Ex-England stars to feature in Centenary celebrations

Former England players Tom Youngs and Tom Croft will provide the centrepiece of West Norfolk Rugby Club’s centenary celebrations this weekend.Leicester Tigers and England hooker Youngs and ex-Tigers blinside-flanker Croft will be part of a special fixture to mark the landmark at Gatehouse Lane.Both of West Norfolk’s league championship-winning squads will take to the pitch on Saturday.Following the success of both senior sides in the club gaining promotion and some impressive results in the youth section, it has been a fantastic few weeks for everyone connected with West Norfolk Rugby Club.After a successful centenary day on March 28, where both members and friends of the club came together to celebrate 100 years of West Norfolk Rugby and tour the fantastic new facilities, two games on Saturday will mark the first fixtures played back in 1925.West Norfolk Ladies Warriors will begin proceedings at 1pm in their Norfolk cup semi-final against Diss, which always proves to be a hotly-contested fixture.The women are looking to retain their title from last year’s Cup win, so they will bring that energy to the turf. This will be followed by a match between West Norfolk Men and an Invitational Side captained by former West Norfolk fly-half Monty Maule. The invitational side is set to feature a whole host of ex-West Norfolk players and legends alongside players from clubs across Eastern Counties and the Midlands, with rumours of some formidable ex-England internationals in the form of Croft and Youngs also involved.Before the games, there will also be a centenary brunch which is bookable by emailing Mark Ballman via jomark.ballman@btopenworld.comNext month, Gatehouse Lane will play host to Norfolk Rugby’s Big Weekend on May 3 and 4, with the men’s senior side taking on Fakenham in the Norfolk Intermediate Cup final on the Saturday. Several youth sides have finals on the Sunday.In June, the West Norfolk 7s Tournament will take place with the club’s Centenary Ball rounding off celebrations on July 11. The club is going to need a lot of support over the next few months to host these events – especially the Big Weekend.Anyone who would like to help out, please email: volunteers@westnorfolkrugby.com or speak to one of the officers of the day next time you are at the club.Everyone is welcome to support on Saturday, and club officials hope that you will join them in what will be a momentous day at West Norfolk Rugby Club.