Youth rugby players from Aylesbury Rugby Football Club will receive sponsored kits for their first year of in playing the contact version of the sport.

The 31 members of the team have progressed from tag rugby to contact rugby, with the children all being part of the Under 9s squad.

The students, who ate all in Year 4, have new personalised rugby shirts to wear for tournaments, fixtures and training, thanks to a £1,000 donation from Vistry Thames Valley.

The housebuilder is building new homes in Aylesbury under its Bovis Homes and Linden Homes brands at Orchard Green in the new Kingsbrook neighbourhood.

Paul Andrews, Youth Chairman at Aylesbury Rugby, said: “Rugby is a very underfunded and non-commercialised sport, and the children’s kits have to be durable for all of the rough-and-tumble contact element involved in the game.

“Thanks to Vistry’s sponsorship, each Under 9s player will receive a sponsored game shirt personalised with their own name and the club on the back, their initials on the sleeves and the sponsor logos on the front.

“They will be able to wear their shirts with pride at rugby festivals, fixtures with other rugby clubs, and during their twice-weekly training sessions.

“The shirts are very durable and stretchy and so will last a good few years until they grow out of them.

“They will then be able to keep them as a great memento from their early years of rugby.”

Aylesbury Rugby was established in 1931 and is a family-oriented Rugby Union Football Club based in Weston Turville, a bordering village of Aylesbury, just three miles from the new homes at Orchard Green.

Alix Laflin, marketing manager for Vistry Thames Valley, said: “Providing sponsorship for grassroots sports clubs is one of the ways we can support the local community as our new homes take shape in Aylesbury.

“We are therefore pleased to help the Under 9s at Aylesbury Rugby by funding new kit as the youngsters embark on their first season of contact rugby.

We’d like to wish them the very best for the rest of the season ahead.”

Vistry Thames Valley is currently building 138 new homes at Orchard Green.

For more information, visit lindenhomes.co.uk or bovishomes.co.uk.

Find out more about Aylesbury Rugby’s Minis and Juniors section on the club website aylesburyRFC.co.uk and on their Instagram @aylesbury_rugby_minis_juniors.