Budding up-and-coming Owen Farrells and Maro Itojes in Chipping Norton have received a boost from a new sports funds.

The £100,000 Gigaclear Rural Sports Club Fund, supported by former England cricketer Darren Gough, aims to assist teams in rural communities.

Chipping Norton RFC is one of the beneficiaries and has been able to purchase a pair of steel goalposts and post pads for the current season.

Club chairman Patrick Neale said: "We’re hugely grateful to Gigaclear for supporting grassroots rural sport clubs through their fund.

"The new rugby goal posts will make a huge improvement to the main pitch in our 50th anniversary year and beyond.

"More than 250 players of all ages will benefit enormously from this investment in our facilities."

The fund's ambassador, Gough, said: "Since launching the fund, it has gone from strength to strength, providing valuable support where it is needed most.

"It’s great to see so much kit and equipment being sent out to rural sports clubs such as Chipping Norton RFC.

"I believe it will help make a difference to players now and to the rural sports teams of the future."

The community club, based at Greystones on Burford Road, is open to players of all ages and abilities.

More than 3,300 homes and businesses in the town can now access Gigaclear’s full fibre broadband, offering ultrafast speeds up to 900Mbps.