Push and Power
About
Push And Power Rugby League provide opportunities for people with a physical disability in the sport of rugby league, especially for those people presently not provisioned for by other existing disabled sporting associations in the State of New South Wales.
Push and Power Rugby League is unique in that the sport does not focus on any one particular type of physical disability and combines both push and power wheelchair-dependent athletes.
Push And Power Rugby League is affiliated to and relies on competition opportunities put in place by New South Wales Wheelchair Rugby League.
Combination of Power Chairs and Push Chairs
6 players per team – max 4 push chairs per team
Voice commands control game – no football used
Allows 2 Able-bodies per team
Closely based on NRL Rules
For ages 6 and above – all genders
History
The core of what was to become N.S.W. Push and Power Rugby League Inc. was formed in the early 1980s when a group of dedicated friends and sports fanatics would meet at the old Mount Druitt Roller Skating Rink on Saturday mornings to play sports – mainly a modified version of Rugby League with elements of Hockey starting to come together. Larry Stone, the proprietor of the venue, happily donated two hours before opening time each week to allow the games to be played. At one stage, Larry fought with the Blacktown City Council to allow him to build a roof over the venue so that the sports could be played on wet days as well.
Outside of this extremely generous assistance, the players would organise everything else themselves through their networks of contacts including transportation to and from the Mount Druitt venue (a feat that would be relatively easy to do using today’s technological marvels but was fraught with its own set of problems before the advent of email or mobile phones). Friends and carers were often recruited to referee games or run the lines. This gave physically disabled persons of all ages and gender an outlet to participate in sports that would have otherwise been closed off to them, and it planted the seeds for the future.
In the beginning, these young athletes had to rely on the charity of individuals to achieve their aims. Over time, various sporting clubs, nonsporting organisations and other individuals came forward with sponsorship support to enable a more organised sporting competition to be realised.