Gear up for golden oldies rugby

The golden oldies rugby kicks off this Friday at the Nikao field to coincide with the start of the 2012 rugby union season.

Any person over 35 can join and play according to the golden oldies rules.

One of those rules is you cannot run more than 20 metres without passing the ball and players wearing gold or purple shorts must not be tackled.

The golden oldies rules are designed to increase the enjoyment of the game by eliminating over-vigorous play to minimise the chance of injury.

The coloured shorts worn by players indicate to the referee what a player can or cannot do.

Players must wear shorts according to their ages.

Those aged 35 to 59 years must wear club shorts in colours other than red, gold and purple.

Players aged between 60-64 years must wear red shorts while those aged between 65 and 69 wear gold shorts and players over 70 wear purple shorts.

Referees are expected to enforce these rules all season, as players build up for the world tournament in Japan later this year.

The organisers are urging players from the seven clubs to be at Nikao at 5pm for the kick-off and later to enjoy the Mongoose’s after match sausage sizzle at Roses Garden.