Local firm backs national junior team as European Touch rugby championships heads to Swansea

A Swansea accountancy firm has shown its backing for youth sport in Wales by sponsoring the Welsh national team at the first ever European Junior Touch Rugby Championships this summer.

Swansea based chartered certified accountants, tax and business advisors, Morgan Hemp, will now feature on the shirts of the Wales junior squad as they take on eight teams from across Europe at the Championships held in Swansea this summer.

Taking place from the 5th – 6th August at the King George V Playing Fields at Ashleigh Road in Swansea, the event will be the first of its kind to be held in Europe and will involve the first ever European junior international match.

Over the course of five days (5th – 10th August)52 adult teams from 16 nations will be descending on Swansea to participate in the 9thEuropean Touch Championships, with the first ever junior championships opening the weeklong event.

Speaking of their sponsorship of the Wales Junior team, Martin Hudson, Director at Morgan Hemp said: “We are delighted to be able to show our support for this emerging sport in Wales. Touch Rugby is becoming increasingly popular in Wales as it follows inthe footsteps of nations who have really taken this accessible variation of our national sport to heart.”

“We are very much looking forward to supporting the junior Welsh national team during what will be an exciting time for Touch rugby in Wales and a great prospect for the city of Swansea.”

First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones, is set to attend the closing ceremony for the European Junior Touch Championships on the 6th August and will officially open the adult championships that evening.

Initially developed in Australia in the 1960s, Touch is one of the fastest growing sports in the world and has over 6,000 participants in Wales. Touch is a dynamic catch, run and pass invasion sport that is easy to learn, fast-moving and involves minimal contact.

Played by men and women, boys and girls, Touch contains a number of cross over skills that are similar to rugby. These are primarily related to the core open field skills and there is no tackling, lineouts, scrumming or kicking involved.

The Wales Touch Association (WTA) was established in 1999 to promote the development of Touch in Wales from junior and grass roots level to elite and international level. The WTA delivers and supports a well-established league and tournament structure throughout wales.

The WTA also runs six regional teams covering all of Wales, which compete annually at National Championships to provide higher levels of competition and bridge the gap between domestic and international Touch.