Rugby Aid

On the eve of England’s final Rugby World Cup Warm Up fixture against Ireland the Twickenham Stoop will host the inaugural Rugby Aid match in aid of Rugby for Heroes.

The game will see England take on the Rest of the World in a match that mixes former professionals with a whole host of celebrities. Soccer Aid has been a firm fixture in the sporting calendar for a number of years and it is time for rugby’s version to take centre stage.

Since the announcement of the match a few months ago, speculation has been rife regarding the personnel for each team both from a celebrity and a rugby perspective. A number of names have already been announced with more to come and each side has an experienced and impressive set of coaches to navigate them through the match. BT Sport will be documenting the side’s training and televising the final match and for England RFU President Jason Leonard, Joe Worsley and Dan Luger will make a formidable England coaching team. The individuals under their tutelage will be captained by Mike Tindall, who is the force behind this charity match and will include Andy Gomarsall, Tom May, Josh Lewsey, Lee Mears, Nick Kennedy and more.

England’s celebrities have varying degrees of rugby experience, from none to a huge amount of the league variety with Martin Offiah, McBusted’s Harry Judd and the man that every opponent will wish to avoid, Britain’s most successful Strong Man competitor Terry Hollands!

For The Rest of the World Shane Williams will skipper and he’ll be ably assisted by Brad Thorn, Serge Betsen, Rory Lawson, Lee Byrne and others. Their celebrity guests include Gethin Jones, radio presenter Colin Murray who is likely to be the smallest man on the field and the speedster of their side; Jamie Baulch. Of course the aim is to raise a great deal for Rugby for Heroes however as you’d expect winning remains high on the agenda for all as Rest of the World player and former Springbok Thinus Delport shared with TRU at the recent event launch;

“When you do get on the field you still want to represent you, your team and the cause that everyone is out here for. I’m sure that there will be 100% commitment out on the field and equally some fun moments!! In terms of selection I’ve put forward a couple of names, a couple of fellow South Africans, so really looking forward to clash against England. The last time that I played against England was in the 2003 Rugby World Cup and England won of course, so I've got a couple of scores to settle!”

As the weeks tick by training will commence in earnest and more individuals will be added to the squads with the next on Mike Tindall’s hit list being Russell Crowe!! The inaugural Rugby Aid promises to be a thoroughly enjoyable affair blending a range of celebrities with some of the best loved retirees from our sport in the heart of London.

 Rugby Aid Squads

ENGLAND

• Coaches - Jason Leonard OBE, Joe Worsley MBE and Dan Luger MBE
• Former Players - Mike Tindall MBE (Captain), Jason Robinson, Paul Scakey, Phil Greening, Nick Kennedy, Andy Gomarsall, Tom May, Tom Voyce, Iain Balshaw, Josh Lewsey, Mark Cueto, Ugo Monye and Lee Mears
• Celebrities - Harry Judd (SCD & McBusted), JB Gill (JLS Singer), Jamie Laing (Reality TV – Made In Chelsea), Gaz Beadle (Reality TV - Geordie Shore), Martin Offiah (GB Rugby League), Rav Wilding (TV Presenter), Terry Hollands (Britain's Strongest Man) and Vassos Alexander(Radio 2/5 Live)

REST OF THE WORLD

• Coaches - Sean Holley and Paul Wallace
• Former Players - Shane Williams MBE, Justin Marshall, Brad Thorn, Shane Bryne, Waisale Serevi, AJ Venter, Serge Betsen, Bryan Redpath, Rory Lawson, Terry Fanolua, Daryl Gibson, Dafydd James, Lee Byrne and Thinus Delport
• Celebrities - Gethin Jones (TV Presenter), Matt Johnson (TV Presenter), Colin Murray (Talksport), Julian Lewis Jones (Actor) and Jamie Baulch (European World Champ Gold Medalist)