Coleraine Chronicle - Sports - Coleraine boy nominated for Vodafone ‘Try Harder’ rugby award

Sports

Coleraine boy nominated for Vodafone ‘Try Harder’ rugby award

Thursday, 21 January 2010

CONOR SHIELS, a student at Coleraine AI, has been nominated for the first of this season's Vodafone Try Harder Rugby Award for Schools.
The Awards are run to highlight Vodafone NI's status as Official Kit Partner of Ulster Rugby with whom the communications company has recently signed a new three-year partnership. The Try Harder awards also supports the work that Ulster Rugby is doing to spread the playing of the game in schools throughout Ulster. This rugby season Vodafone will be presenting five Try Harder awards.
Conor Shiels is 14 and in Form 4 in the school. He plays centre on the U-14 team and was nominated by Stephen Graham, the school's teacher in charge of rugby. "Conor always gives of his best in training and playing", says Stephen, "and is essential to CAI's U-14 team. He would frequently be the 'man of the match'."
Pauline Quigley, Head of Vodafone NI, says, "It's really good to see the interest in rugby in Northern Ireland schools increasing year on year and to see new schools taking up the sport each year.
“At Vodafone NI we hope that the Try Harder awards encourage boys to do their best when playing rugby and while training.
The awards will go to the boys who Try Harder and not necessarily the best players."
The Awards are open to every second-level school affiliated to the IRFU Ulster Branch. With the emphasis on effort and hard work on and off the pitch, the Awards have been organised so that a school just starting to play rugby has an equal chance of having an Award winner as a school which has a long tradition of excelllence in schools rugby.
Rugby coaches and teachers may nominate any number of players for the awards. The nominees may be of any age and play at any level of rugby in the school, including players who are not on a regular school team. Vodafone offers the winning player a sports voucher for £200, his school gets a voucher for £300 and the nominating coach or teacher receives a mobile phone from Vodafone.