England legend Andy Robinson joined Stroud Rugby Club as they created a “little bit of Twickenham” to get behind England with NatWest RugbyForce.

Robinson joined club members and the local community for an evening of club activities for young and old, before everyone gathered in the clubhouse to get behind England.

The day kicked-off with a schools rugby tournament ran in conjunction with England Rugby followed by a club training session. There was also face painting, and a BBQ to help get the whole club into the rugby spirit. Andy Robinson then spent some time answering lots of questions from the club before sitting together to cheer on England.

Stroud Rugby Club was one of six clubs awarded this experience following a successful NatWest RugbyForce submission earlier this year where their RugbyForce plans were put forward for the prize, with a judging panel selecting the best plans – the nationwide programme developed in partnership with the England Rugby which aims to help rugby clubs become stronger businesses and improve and renovate their facilities with the support of volunteers and the community.

As part of the programme, the clubhouse was kitted-out to make sure that a little bit of Twickenham was brought to them with lots of official England Rugby supporter materials, a bumper pack of goodies to use and tickets were printed for guests in the Twickenham stadium style.

Partners of England Rugby also donated a number of exciting raffle prizes and the club was presented with a brand new Samsung plasma TV to ensure they wouldn’t miss a minute of the action.

Back in June, the club received a visit from England legend Lee Mears who helped with a few DIY projects and some essential maintenance as part of the NatWest RugbyForce weekend, to help prepare the club for Friday’s activity.

On completing his day at the club, Robinson said: “We’ve all had a fantastic time here at Stroud Rugby Club. The club looked absolutely fantastic and there was such a buzz in the clubhouse; it really did feel like a little bit of Twickenham has found itself here.

"The club have shown exactly what can be done when the local community all work together and they did such a great job in winning the prize - I want to wish everyone at the club all the best for the coming season and beyond.”

Brett Williams from NatWest commented: “Stroud Rugby Club applied for NatWest RugbyForce many months ago, and it has been fantastic to see how the club and the community have come together to make a real difference.

"NatWest RugbyForce has provided support to over 1,000 local rugby clubs since 2009 and we feel that this Ultimate Club Experience has been a fantastic way to showcase all of their hard work and for the moment to be written into their club history.”