Sussex men’s rugby team are running the Brighton Half Marathon in aid of injured players

On Sunday 25th February, Arsenal face Manchester City in the EFL Cup Final at Wembley, a game that will be showcasing some of the best talent football has to offer. However the big sporting event that day is, of course, The Brighton Half Marathon.

Since it’s launch 28 years ago, The Brighton Half Marathon has become one of the largest running events in the south east and a major fundraising event for many worthy charities and causes. Among the runners this year will be forty five boys from the University of Sussex Men’s Rugby Team who are running in aid of the RFU Injured Players Foundation.

The RFU Injured Players Foundation – the official charity of England Rugby – provides support to players who sustain catastrophic spinal cord or traumatic brain injuries while playing the game. The charity empowers players to lead their lives as fully and independently as possible and conducts research to make breakthroughs in treatment methods and injurty prevention.

This is a cause close to the heart of Sussex men’s rugby, following the tragic injury to their teammate, Harry ‘Beaver’ Langley, in March 2015, which left him paralysed from the neck down. Thankfully, for Beaver and others who have suffered life-altering injuries through playing rugby, the RFU IPF exists to offer support and rehabilitation for life.

Consequently the club – under the alias ‘Beaver’s Barmy Army’ – has taken it upon themselves to do their bit to help fund this vitally important charity. In the last two years they have raised over £13,000 for the Foundation through various fundraisers, including karaoke nights, auctions, cake sales and, of course, taking part in The Brighton Half Marathon.

Fundraising efforts have also included bucket collecting at Twickenham on match days

This will be the club's third year of running the race and they aim to raise an impressive £10,000 for the Injured Players Foundation. If you wish to help them reach their target and help those who face new challenges from injury, please visit their JustGiving page here.

If you would like to learn more about Beaver’s journey since his injury, please have a read of his blog here.

Last year saw 40 boys run The Half, while 20 boys tackled it the year before

Finally, the boys would like to invite you all to the beachfront on Sunday 25th February to support all the runners taking part. Race time is at 9am so you can come down and still be able to watch the EFL Cup Final.