With club Rugby still on a hiatus for this foreseeable future, Queensland Rugby Union (QRU) with the help of Double Take sports, is set to bring fans Round 3 of the Hospital Challenge Cup V competition this afternoon at 3:20pm.
The virtual version of Queensland Premier Rugby sees player representatives from each club go head-to-head in what would have been their scheduled Round 3 matches. Utilising the game Rugby Challenge 3 and PlayStation technology, Double Take have built virtual versions of each Premier Rugby First Grade side for players to utilise.
Players will be taking part in the competition from their very own living rooms, with the team at Double Take coming up with brand new methods to bring Rugby fans their weekend club Rugby fix, whilst adhering to the Government’s COVID-19 preventative measures.
This weekend will see St.George Queensland Reds flanker Fraser McReight make his virtual debut, representing Brothers in their clash against Sunnybank. The Dragons will be represented by Adam Hayes, who returns for his third weekend.
GPS are back after the bye and new recruit Renzo Loulanting will be going head-to-head with Bond University scrumhalf Spencer Jeans, who will be looking to secure Bond’s third straight win and top spot on the table.
Bart Ritchie will return for Wests, after securing the Bulldogs first win in Round 2, he’ll go head-to-head with Jono Hides from University of Queensland in the west-side derby.
In the battle of the birds, Carson Dehnert will represent Norths for the second week in-a-row, while prop Leigh Ireland will make his virtual debut for Souths.
The Round 3 matches are as follows:
Game 1 – GPS (Renzo Loulanting) v Bond University (Spencer Jeans)
Game 2 – Sunnybank (Adam Hayes) v Brothers (Fraser McReight)
Game 3 – Wests (Bart Richie) v University of Queensland (Jono Hides)
Game 4 – Norths (Carson Dehnert) v Souths (Leigh Ireland)
In Round 1, over 20,000 people tuned into the first weekend of the competition of Facebook alone. Bond University flanker Connor Pritchard, who represented the Bull Sharks in Round 1 said: “This competition brings to life the Rugby vibe and it means the game isn’t forgotten and brings players together.
“It can be depressing being at home all week self-isolating so if we can bring some happiness to the Rugby community once a week, that’s a massive positive and will hopefully provide people with some cheer.”
Regular Premier Rugby commentator Jay Staunton said: “At a time when there is so much turmoil in the world, it’s important to provide people with a chance to connect and come together.
“One thing we know about the Queensland Premier Rugby community is that they are really tight, if we can do something to bring light to such a dark time, it’s absolutely fantastic.”
Fans can tune into Round 3 of the Hospital Challenge Cup V competition via a number of channels, including the Reds.Rugby and Qld.Rugby website, Queensland Premier Rugby Facebook and Queensland Premier Rugby’s new Twitch account. CLICK HERE to follow Premier Rugby on Twitch.
