Spartans Stars in Their Eyes Raise Dazzling £2k+ for Charity

There certainly seemed no better way to kickstart a busy Bank Holiday weekend for the Spartans than by popping down to Bar Pop to watch seven stunning Spartans transform themselves into drag superstars for the night, marking the return of our Big Easter Bash, the first since Covid restrictions were lifted and our last “Disney Gone Bad” show back in 2019.

The bash was back with avengeance – with our rugged players generously giving their time to rehearse, shave their beards (amongst other areas) and perform their favourite diva anthems to raise money towards ‘Mermaids’ and the MCR Ukraine Welcome Fund infront of a packed crowd at Bar Pop on Canal Street.

The acts: George Matthew (as Veronica Sawyer from the Heathers musical), Archie Taylor (as Sandy from Grease), Charlie Derbyshire (as Celine Dion), Christian John (as Cheryl Cole), Gazz Pashley (as Christina Aguilera), George Harvey (as Rupaul) and Rory Leventhorpe (as Rihanna), wowed the packed out bar with a star studded performance with incredible choreography and make up thanks to the wonderful Rosie Elizabeth and the Barpop Show Team. And of course we have to mention the sensational host and Barpop owner Mr John Hamilton as the queen of Canal Street – Viva La Diva.

Not only did we have 7 delightful divas perform like pros on stage – but an additional 7 gorgeous players kindly offered themselves to the highest bidder for a date of their choice. Thanks to this, and many kind donations from the attendees and supporters of the club, the event raised over a dazzling £2,500!

A special thank you to everyone who was involved in the show production and to everyone who came to watch!  Everyone at the Spartans are so grateful for your generosity, love and kindness along with all your positive comments and pictures from the night.

Our massive Thursday was just the start of a very special weekend for the club.

Once everyone had recovered over what was a pretty fragile Friday, Saturday not only saw our Chair and 1XV Captain (Gareth and Simon) tie the knot at their beautiful marriage and wedding reception in Manchester, but we also sent a strong contingent of Touch players to represent the club at the first IGR UK Touch Tournament at the IGR UK League North Finals Day, hosted by preston-based IGR club, Typhoons of Lancashire.

With George H kindly stepping up as Captain for the Spartans, he led the team to win all 6 matches and win this inaugural IGR Touch Tournament (and the second Touch tournament we’ve won recently).

Hull Roundhead’s squad conceeded their tournament match due to only having 4 players available, but instead of leaving their players without a game, we played a friendly against them with Gazz, David, Levi and Tom from the Spartans swapping shirts to play for Hull.

David and Callum also played for the Ravens for one match and George and Gazz played for Tritons.  This is the epitome of the Spartans’ spirit and is just as important as winning the tournament.

So, all in all, after a busy BH, we’re proud that the Spartans spirit was on show throughout this beautiful weekend in Spring.  Generousity. Sportsmanship. Love. Laughter.

If you’d like to donate to Mermaids and the MCR Ukraine Welcome Fund you can visit https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/villagespartans

#IGRLeague #Touchrugby #ilbas #inclusiverugby #barpop #morethanrugby

Photos will be posted online soon.