CRRL are very pleased and excited to be awarded the Minister for Sport and Recreation’s Award for Inclusion at the CBR Sports Awards last night.
The Canberra Region Rugby League team was presented this award during the virtual awards night and had a surprise visit from Minister Yvette Berry to present the award herself. We are all very proud of this achievement, and for our program to be recognised at the 2021 CBR Sport Awards.
Our Canberra Region Wheelchair Rugby League (CRWRL) program has significantly developed over the past 18 months in our region as well as across southern NSW. We are excited for what the future holds for our adaptive, all-inclusive sport in our region.
CRWRL Program Coordinator, Jen Pilosio, said she was very proud of the achievements of all players throughout the year.
“It’s been a great experience watching all the players develop their wheelchair skills each week during training and competition,” Pilosio said.
“At the beginning of the year, the majority of our players had never played an adaptive sport before, so to see the development has been amazing.
"By the end of the year we had representative players travelling to compete at the higher level in our game, so we want to continue building the sport here in the Canberra region and provide that pathway for the sport.
“We need more players and volunteers, so please reach out to be involved in our rugby league community.”
Wheelchair Rugby League is an all-inclusive sport which can be played by all people, no matter of gender, age, skill, or ability – people do not have to be a regular wheelchair user to participate in the sport.
The CRRL team would like to thank our great players, volunteers, and referees who have continued to participate in competition days over the past year. This year was our inaugural competition, and it has already been very successful in developing local players.
The representative Rolling Raiders team played in a rep game against a Sydney team earlier this year, while local players were scouted to trial for the NSW Wheelchair Rugby League team, to then play in the State of Origin.
Our CRWRL program wouldn’t have been as successful as it was without the driving force, our hard-working sub-committee, which has helped developed the strategic direction of the program. Our sub-committee members include: Kim and Matt Collins, Jake Naylor, Tiffany White and Gary Green. These members volunteer and commit their time to support our players on game day as coaches, sports trainers and other team officials.
We would also like to thank our sponsors of the program, MPS Travel + Tours and the Lord’s Taverners. Thank you for supporting the wheelchair rugby league program and being as excited for the future of our all-inclusive game as we are.
Thank you also to our Canberra Raiders Player Ambassadors for our CRWRL program, Tom Starling and Trey Mooney. It was great to have our Player Ambassadors celebrate the Inclusion Award win last night at the Raiders Centre in Braddon, alongside with the program sponsors, Rolling Raiders players and the CRRL team.
2021 has been a great year filled with sporting achievements across our region. Thank you to ACT Sport and Recreation for facilitating the virtual CBR Sport Awards event during these trying and uncertain times.
In the New Year, we look forward to working with other adaptive sports in Canberra to excel and grow all levels of participation in our all-inclusive sports.
