England World Cup winning rugby star shares tips with local team in magical surprise
England Rugby World Cup winner Jason Robinson surprised a local rugby team thanks to a bit of magic from a supermarket.
Asda Donnington Wood community champion, June Walker, wanted to make Christmas extra special this year for members of the Shropshire Rugby Rebels team.
The 40-strong group provides access to young people with disabilities to the sport of tag rugby.
Children and young adults play together every week.
June arranged for Jason to surprise the team and after sharing his tips and tricks, he handed out presents consisting of a brand new kit to keep them warm during winter training.
Due to the pandemic, members of the Rugby Rebels weren’t able to see each other or play the sport they love, so June wanted to surprise them with something magical.
Asda’s Magical Moments campaign is helping bring communities back together to celebrate those special moments that mean so much at Christmas.
June secured funding from Asda’s charity, Asda Foundation to bring the group back together – but Asda wanted to make their Christmas extra special so organised an additional magical moment for the group.
June said: "It was such a lovely night.
"They did their normal training for a while and I went over and joined in a game of tag with them – it was a struggle to keep up.
"And then Jason came along and did some of the training with them and he was really great. He was very, very good with the kids and they interacted with him really well. The kids loved it. He also brought along his medal from the World Cup and the kids were like 'wow'.
"The parents were a bit in awe as well.
"After the training session Jason got all the kids in a semi-circle with their backs to their parents and when that was happening they put a screen in place and then he said that he wasn't their only surprise and showed them the bags full of new kit.
"It was just so lovely; the kids were so chuffed.
"It was just so nice to deliver a surprise to a group that I know and that I've worked with. When they turned up for training, they all were all a mixed bunch with all different types of training gear, but now they've got the bobble hats, hoodies and rain jackets which are all embroidered with the Asda logo on. They will really look the business.
"I've been working with them for the past 18 months but I've known members of the group for about five or six years through other groups.
"It’s just lovely to see the friendships through the ages, as you have a five-year-old with a 25-year-old; with a disability, there is no age barrier."
Val Edgley, joint secretary of the Rugby Rebels, agreed that everyone from the team were thrilled by the surprise.
She said: "We can't thank June and Asda enough, we really can't. What they've done has been amazing.
"The kids really, really enjoyed the training with Jason, and they each had a photo taken with him and his medal but the icing on the cake was when they brought out the hoodies and jackets and everything, it was fantastic. Where we train in the winter, is really cold, so this new kit is brilliant. The team will be able to wear them when they go to tournaments too.
"It was tough for the group through the pandemic because we had to stop for a while, but it's great to be back and it's great to get so much support from Asda."
This Christmas Asda community champions, like June, will be busy helping more people enjoy magical moments together, doing their bit to spread Christmas cheer and celebrate the special festive moments so many people missed last year.
