Travel agent sponsors Welsh Rugby Uinion team to go places in World Cup
A travel agent with shops in Oswestry and Shrewsbury is helping Wales to go places at the Rugby World Cup thanks to a major sponsorship deal.
The players' red shirts will be proudly emblazoned with the brand logo of Hays Travel for the tournament which kicks-off on Saturday at St James’s Park, Newcastle.
Wales are in action on Wednesday (19), at Leigh against the Cook Islands, kick-off 7.30pm, their opponents a triple dose of Southern Hemisphere opposition with Tonga and Papua New Guinea making up the group.
Wales are tipped to beat the Islanders which could set the stage for a decisive meeting with a very physical Papua New Guinea side at Doncaster on October 31, with England likely to await the winners in the quarter-finals.
Wales skipper Elliot Kear will play his third world cup.
Bradford Bull Kear, 33, said: “It’s a bit surreal. I didn’t play much football in school but I played rugby. I’m under no illusions we’ve got a tough group and I think Tonga could well make the final so we’ve got to really focus on beating Cook Islands and Papua New Guinea.
“We’ve got a great group of boys with a good atmosphere and we really want to play for each other and for Wales. It’s a huge honour for me to captain Wales in a World Cup, one of the highlights of my career.”
Another veteran hoping to go out on a high is Wales’s record try-scorer and cap-holder, Salford Red Devils wing Rhys Williams, 32, a North Walian from Mynydd Isa who played his junior rugby at Mold.
Williams and Kear were team-mates at London Broncos and Salford and Williams, who lives in Hawarden and has scored 22 tries in his 30 internationals, said: “The squad have been together for a long time and we know each other very well.
We’re playing three Southern Hemisphere teams so you don’t get to play these players every day so it’s an exciting prospect but no-one is getting ahead of themselves.”
All three Wales group games take place in the heartland of Hays Travel North West, network partners of Hays Travel, with 44 shops across North Wales and the North West.
Don Bircham, Managing Director of Hays Travel North West is excited about the prospects for the tournament and said: “We’re thrilled to be involved in a major sporting event with a global audience and one that fits particularly well for us with our strong presence in the North West and North Wales.
“It is an honour for Hays Travel to be on the red shirt of Wales."
Brian Julliff, Chairman of Wales Rugby League, commented: “We’re thrilled to welcome such a recognised name as Hays Travel as a partner for our men’s team during Rugby League World Cup.
