CHEDDAR VALLEY RFC MEMBERS ENJOY ENGLAND PRIZEWINNERS DAY AS RHINO GUESTS

[caption id="attachment_2500" align="alignnone" width="283"]England captain Chris Robshaw with Gareth Chew. England captain Chris Robshaw with Gareth Chew.[/caption]

The winner of Rhino's competition to attend the England Prizewinners Day, held this year at the Lensbury Club on Thursday 22 May was Cheddar Valley RFC.

Cheddar qualified by purchasing a Rhino Bundle Pack, and having won the draw club secretary Gareth Chew and member Simon Charles were able to watch the England squad training, attend talks by the coaching staff and most importantly get autographs from and photos with the England team.

Being able to make such a ‘money can’t buy’ prize available to our valued clients is just one of the many advantages Rhino enjoys as an Official Supplier and Partner to England Rugby. We have now been supplying our world leading scrummaging machines, contact and training equipment to them for over 27 years and signed a new four year contract extension last year.

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May 23, 2014

RHINO TO THE FORE IN RABODIRECT PRO12 FINAL

2014-05-23-rabo2For the third consecutive year Rhino has been a sponsor of the RaboDirect PRO12. We have supplied the kit for referees and pitchside officials and the Rhino Vortex Elite as the match ball for all games throughout the 22 rounds of the ordinary competition. 2014-05-23-raboThis year the final will be played once more at the Royal Dublin Showground on Saturday May 31st as Leinster, the reigning champions, entertain the Glasgow Warriors. Leinster, who defeated Ulster in the final last year, beat them once more last week in the semi-final, and Glasgow finally put their play-off hoodoo behind them to edge out Munster for a well deserved final spot. The game provides another farewell stage for Brian O’Driscoll and whilst Leinster will start as favourites they will not be complacent having been edged out in a similar situation two years ago by the Ospreys with a last gap try from Shane Williams, who was also making a farewell appearance, and a touchline conversion from this year’s PRO12 Player of the Year Dan Biggar.

Shane Williams crosses for the first of his two tries. Rhino Rugby Ball

Shane Williams scores the last minute winner for the Ospreys against Leinster in the 2012 PRO12 final.

May 23, 2014

RHINO CONTINUES SUPPORT FOR GOAL’s HUMANITARIAN AID PROGRAMMES

2014-05-23-goal1For over 25 years Rhino has been a strong supporter of GOAL, the third world relief and development charity with its origins in Ireland. In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s we gave GOAL their first London office presence inside the then Rhino office in Holborn, and we have continued to support them since. Yesterday in Dublin Barry Brennan Managing Director of Rhino Rugby Ireland presented GOAL Trustee and former Ireland and British & Irish Lions full back Hugo Macneill with one of the limited edition 2013 Lions Australia tour shirts signed by the whole squad which we received as a Lions Official Supplier and Partner. The shirt will be auctioned at GOAL’s annual fundraising Ball in London in June 21st at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower Hotel in Knightsbridge (contact asammon@uk.goal.ie for further details). GOAL is a charity with a tremendous track record of translating the vast majority of funds it receives into actual action on the ground around the world where it’s needed and wastes nothing on unnecessary overheads. By way of example at a time when the UN is predicting imminent famine resulting from the ongoing conflict in Southern Sudan, GOAL is currently delivering nutrition and medical care to 50,000 refugees in the recently established Kule camp in the Gambella region of Ethiopia. GOAL has spent €790 million on humanitarian aid programmes since its inception in 1977 and is currently active in 14 different countries - Rhino is proud to be associated with this outstanding organisation.
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May 23, 2014

RICHIE THE RHINO MAKES HIS DEBUT AT VARSITY CUP FINAL IN US

Our new mascot in the US, Richie the Rhino, was unveiled to fans at the Rhino sponsored Varsity Cup Final between University of California and Brigham Young University in Salt Lake City last Saturday and was very well received. He joins Reggie, Rhino-Turf’s much loved mascot who has been a regular at many events in recent years, including the launch of Rhino’s sponsorship of the 2013 British & Irish Lions at the House of Lords last year.
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May 07, 2014

OXFORD UNIVERSITY ENTER RHINO POWERHOUSE COMPETITION

2014-05-06-power3 Rhino’s search for the oldest surviving Powerhouse scrum machine still in regular use has produced a response from Oxford University RFC who have nominated their 1985 vintage machine. The machine, which crucially receives an annual service by Rhino, has as a result been in continuous use since being acquired and adds weight to our claim that our equipment lasts longer. Rhino CEO Reg Clark called by the Iffley Road ground today to present OURFC General Manager Tim Stevens and current tight head Ian Williams with a Rhino RaboDirect PRO12 match ball for entering the competition. Williams commented: ‘This Rhino Powerhouse scrum machine may seem like an antique but it played a full part in preparing our scrum for the Varsity Match last year’. Oxford registered their 4th consecutive win over Cambridge, a decisive 33-15 victory. Right, who’s next to enter?
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Reg Clark, Tim Stevens and Ian Williams at Iffley Road, Oxford today.

May 06, 2014

RHINO COLLISION KINGS 2014 – SHORTLIST ANNOUNCED.

GLASGOW WARRIORS, CONNACHT AND BENETTON TREVISO VIE FOR PRESTIGIOUS AWARD The Rhino Collision Kings Award is awarded each year to the team in the RaboDirect PRO12 which has shown most improvement at the breakdown throughout the regular season. The trophy is a replica of the groundbreaking Collision King machine invented by Richie Gray, Rhino skills consultant and brand ambassador who was recently appointed breakdown coach to the Springboks through to next year’s World Cup. The selection panel for the Award is chaired by Galashiels-based Gray, who in addition to other duties has been a BBC Radio Scotland commentator throughout much of the PRO12 season. This year the three teams on the shortlist for the Award are Glasgow Warriors, Connacht and Benetton Treviso. Comments Gray: “The Warriors have continued to maintain the form at the breakdown that has underpinned a great deal of their success in recent years. Both Connacht and Treviso have however shown tremendous improvement in this vitally important phase of the game throughout the season, and this again has been a big factor in some outstanding performances from these two sides”. The Rhino Collision Kings Award was won in 2011-12 by Glasgow Warriors and in 2012-13 by the Llanelli Scarlets. Together with the Rhino Golden Boot Award for the competition’s leading goalkicker, it will be presented at the RaboDirect PRO12 Awards on May 11th in Edinburgh.

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Richie Gray presents the Award in 2012 to Sean Lineen of the Glasgow Warriors.

May 06, 2014

RHINO PRO12 GOLDEN BOOT AWARD – HANRAHAN OF MUNSTER BACK IN LEAD WITH TWO ROUNDS TO GO.

JJ Hanrahan of Munster has retaken the lead in the race to the Rhino Golden Boot Award for the best goalkicker in the RaboDirect PRO12 regular season. With two rounds left before the play offs, with an 87.27% success rate he edges ahead of Gareth Davies of the Cardiff Blues, with previous leader Finn Russell of Glasgow Warriors slipping back to 5th spot despite the Warriors win over Edinburgh at the weekend. For the third consecutive season, the Rhino Vortex Elite match ball continues to produce outstanding goal kicking stats in the RaboDirect PRO12 competition JJ Hanrahan

Rank

Name

Team

Good

Att

Kick%

1

JJ Hanrahan

Munster

48

55

87.27%

2

Gareth Davies

Cardiff Blues

37

43

86.05%

3

Dan Biggar

Ospreys

67

79

84.81%

4

Greig Laidlaw

Edinburgh Rugby

29

35

82.86%

5

Finn Russell

Glasgow Warriors

26

32

81.25%

April 29, 2014

RHINO COLLISION KING MAN RICHIE GRAY APPOINTED BY SPRINGBOKS THROUGH TO WORLD CUP.

2013-11-26-richie-spring-bokRXAD-Winner-logo-ARichie Gray, the inventor of the Rhino Collision King, brand ambassador and international skills coach for Rhino, has been appointed as specialist breakdown coach to the Springboks for a two year period which will encompass the 2015 Rugby World Cup. Galashiels based Gray will continue to clock up the miles in this period as he has done on two recent short term appointments in this role for The Rugby Championship between South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and Argentina through last summer, and the Springboks Autumn international series in Europe, which included a 20-0 victory over his native Scotland for whom he played at under 20 level. Gray won the Technical Innovation Award at Rugby Expo in 2011 with the ground breaking Rhino Collision King machine, and has gone on to develop a whole range of breakdown products (available exclusively from Rhino) which are now attracting the attention of a vast number of leading coaches around the world as the tremendous importance of this phase of the game is increasingly appreciated. All at Rhino send heartiest congratulations to Richie on this seminal appointment.
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Richie Gray with the Technical Innovation Award, Rugby Expo 2011
April 25, 2014

Oldest wins: Does your club have the oldest Rhino scrum machine?

staff of Repton CollegeStaff of Repton College in Dubai with their Rhino Powerhouse scrum machine.

Rhino have launched a search for the clubs withthe oldest Powerhouse scrum machines which are still in use.The Rhino Powerhouse was developed in the late 70s and early 80s and was the world’s first mass produced scrum machine. The competition is open to every club around the world with 12 prizes to give away.

A venerable Powerhouse has been recently spotted in Dubai and another has been in use at the University of Cape Town since 1981! Do you think you can beat that date?

The entry requirement is simple, a photo of the scrum machine in question with the name of the club and the date it was bought. The oldest gains an amazing first prize of 8m x 20m of Rhino-Turf VT60 for a special scrummaging area, so you don't have to churn up your pitch during training any more.

There are 11 second prizes up for grabs too, a Rhino match ball, so even if your beaten by a true dinosaur of the scrummaging world there's still a chance to snap up a little something. To enter send your photo, club and the date of your machine's purchase to sales@rhinorugby.com with powerhouse competition as the subject.
April 25, 2014

RHINO SCRUM MACHINES LAST LONGER – WHO’S GOT THE OLDEST!?

the Springboks unveil their Rhino Dictator in Cape Town in 2010

The Springboks unveil their Rhino Dictator in Cape Town in 2010 with the venerable old Rhino Powerhouse in the background!

At Rhino we pride ourselves that our contact and training equipment is very well made and lasts longer than rival products. In particular our scrum machines are sturdy beasts, none more so than the original Powerhouse ‘roller style’ machine invented by Rhino founder Tim Francis back in the early 70s/late 80s.
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Tim Francis coaching the UCT pack on their Rhino Powerhouse, 1981.

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Staff of Repton College, Dubai with their Rhino Powerhouse machine.

Rhino-Turf staff visiting Dubai recently turned up a Powerhouse machine at Repton College in Dubai, and this got us to thinking about what might be the oldest surviving Rhino scrum machine still in action. A strong contender has got to be the machine owned by the University of Cape Town. A big part of Rhino’s early history involved a breakthrough into the South African market in the early 1980’s (see here) and when in 2010 the Springboks unveiled to the press a specially re-branded Rhino Dictator scrum machine which they bought from us following the 2009 Lions tour to South Africa, we were pleasantly surprised to note in the background to one of the promotional photographs the original Powerhouse purchased by UCT in 1981 and still in use. Rhino Powerhouse machines are particularly indestructible and if properly maintained will last practically for ever – in the early years of the company they were despatched overseas to South Africa, France, Japan, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and many other rugby playing countries. Many are to be found rusting away unused in the corner of a training field but some, such as the one at UCT, are still in use. We have decided to run a special competition to find those old Powerhouse roller style machines which are still in use and offer prizes to any club, school or university who can provide a photo of theirs, with a special prize for the oldest. 1981 will take some beating! Watch this space for further details!
April 16, 2014

LEICESTER TIGERS BRING ALGARVE RUGBY FESTIVAL TO FITTING CLIMAX

The Algarve Rugby Festival, which began with an exciting 25-22 win for the British Army over Russian club champions Krasny Yar on April 5th, ended with the latter gaining some compensation with a hard fought 13-10 victory over Leicester Tigers on Saturday. The Tigers, with 12 academy players reinforced with first team squad members Steve Mafi, Sebastian de Chaves and Terrence Hepetema, gave a good account of themselves and moreover thoroughly enjoyed their stay at host venue Browns Sport & Leisure, with whom Rhino have a long standing partnership.
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Tigers on the Rhino Dictator scrum machine at Browns.

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Warming up with Rhino contact equipment.

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Leicester on the attack against Krasny Yar.

April 16, 2014

ARMY COACHES RECEIVE SPECIALIST BREAKDOWN EQUIPMENT TUITION

Rhino consultant and ambassador Richie Gray, inventor of the world market leading Rhino Collision King range of specialist breakdown products, gave top Army Rugby Union coaches a tutorial in the use of this equipment in Aldershot today. Rhino are now an Official Supplier to the ARU of scrummaging machines, contact and training equipment and as part of the deal received a full set of Rhino Collision King products for their central training facility. One thing Rhino is always at pains to stress to purchasers of these products is the importance of coaches properly understanding how they can be used. Tuition from a leading coach such as Richie is ideal, but not everyone is fortunate enough to be able to receive this (albeit we will be developing a series of regional roadshows for this purpose going ahead) – we will therefore shortly be releasing online a series of coaching videos recently filmed by Richie at the Bath Rugby training facility at Farleigh Park. Look out for the details of their launch on our website. In the meantime the Army take on the Royal Air Force at various levels at RAF Halton Oxfordshire on Wednesday ahead of their showpiece game against the Royal Navy at Twickenham on May 3rd for which 65,000 tickets have already been sold.
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April 14, 2014