Walking rugby has arrived in Liverpool, bringing a slower paced and more friendly take on one of the nation’s toughest sports.
Liverpool Collegiate, in conjunction with Liverpool Cricket Club in Aigburth, host sessions every Wednesday evening, allowing locals to enjoy rugby in a new way, minus the physical skirmishes.
The initiative, launched this autumn, marks the first time walking rugby has a home in the city, with its aim to bring people of all ages and backgrounds together.
Walking rugby as a sport has grown rapidly since its introduction in October 2015 at Reading RFC. The Collegiate is following in the footsteps of Warrington Wolves, whose Foundation have been running sessions since early 2022.
Aysha Gunal, Liverpool Cricket Club’s chair of rugby, is spearheading the walking rugby movement in the city and believes the game has huge potential in Liverpool.
She said: “We’ve just begun and are the only group in Liverpool at the moment, but it would be incredible for more people to access this sport.
“Walking rugby is so accessible that it combines the community, for example, grandads and granddaughters can be involved at the same time.
“We have a generation of rugby players who cannot play due to its physicality, so walking rugby has meant these people are brought back to the centre of the community.
“It’s so much more than walking around with a rugby ball; it’s the social aspect where people can get together for a catch-up and get out of the house.”
The sessions are free to attend and are hosted weekly at LCC’s bottom pitches on Riverside Drive.
Liverpool CC Rugby Pitch pic.twitter.com/9eNFkK9BKr
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There has been a lot of emphasis placed on making the sessions welcoming to newcomers.
Gunal said: “It’s that welcoming you can just turn up on a Wednesday not knowing anyone and know everyone by the end of the session.”
“It’s an incredibly friendly zero judgment atmosphere.”
Walking rugby offers a range of health benefits such as improved cardiovascular health through its physical aspects, as well as stress reduction and better mental wellbeing.
She said: “The benefits are being outdoors, with people and moving around are some of the best things that you can do for your mental wellbeing.
“You can be any shape, size, age, gender, neurodiverse, part of our LGBTQ+ community, and you can be a part of an inclusive sport.
“One of our players is currently pregnant and this is a great way for her to stay involved as well as an ex-player who is transitioning, that can still play rugby in some capacity.”
The Collegiate has a predominantly older demographic, mirroring a national trend with walking rugby’s main group of players being over age 40.
This isn’t by design however is a by-product of younger players gravitating towards the more competitive and physical traditional form.
Gunal said: “Our group in particular has people who have retired, in general and specifically from rugby.
“It was so wonderful to hear some of our older players feedback how happy they were to hold a rugby ball after so long.”
