World Cup winner Tamara Taylor joins Newcastle Falcons legend Rob Vickers for ‘bigger and better’ event as UK Armed Forces RFC take on a North of England Select XV sat Kingston Park in June.

2014 Women’s Rugby World Cup winner Tamara Taylor and ex-Newcastle Falcons hooker Rob Vickers are among the coaches as Military vs Cancer’s Armed Forces rugby event returns to Newcastle this summer.

Last year, £32,000 was raised for the charity as the UK Armed Forces RFC did battle with a North of England Select XV at Kingston Park.

For the 2024 edition on Saturday June 22, a women’s game has been added to the programme as Military vs Cancer founder David Bathgate promises a ‘bigger and better’ day of rugby to celebrate Armed Forces Day 2024.

Taylor and Vickers are taking on coaching roles, and will be joined in Newcastle by referee Nikki O’Donnell, who oversaw officiating duties at the delayed Women’s Rugby World Cup in 2022.

Taylor said: “The North East has been my home for over 20 years now, and I have always been passionate about supporting girls and women’s rugby in the area. I am delighted to have the opportunity to coach this group of local players and help them showcase the talent that we have in the North East.

“Gathering together players from across the region to play together for the first time against a strong armed forces team will be a challenge, but more importantly a wonderful opportunity for everyone.”

Vickers, who spent more than 10 years playing with event hosts Newcastle Falcons added: “I’m really looking forward to the Armed Forces rugby event. Last year’s event was a real success and I’m sure the crowds will be out in force to support Military vs Cancer. I enjoyed many great years with the Falcons and it will be good to catch up with some familiar faces and raise much needed funds for a great cause.

“Our North of England side won the 2023 match and we’re determined to back that up on June 22. The lads have been putting the hard yards in to prepare for the game and I’m sure Tam and Fi will have the women’s side fired up to make it a home double against a strong UK Armed Forces team too.”

Military vs Cancer became a registered charity in May 2022 but was founded several years earlier by David after losing several family members to cancer. The charity brings together all three military services, businesses and people in industry to help support those who are battling with cancer, aiming to inspire people to live their lives to the fullest.

David Bathgate said: “I lost eight members of my family to cancer over a very short timeframe, including my brother. The right thing to do was to turn to my mates in the military to see if there was anything we could do to alleviate the pain for all the families, so we decided to raise £100,000 and donate it to two well-known cancer charities.

“We did that fairly rapidly, but the disappointing thing was that we never knew where the money was going and we thought we could improve the offering, so we decided to create Military vs Cancer and use that to help people in the military initially. We later expanded that to support veterans and then also their immediate families too.

“Last year we held our first rugby event and it was some experience. We had over 2,000 people at Kingston Park and it was so well supported by the local community. This year is going to be even bigger – we’re pushing to sell 5,000 tickets and will incorporate a much fuller programme into the afternoon.”

UK Armed Forces director of rugby Paula Bennett-Smith expects rugby fans are in for a treat, with high quality rugby on display. She said: “UKAF are especially excited to play a double header in Newcastle this year to kick off Armed Forces Week 2024. This fixture was thoroughly enjoyed by our Senior Men’s XV last year and it is fantastic to have both the men’s and women’s sides to be playing this year.

“This will be an especially great fixture for the women’s side who will be almost one year out from the 2025 International Defence Rugby Competition (IDRC) which we are the host nation for. Having this fixture for the UKAF Women’s Senior XV will allow the players another run out post a busy Inter-Services season and another opportunity to gain a coveted UKAF cap.”

The event will also see the inclusion of an u12 girls match, which is scheduled to take place at half-time in the senior women’s match.

Tickets are priced at £10 for adults, and £5 for children, with tickets for military personnel and veterans free of charge. Tickets have limited availability and can be purchased via our ticketing website and through Tickets for Troops.

Stadium car parking is also available to purchase and can be booked for £10 by clicking the button below.