Northampton Saints Wheelchair Rugby have a shot at national glory this weekend as they participate in the first-ever WR5s Nationals.
After finishing third in the Premiership earlier this year, Saints earned their place among the 12 clubs who will head to Stoke Mandeville Stadium for the inaugural Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby-run, two-day competition.
The teams are being split into two tiers, with Saints participating in the elite-level Cup in Group A and will take on East Midlands rivals and Premiership champions Leicester Tigers (10.30am) and Solent (4.30pm) on Saturday 16 November.
Sunday’s two fixtures will be dependent upon Saturday’s results, with Northeast Barbarians, Help 4 Heroes and Penrith Pumas on the other side of the draw.
While the National Championships have been a regular feature in the fours’ (paralympic discipline) calendar, this is the first year when an undisputed ‘national champion’ will be crowned in WR5s.
Saints Wheelchair Rugby head coach Jamie Higgins said: “Our squad have been working hard over recent months in preparations for the announcement that the Nationals was going to take place and cannot wait for this new experience of competition offered by Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby.”
The format of the competition will differ from the WR5s leagues as there will not be two halves and will instead adopt the same structure of the paralympic (fours) discipline.
That means games will be played over four eight-minute quarters, extending the match time from 24 minutes to 32 – in games that can last up to one-and-a-half hours when factoring in stoppages and breaks.
To follow the GBWR WR5s Nationals, click HERE or follow updates on Northampton Saints Community’s X, Facebook and Instagram channels.
