By Jerry Burley

Tag rugby was started in Rwanda in early 2002 by a few crazy British volunteers, under the name of XCL Group, who on a self-financed tour to the country introduced the game in Mbale and then Kigali. In 2004, a larger XCL group visited Bushenyi district and thrust the game on 3 unsuspecting schools there, whose pupils had never seen a purposely oval ball before, let alone played a game of rugby. Within a week over 150 kids were playing in the country's first tag tournament, in front of over 1,000 screaming supporters. It was a day to remember and well worth the long drive down to Bushenyi to watch. This tour gave Kyadondo Rugby Club the impetus to start Tag rugby in Kampala and a number of Club members subsequently attended a coaching course, thereafter taking the game into a number of Kampala schools.

On the 10th November 2004, Kampala's first tag tournament was played at Kyadondo, with about 250 kids playing. The numbers of schools being coached increases every year whilst volunteers, now under the TRDT (Tag Rugby Development Trust) banner continue to visit and introduce the game into districts outside Kampala.

Well over 300 kids played in the 2006 tournament, again at Kyadondo, on 16th August of this year. But what is Tag rugby? Although now played at all age levels and by both sexes, it was originally developed and introduced as a non-contact (and hence less physical) means of introducing the basic concepts of contact rugby to children from age six upwards, including the skills of passing, catching, and the defending and support plays that are such important facets of the full code. Assuming a basic understanding of the full game, the main difference is that instead of physically bringing an opposition player that has the ball to the ground, as is the way in the contact variant, a tackle is made by getting close enough to the opponent with the ball to be able to pull off one of two fabric tags (hence the name) that are attached by Velcro to a belt worn by each player (as can be seen in the photos). Once a tag is removed,

the player must immediately pass the ball to one of his or her team.

Failure to do results in the whistle going and a restart, with both teams withdrawing behind their respective offside lines. A de-tagged player may not rejoin the game until the tag is replaced on the belt. After five restarts without a try being scored, the ball is ""turned over"" and the opposition then get the chance to attack their opponents try line, in the same manner, with the intention of crossing it and scoring a try (worth one point). There are no scrums, kicks, conversions or line outs, all of which are skills introduced later when full contact rugby is commenced.

Pretty basic, you may say. Indeed, but none-the-less very skillful and fast when played well and some of the kids that turn out at Kyadondo are skillful indeed. Emulating their national team heroes who train on the same grounds, the odd goose step and highly effective dummy are often used to great effect. These are the kids that in five to ten years time will be replacing the current national team on the world stage. Kyadondo Club Chairman Ian Walker MBE was on hand to conduct the prize giving ceremony and ex-Springbok, World Cup winner and current Rwanda Cranes national team coach Chester Williams was in welcome attendance to present the winners and Most Valuable Player trophies.

All participating schools were given a new training ball as well, courtesy of the Rwanda
Rugby Union. At the senior level, the Cranes face their next opponents, Morocco, in their second round IRB Rugby World Cup qualifier pool at Kampala Club (behind Shoprite Game) on the 9th September 2006. This is the furthest the Cranes have ever got in the RWC so do come down and support them on the day, as they take on their next challenge in the quest to qualify for France 2007.