HUNDREDS of children pulled on their boots to help Oxfordshire become record-breakers by staging the world’s biggest tag rugby tournament.

But it was a close run thing as 492 rugby-mad youngsters representing 48 primary schools from across the county turned the Horspath sports ground, Oxford, into a sea of colour for the Chairman’s Cup competition on Wednesday.

That just beat the previous record by five with 487 children involved in a tournament hosted by the Cheltenham Spa School Sport Partnership at Cheltenham’s Newlands Park on March 19 last year.

It means Oxfordshire will now replace them in the Guinness Book Of Records.

Competition manager Simon West was delighted the festival of rugby had been such a success “It is fantastic,” he said. “It highlights the amount of rugby that is going on. It is a great opportunity to take part and the record is a bonus.

“It was just the excitement and the colour of having so many people in one place covering the whole of a sports field. There was lots of enthusiasm and faces with big smiles. It was a great day.”

The tournament featured three cup competitions with John Hampden (Thame) winning the A Section ahead of Sacred Heart (Henley).

South Moreton took the honours in the B Section with Ewelme runners-up, while St Amands (Wantage) came out on top in the C Section with Gateway (Carterton) finishing second.

Prizes were presented to the youngsters by Brian Hook, a former chairman of Oxfordshire County Council, who was the inspiration behind the competition when it first took place ten years ago.

The tournament was the culmination of a year’s work with coaches going into primary schools.

Referees were provided by Oxford Harlequins RFC, Chipping Norton RFC, Henley College and London Wasps RFC, who also brought along their mascot Sting, while sports leaders from Northfield School (Oxford) helped out.