{"id":248953,"date":"2025-10-29T15:50:12","date_gmt":"2025-10-29T15:50:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/248953\/"},"modified":"2025-10-29T15:50:12","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T15:50:12","slug":"masters-rugby-league-unites-nations-in-thrilling-international-festival-at-london-skolars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/248953\/","title":{"rendered":"Masters Rugby League unites Nations in thrilling International Festival at London Skolars"},"content":{"rendered":"

To start off proceedings each international captain Rob Oaten (England), Wayne Kelly (Ireland) and Grant Cattanach (Scotland) completed the coin toss, where against all odds no call was guessed correctly. <\/p>\n

As the Masters\u00a0staff used the build-up to warm their teams up, the invitation of two junior teams to play as the curtain raiser for the 2025 Masters International Festival got underway. <\/p>\n

Brixton Bulls and\u00a0Keighley Albion (Under 12\u2019s) played out a fantastic game resulting in a last-minute try for a Keighley Albion, a 22-18 win against a valiant Brixton Bulls performance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Chris Price (Albion U12\u2019s Coach) said: \u201cThanks to Brixton Bulls, London Skolars and the RFL for the invitation, Brixton played with unbelievable grit and determination, and the result could have gone either way. All the players and families being able stay and enjoy the experience of witnessing what Masters Rugby League is all about for the first time was something very special.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Next up it was the turn of the Masters! With the junior players joining the Masters players to walk out on to the field, led by the Match Officials for the event (Allan Dunham, Geoff Grieves & Pablo Bawdekar). Spectators were treated to renditions of each team\u2019s national anthems which could only be described as a \u201cgoosebumps moment\u201d for everyone in attendance.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Match Official, Pablo Bawdekar expressed: \u201cSome great quality football from three talented teams – as was the refereeing! The standard was even across the squads which was impressive given how some hadn\u2019t had long to prepare.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Three\u00a0international teams came together to celebrate a fantastic season of Masters Rugby League, by providing an opportunity for players to represent their respective nations. The International Masters Festival took place on Saturday 25th October 2025 at London Skolars, New River Stadium where the England Lionhearts, Ireland Wolfhounds and Scotland RL played in a Round-Robin Festival format where all scores finished 0-0. <\/p>\n

The event was a significant milestone in\u00a0International Masters Rugby League history being the first International Masters Festival to be hosted in the capital city, including Scotland marking their debut appearance after only forming earlier in the year, a commendable achievement to all those involved.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Scotland\u00a0Masters player, Olly Saccucci-Spence said: \u201cI was born in Aberdeen, raised wherever dad was based, but Scotland\u2019s always been home in my heart. I cannot express how proud I was to represent Scotland on Saturday.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Adie Smith, Head Coach of England Masters Lionhearts,\u00a0expressed: \u201cFirstly a thank you to the RFL, to Ireland and Scotland staff and players for making this weekend such a memorable occasion. This weekend epitomised the very essence of the Spirit of Masters. <\/p>\n

Friday night set the tone where players received their match shirts from ex-England international, Sam Tomkins. A gathering of over-35s, old mates and new faces came together to share food, laughter, and a few stories.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"Sam<\/p>\n

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\"Shaun<\/p>\n

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“On Saturday the lads were able to pull on their shirts with pride, stepping out to play in what became a brilliant showcase of Masters Rugby League a celebration of the game, the camaraderie, and the joy it brings. And when the final whistle blew, we did what Masters do best; we socialised, laughed, and made memories that will last a lifetime.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Once the playing activities concluded the event, it was time to distribute the medals to each Match Official, with Geoff Grieves being crowned at the \u201cRef of the Day\u201d by teams\u2019 managers. Each team coach also voted for an opposition “Master of the day”.<\/p>\n

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England Master of the Day\u00a0\u2013 Rob Oaten\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Youngest & Eldest Masters player \u2013 40 years (Black Shorts) & 77 years (Green Shorts).\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\"Screenshot<\/p>\n

Ireland Master of the Day \u2013 Wayne Kelly\u00a0<\/p>\n

Youngest & Eldest Masters player \u2013 38 years (White Shorts) & 72 years (Green Shorts).\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"Wayne<\/p>\n

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Scotland Master of the Day \u2013 Paul Kennedy\u00a0<\/p>\n

Youngest & Eldest Masters player \u2013 37 years (White Shorts) & 60 years (Gold Shorts).\u00a0<\/p>\n

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A player who experienced a very touching moment, Paul Parkin (Cottingham Tigers Masters), enjoyed the pleasant surprise of witnessing the arrival of each of his family members whilst singing the England national anthem. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t until I started singing, I realised my family had surprised me by showing up to support me and the boys, I had no idea they were coming as we\u2019ve just moved house, I wasn\u2019t expecting it,” he said:<\/p>\n

“There was no better feeling than seeing my families faces and the sense of pride it gave me and them, to see their dad playing for England Masters Lionhearts.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"Paul<\/p>\n

At the end of each game all the teams embraced one another in true Masters tradition to signify the relationships built on the field not just between players but also the match officials, are just as important as the gameplay.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Ireland Team Manager, Alan Cuffe said: \u201cIt was a great honour to come together with a great bunch of lads and represent our country, on such a historical weekend for northern hemisphere Rugby League with the Ashes returning. Also, a fantastic privilege to be first country to play against a newly formed Scotland masters team. A big thank you also to England for hosting us, looking forward to the future of Masters Rugby League.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Each team left the event or checked out of their hotel Sunday morning, and they weren\u2019t just a group of over-35s anymore they had become a band of brothers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when it hit Smith: \u201cThis this is why I do what I do. As someone who has faced his own battles with mental health, nothing means more to me than seeing those smiles. If I can help a bloke meet a new mate, someone who might change his outlook or just make life a little better in that moment, I\u2019ve done my bit.<\/p>\n

“That is what Masters Rugby League is all about. That is the Spirit of Masters Rugby League.”<\/p>\n

A special thanks to each of the international teams\u2019 sponsors:\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ireland \u2013 ATNI, Bus Eireann & OCS\u00a0<\/p>\n

Scotland \u2013 LIGHTHOUSE\u00a0<\/p>\n

To to get involved in International\u00a0Men\u2019s Masters Rugby League, firstly get involved with your local Masters Rugby League club. <\/p>\n

If there is not one near you and you would like to set up a club, please contact Bradley.Kelk@RFL.co.uk<\/a>. If you are an individual from Scotland or Ireland, you will be given a contact from those specific nations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Finally, a thank you to all the Masters players who play week in week out in their community clubs and the RFL Masters Management Group for making 2025 a year to remember!\u00a0<\/p>\n

For more information on Masters Rugby League, please click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Like this story, share it…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"To start off proceedings each international captain Rob Oaten (England), Wayne Kelly (Ireland) and Grant Cattanach (Scotland) completed…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":248954,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,147738,760,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-248953","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-rugby","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-masters-rugby-league-unites-nations-in-thrilling-international-festival-at-london-skolars","11":"tag-rugby","12":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248953","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=248953"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248953\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/248954"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=248953"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=248953"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=248953"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}