THE ARGONAUTS
By Peter Johnston - Chairman. Photos Pete Bresser Founded five years ago, The Argonauts Wheelchair Sports Charity’s aim is to provide wheelchair sports for people of all abilities and all ages, mixed in together on a “level playing-field”. It is unusual for a sport to bring together disabled and able-bodied people, united in a single squad. For the able-bodied people, it gives them an insight to the struggles and difficulties faced by disabled people. the national league and have show themselves to be real contenders for titles. Peter Johnston, Chairman, said “We have a strong team dynamic, with everyone being very welcoming to new players. We are hoping that more people will join us and we can grow as a team this year. The sport is a wonderful way to socialise with people within the community, be it at training sessions, playing matches, or as a spectator. We are a really friendly group, and look forward to welcoming anyone interested in taking part. ”. The charity is focused on providing teamwork, friendship, physical fitness, increased mobility, improvement of mental health, competitive sport and an active social life. The benefits are enormous and, for some players, it has literally been life-saving. They have players from around Kent, Essex and Cambridge. At the recent publicity-drive The Mayor of Dartford, Cllr Paul Cutler, was very keen to have a go at Wheelchair Rugby. He was given tips by the Coach, Rob Cooper, then got stuck in! The Mayor said: “I thoroughly enjoyed meeting everyone at The Argonauts and getting to grips with wheelchair rugby. I really appreciate how the charity is teaching able-bodied people like me, who has never used a wheelchair, about the kinds of difficulties people who are less mobile face on a daily basis. The friendship and team spirit was very visible and I had a great evening getting to know everyone at the club.”
Their England players have now moved to a newly-formed Super League club in London to further their techniques and skills. This means that The Argonauts are now looking for new players and they are inviting anyone to go along to a training session to see the action for themselves. Training sessions are on every Monday, from 6:30pm in the sports hall of Fairfield Leisure Centre, Lowfield Street, Dartford. Members can also have occasional taster sessions for other wheelchair sports, such as basketball and boxing.
The Argonauts have achieved amazing things in its primary sport, Wheelchair Rugby League: nine home-grown Elite International players (six for England, two for Ireland and one for Wales) and runners-up in the National League and Cup finals. The development squad players, known as The Demigods, have competed every season in 38
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