Cheers also go to Mark Hibbert who generously gave the guys dinner and drinks at Step Inn the night before they left.

 The team was overwhelmed by the show of support and generosity. This year Nigeria has both tournaments to play again, with the Group C1 tournament due to be held in Cote d’Ivoire in June and the CAR Sevens likely to be held in Morocco again.

 On the local front the Northern 15s league ran smoothly and the Nigerian Police confirmed their status as the best sevens team in the country by winning both the Northern 7s in October and the Lagos 7s in November. The standard of play in both tournaments was an improvement over 2011 but the lack of regular game time was clearly evident with occasional poor decision making the result of a lack of experience.

Despite that there were some magnificent tries scored at both tournaments. In a first for rugby in Nigeria The American International School played a physically smaller team from CMS Grammar School (one of the schools in the Cowbell Milk iTry coaching programme) at the Lagos 7s with a Naija style haka firing up CMS Grammar enough to record a 5-0 victory in the curtain raiser to the Lagos 7s Final.

PROMISIDOR AND SUPERSPORT GETTING KIDS OFF THE COUCH AND PLAYING Promasidor has taken the lead in sponsoring rugby in schools in Nigeria through the exciting Cowbell I-Try initiative.

Last year 40 school coaches were trained to IRB Level One with almost 2000 kids from the ages of 8 upwards learning the game at 30 schools in Lagos.

They begin with tag and touch rugby and progress to full contact in due course. The NRFF is coordinating clusters of schools around Lagos where schools can share facilities. Supersport is also championing the game through their Let’s Play CSI programme.

Let’s Play, Supersport’s CSI initiative, targets kids from 6-10 years old encouraging them to get off the couch, out of the house and onto a playing field. In July they worked with the NRFF to hold a three day rugby clinic for all the schools in Badagry.

Rugby people the world over know that to grow and keep players in the game you have to get kids playing early which what both the I-try and Let’s Play programmes are all about. The excitement in Badagry over the few days was electric not only among the kids learning to play but by all the people of Badagry.

Let’s Play has offered any brand that partners with them rugby clinics on-screen logo presence double the value of their financial contribution. The IRB also sent a coaching team from Kenya to Nigeria in October and held four clinics in Lagos and Kaduna for coaches and referees. In Kano, Barewa Rugby club run a youth development programme and have adopted a few local schools who are enthusiastically taking up the game.

 In Lagos several private schools have begun playing the game but much work remains to be done to grow a culture of schools rugby and then to progress it through to universities and colleges. NIGERIANS IN THE DIASPORA COME TO THE PARTY It’s a sad reality that the Nigerian team has never played a test at home.

There were hopes this would change if Nigeria hosted the CAR Group C1 tournament this year but with it now scheduled for Cote d’Ivoire an immediate home test is unlikely. There has been a big upsurge of interest by Nigerians living abroad to represent their country over the last few years and almost 120 Nigerians are regularly playing rugby abroad and training together.

On Feb 3 the UK based Nigerian Exiles take on the Zimbabwean Exiles in London, and fixtures against Esher Development and Suffolk County will ensure Nigeria is in a position to perform at CAR 1C in Abidjan this coming June.

 LAGOS 7S MOVING BACK TO VI Moving the Lagos 7s to the National Stadium last year proved one thing; expats won’t move off the Islands over weekends. Attendance was slightly up by Nigerians at the National Stadium but the rugby fans who attended the Lagos 7s at Onikan in 2011 didn’t come to Surulere so this year the Lagos 7s will again be held in November in VI.

 The UK based Nigerians will be sending a team to play in Lagos this year which means extra incentive for the local sides to raise their game and more media attention for sponsors. Nigerian Police (Ikeja) celebrate defending the Lagos 7s Cup they won in 2011 The focus this year will be on making the Lagos 7s more of a social event on the Lagos calendar and with the prospect of holding it in VI and with international and schools participation the chances of a better public turnout is good and better value for sponsors.

In an exciting promotion at the Lagos Sevens in November Mandillas Motors sponsored a Toyota Avenza to the first spectator to hit the cross-bar with a drop kick from the 10metre line. Despite several attempts some of which were quite close nobody struck the bar the car remains to be won at the next tournament.

 There are numerous sponsorship opportunities again this year at schools, club and international level. Plans are going ahead for the Northern and Lagos Sevens in October and November.

For any enquiries on sponsoring the travel costs of a team from any part of Nigeria or abroad, sponsoring the goal posts, referees kit etc. please contact Mike Archer or Tertius Strauss.