After two cancelled seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic the Richards Bay Rugby Club (RBRC) has reason to look forward to the 2022 season. This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Club, and it is the first time in several years that it has received financial sponsorship towards the season’s expenses.

Local heavy equipment manufacturer, Bell Equipment, has come onboard as the RBRC’s associate sponsor. RBRC Chairman, Magnus Oosthuizen said the support is “massive help financially” for the Club, which plays in the KZN Premier and KZN Premier Reserve leagues – the highest level of amateur rugby in the country.

“The leagues see us competing against the likes of Durban Collegians, College Rovers, Varsity College and Durban Crusaders – well known, top teams. The challenge we have in Richards Bay playing in the premiership is that we only play teams in Durban, Pietermaritzburg and the South Coast, so we travel extensively at a huge cost. Our transport budget is about R200 000 per season.”

Bell Equipment Marketing Director, Stephen Jones said: “We’ve been involved with rugby for many years and rugby fans will have seen our model Bell ADT carrying the kicking tee for the Natal Sharks. We’re proud to now be supporting our local rugby community and will be following the RBRC teams with great interest.”

Commenting on the upcoming season, which gets underway on Friday 22 April, Magnus said: “Our first premiership fixture is an away game against Durban Collegians, followed by a home game against College Rovers. These are the top two clubs in the league, so it’ll be good to get them out of the way early. We’ve got some promising young talent coming through and a good balance of experienced players, so we are excited for the season. We started our pre-season training in the second week of January and had our first contact last weekend at a Bozas Cup match in Eshowe and we are excited for the season.

RBRC, as part of the sponsorship, will include the Bell brand on its match kit and advertising boards will be displayed at the home ground. Magnus said that the KwaZulu-Natal Rugby Union has signed a broadcasting deal to broadcast premiership games. “Each club will have at least one game televised live, which is a great opportunity for sponsors to get their brands out there, so anyone who is interested is welcome to make contact with us,” he added.