BARROW Raiders' elite under-16s squad have received a further boost after being provided with new sponsored training kit.

The team were officially presented with the new kit by former Raiders chairman David Sharpe and Dawn Knowles, both of Ross Estates Ltd.

The under-16s group train alongside the Furness Raiders under-19s team at Furness College once a week, and coach Dennis Porter is delighted to see the continued growth of the youth section over the past year.

“It's great the lads can come down here and all look the same, and all feel part of what is a big thing for them,” said Porter. “They come down here, they walk around town in their kit and they all feel part of it, which is great.

“We've got good people on board and it's worked really well, and to see the lads progress – especially watching the under-19s and the under-16s, who we catch the end of every week, their improvement has been amazing.”

It is hoped the under-16 players who will move up an age group next season will become part of the Furness Raiders side, who play in the College Rugby League Premier competition.

The link with Furness College means the players can pursue academic qualifications at the same time as working towards hopefully making the step up to professional rugby league with Barrow, and the college's Ross Liddicott is in no doubt the partnership is reaping benefits for all parties.

"It's about them having that opportunity of a dual-career in the academic side or vocational in terms of the college course they choose, but also playing rugby at the standard they can against other teams in the College Rugby League Premier Division,” said Liddicott. “The standard is very high.

“The fact is that the students don't have to choose between a potential pathway in professional rugby. They get the opportunity to really think 'what do I want to do?' and they also get to play to that standard, so it's working well at the moment and looking positive moving forwards.

“We're hoping this kind of partnership will encourage lads who are 15 or 16 to think this is the kind of pathway they want to choose because they want to play this standard of rugby and want to study a certain course.

“They're seeing the pathway and the fact they train back-to-back let's them see where the next step is, and if some of the players in the under-16s have been to watch the fixtures in the college league, I'm sure they'll see the standard is competitive and something they should aspire to be at.”

The development programme being run by Raiders and the college would not be possible without the help of the amateur clubs in the area though, with the players still being allowed to turn out for them at weekends.

And Porter, who coaches at Ulverston as well, knows how vital it is that there are strong links between the professional and amateur games to ensure rugby league continues to thrive.

“That's very important, especially in the area we are in,” said Porter. “We are out on a bit of a limb, so if you took all of these lads out of their amateur clubs then you would kill the amateur game.

“We can't do it without the amateur clubs. You have to have them on board and if you don't then you're wasting your time, so it has been really good.”

Liddicott has his sights set on ensuring the programme continues to grow as well and believes the governing bodies should be doing more to promote the College Rugby League.

He said: “We've really challenged AOC (Association of Colleges) Sport and the RFL to say that with the standard of rugby being played, they should be doing more to bring in the crowds and the interest, and use it as a tool for the clubs and the colleges to market and put themselves out there in a way that wouldn't be able to be done without being where we are now.”