It has always struck me as appropriate that scoring points in a rugby game is called ’a try’. The effort put in is immense, and the word ’try’ seems to reflect that joint endeavour. The whole team has to contribute, unlike football, where an individual or two take the entire credit for a goal. With this in mind, it is inspiring to see the commitment and teamwork on display as two Irish teams prepare to travel to Pamplona, to take part in the Mixed Ability Rugby World Cup.
The teams are made up of people both with and without disabilities, but who otherwise might never get a chance to play rugby. It promotes the core values of the game, and is emphatically not a disability sport. It is open to anyone who wants to play, and is played on a full sized pitch, with full contact, and a recommended 50:50 split of disabled and non-disabled players.
It’s plain to see how belonging to a team is vital to the people who we get to know over the course of this charming and heart-warming documentary. As one of their mothers says in the film, ‘with the right people in the right place, everybody has potential’. Oisin Misteil’s skilfully made film is a lesson in how, given determination, and the right support anyone can become the person they aspire to be, despite very real obstacles being put in their way.
