NSW Country Rugby Union

COUNTRY CHAMPS VENUE 2012

The Central Coast Rugby Union will host the 2012 Country Championship Weekend.

Morrie Breen Oval, Toukley will be the venue for the Country Championship Weekend which will be staged on 31 March and 1 April 2012.

The venue is one of the premier sporting facilities on the Central Coast, and has hosted numerous high profile representative Rugby Union, Rugby League and Soccer events.

Central Coast President Larry Thomson said “The Central Coast Rugby Union fraternity as a whole, together with the Gosford City and Wyong Shire Councils had put their full support behind hosting the Championship Weekend”.

The nine Country Zones will contest the championships and will play matches in Seniors and Colts over the two days to determine the winner of the Caldwell Cup, Richardson Shield, Colts Championship and Colts Plate.

Four hundred and fifty plus players from around the state will participate at the Championship Weekend, which will also serve as the final selection process for the GrainCorp NSW Country Cockatoos and Country Cockatoo Colts Representative Squads.

NSW Country Rugby Union President Barry Ruddy said “the Central Coast Rugby Union is to be congratulated on the high standard of their impressive tender submission, which had fully addressed the criteria of the tender process”.

He went on to say “the awarding of the tender had been a difficult task as the standard of the tenders which had been received was very high, with each of the tender groups having buy-in from their local Councils and Tourism Bodies”.

The 2012 Country Championships will be played over two weekends, with the Qualifying Matches being played on 24 March 2012 at various locations across the state, and then the semi-finals and finals at Toukley on 31 March and 1 April 2012.

The 2012 Country Championship Draw will be announced at the end of August 2011.