SOARING interest in rugby league in Bury already involves around 8,000 primary school children as young as five or six.

And up to 500 of them will tackle a series of basic sports skills at the town's Gigg Lane ground on Sunday (June 9) in what could be a world record.

Rugby League Cub Awards are designed to teach co-ordination and ball skills to youngsters of all ages and range from running with the ball to passing and kicking.

"Usually children tackle them a class at a time. We believe this is the biggest group to take them en masse," said John Prince, Swinton Lions development manager, who has introduced rugby skills training to local schools.

"But this is just a trial run," added John, a former Leigh and Huyton player. "Next year we plan to have to 2,000 children taking the awards at once."

The record attempt is being backed by Bolton Bury Training and Enterprise Council, which is providing 200 rugby balls and related marker cones - and afterwards these will be donated to Bury schools for their coaching sessions. The TEC also supports Swinton's seven sports and recreation Modern Apprentices, who are training as rugby players while studying other skills that will them them a career for life. Swinton Lions has enjoyed rising attendances since it moved to Bury four years ago, to share Gigg Lane with Bury FC. When John Prince joined a year ago the club launched a youth policy that is already paying dividends: the youth team won promotion in its first year and regularly provides first and second team players, while membership of the junior supporters club has soared from 60 to several hundred.

Parents who take their children to Gigg Lane for Sunday's cub awards have been invited to stay on for Swinton Lions' Division One match against Widnes Vikings.

Spectators watching the world record attempt and the rugby can gain admittance to the ground (south stand) by arriving between 12.45pm and 1.30pm.

Adults will be charged £2 and children under 15 can enter free of charge but only between those times.

The world record bid is at1pm and the match kicks-off at 3pm. There is a special half-time draw that offers a trip to Paris as its first prize.

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