Exciting times ahead for Raiders Rugby Club after disappointing 2018 season
Dawood explained, "The emphasis and processes put in place to look after the development and nurturing their own players is slowly paying off. 2019 will see the addition of a women's rugby team which will compete in the Pirates Grand challenge women's league. This is a first for Raiders Rugby Club and it is indeed exciting times for the community and a club as a whole."
After failing to qualify for the semifinals of the Gold Cup, it’s safe to say that the Raiders Rugby Club’s first team had a disappointing season this year.
We spoke to the team’s public relations manager (PR), Thaakir Dawood who said that the club made it through a season that seen them punch way above their weight in the Pirates Grand Challenge. This comes after they finished top in the league and qualified for the prestigious Gold Cup last year.
Dawood said, “Raiders found themselves in a difficult situation very early on in the season by losing key players due to injury. This, however did not get any easier as the injury count continued to be on the rise. This has left us drafting players in from our third team, which consists largely of social rugby players, however, this did not stop us from competing amongst the best.”
The third Raiders team kept the flag flying high for the club by qualifying for the finals of the Pirates Grand Challenge where they were beaten by a strong Pukke team who travelled from Potchefstroom.
According to Dawood, this was the second consecutive final that the team has lost to the Potchefstroom side. “They are looking to get lucky third time around in 2019 as they have set their sights on claiming the title and bringing silver wear back to the community,” he added.
The PR manager shared that the Raiders junior structures has also been on the rise with the junior programme feeding the U19 team with quality players. This allowed them to qualify for the semi-finals after finishing last on the log in 2017.
Dawood explained, “The emphasis and processes put in place to look after the development and nurturing their own players is slowly paying off. 2019 will see the addition of a women’s rugby team which will compete in the Pirates Grand challenge women’s league. This is a first for Raiders Rugby Club and it is indeed exciting times for the community and a club as a whole.”
Dawood is hopeful that the 2019 season will be an exciting one for Raiders, as they will be coming out all guns blazing to claim their Gold Cup spot and win the Pirates Grand challenge which was last won by an open club in 2001 when Pirates Rugby Club beat NWU- Pukke in the final.
If you would like to be part of the Raiders Rugby Club you can contact club manager Desmond Booysen on 0799145764 or email: raidersrfc0@gmail.com for registration forms for 2019.
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