THE Dorchester Area Schools Partnership enjoyed a two-day rugby extravaganza at Dorchester RFC, with skills sessions followed by an area tournament.

Ben Heath and his Weymouth College students ran the skills training flawlessly.

And Heath commented afterwards how much he had relished coaching the sport to the Year 5 and 6 pupils taking part.

There were plenty of quick-stop skills stations to keep the youngsters on their toes in preparation for tournament rugby.

Levi Dailey, head of the Dorchester Area Skills Partnership PE, said: “It is so rewarding observing new skills being learnt and used in a game at the right time.

“The afternoon was a massive success and Dorchester RFC may have a lot more younger pupils banging on their doors now thanks to Ben Heath.”

The next day, the South West Dorset Area Year 7 and 8 rugby tournament also took place at Coburg Road, with 17 teams in total entering the competition.

The event saw schools from Bridport, Weymouth, Portland and Dorchester all battling hard to secure victories over their rivals.

In the end, the champions of the Year 7 tournament were a jubilant Budmouth side coached by an extremely happy Gareth Biddle.

Meanwhile, the Year 8 event saw Puddletown snatch victory after not losing a single game.

Commenting on the tournament, Dailey added: “It was enjoyable running the tournament with Dorchester RFC as we saw over 250 pupils turn up and love the sport, and that’s what it’s all about.

“Special thanks must go to Russ, Ben, George and Harry for running the Year Seven tournament and to Gary and Clive for running the Year Eight tournament.

“But none of this would have been possible without Ben Heath and Dorchester RFC.”