Third year of JAB initiative kicks off with Ngatapa kids

Poverty Bay Rugby Football Union developement officer Mitch Purvis handed out 220 balls to kids from the Ngatapa sports club. The Balls4All initiative is a partnership between the union and Bayleys through which every registered JAB player gets a ball. Picture by Paul Rickard

A rugby ball for every registered JAB player is the aim of the Poverty Bay Rugby Football Union/Bayleys Gisborne initiative Balls4All.

Started three years ago, it is about promoting the game by directly  “getting a ball in the hands” of all JAB (Junior Advisory Board) players.

The first distribution of balls this season was to 220 kids at Ngatapa Rugby & Associated Sports Club  this week.

Poverty Bay union  junior and women’s game development officer Mitch Purvis was on hand to dish out the balls.

Purvis said around 1000 youngsters were JAB-registered but the union realised “there were a lot of kids who did not have access to a rugby ball, to a club or anything like that”, he said.

“Basically any child that gets themselves registered gets themselves a ball. It is a really cool initiative from Bayleys.

To make sure kids don’t miss out, the union has a spreadsheet of every registered player.

“I’m sure the community will see the fact that these balls make a real impact for these kids.”

The initiative came to life when Bayleys Gisborne director Simon Bousfield met with then-union chief executive Josh Willoughby to discuss how they could make a positive impact on keen young rugby players — the future of the game.

“Something we could do that really has an impact on all these kids and actually helps them grow through the season,” Bousfield said. “That’s when Josh came up with this Balls4All idea.

“Some might not have a rugby ball or have never owned one.

“Through this, they can go away and hone their skills or they can play with their mates at the park or kick it around in their backyard.

“It gives them the ability to have a bit of fun but also be prepared for what they are training for with their clubs.

“For our business, we get to focus our partnerships and sponsorship into  youth because obviously they are the future.”

Contributing to the community was important to Bousfield and his firm, and  seeing the positive impact of this combined initiative first-hand only enhanced that passion.

Sponsorship was essentially a donation but this was a way of seeing the money put into action...“you actually visibly see the benefit of the sponsorship”.

Bousfield said he had watched the changes Balls4All had made, not just within the kids, but the rugby community as a whole.

“You’ve got to take your hat off to Poverty Bay rugby  — we are only a very small part in what’s happening in JAB and those guys are driving it.

“You turn up at Waikirikiri Park on Saturday and the place is plastered with Bayleys flags . . . so we really appreciate the return that we get from our investment in JAB, and that’s driven by those guys. They work bloody hard (and) they make it work for us as well.”

Purvis said the work he was doing with the JAB rugby community would not have been possible without the commitment of Bayleys.

“We are really appreciative of Bayleys and everything they do for junior rugby.”