In February, Canadian Tire Corporation announced an additional $12 million commitment to Jumpstart’s Sport Relief Fund to help sport and recreation organizations build back sport and play in Canada.

Jumpstart conducted a State of Sport study via Ipsos which revealed the pandemic has not only impacted current access to sport and play but has real long-term effects as well. Crusaders Rugby and the communities it serves have experienced the impact of the pandemic first-hand.

We recently received confirmation that we are amongst nearly 300 sport and recreation organizations nationally to be provided with grant support through Jumpstart’s Sport Relief Fund. We are beyond grateful to receive this news and know the positive impact it will have on sport and recreation organizations, and ultimately, on kids across the country.

With Jumpstart’s support, we’ll be able to hire staff to re-imagine our programming to the Covid restrictions, grow our fundraising and sponsorship, purchase much needed equipment, and ensure our facility is safe and meets Covid cleaning and signage requirements for the coming season.

Crusaders, Families and Friends,
 
We are thrilled to announce that the Crusaders Return to Play Plan has been APPROVED. You can now register for the 2020 season here. 

As per our RTP plan, we have developed policies and procedures to ensure the safety of our members and to ensure compliance with public health protocols. Some important features are as follows:

• Players or parents must complete a PLAYER ATTESTATION FORM before every training session. This is done through Sportlomo, the same platform you use to register every year. Instructions can be found here
• Players will be kept in cohorts and given a designated time slot for training. Parents bringing their children to training will be provided a designated parking area where the cohort can safely assemble before proceeding to their field. Older players will be asked to proceed directly to their designated field after parking their vehicle.
• Coaches will verify that all players participating that day have filled out the player attestation form. If this has not been completed, the player will not be permitted to train.
• Participants will be reminded at the beginning of each session about physical distancing guidelines.
• After training, players will be asked to vacate the field in a timely manner and return to their vehicles.
• Washrooms are accessible, but changing rooms and shower facilities are closed.
• The Club will communicate updates on a regular basis as we receive information from public health and Rugby Ontario.
• You can also view the World Rugby Player Welfare page for resources regarding Return to Play. This course provides an interactive learning module for players.
• Participants who repeatedly breach physical distancing, hygiene rules or do not remain in their specified training area will be asked to sit out for the remainder of the session. The parents of the junior members will be contacted by the coaching staff.

Further information will be available through your age grade coaches in the coming days. 

As stated in our last communication, this season provides an opportunity to focus on core skills and teaching the game of rugby to our members and new players. While the format is different, the heart and soul of rugby at Cru and our core values have not changed.

We would like to thank our members for your patience as we navigated this new reality. We can’t wait to see you on the pitch!

On the back of a very successful first tour to the Tropical 7s tournament in Orlando, FL in 2019, the club is planning on taking 3 teams in 2020. The U14 Boys, U16 Boys and U16 Girls will represent the club at the Tropical 7s this year. Additionally, many of our U18 players will be attending the tournament playing on the NRU Thunder and Rogues teams also attending. As many as 50 Crusaders junior players (plus their families) are expected to attend the Tropical 7s this year between April 9-12, 2020.

Last year’s tournament saw both boys teams do very well. The U16 Boys finished 3rd overall, after a victory over USA South and then pipping the Ontario Blues in the bronze medal match. The U14 Boys finished 5th overall. Most importantly, the players and families thoroughly enjoyed the tournament, a great atmosphere and some fantastic 7s rugby.

This year, the U16 Girls are joining the two boys teams in Orlando, lead/head coached by Johnnie Scrivo and Josh Manuel. The tournament continues to grow in terms of the number and geographical variety of the attending teams and remains popular with Canadian teams apparently uninterested in the Canadian Easter Bunny, or perhaps more interested in escaping the final throes of winter.

Many of the Cru players are currently enrolled in the indoor skills programs that continue through to the beginning of May and the teams will be booking additional indoor space to get some practice in prior to the tournament in addition to scrimmage/training sessions with the NRU U17/U18 team and potentially the Ontario Blues team prior to leaving for Orlando.

The teams are still looking for sponsors to offset kit costs (sleeve logo and banner placements available), so please reach out to Gavin Alpe at u16.boys@crusadersrugby.ca if you have any ideas or sponsorship suggestions!