About Us

Guernsey Touch is the administrator of all things ‘Touch’ in Guernsey.

History

Touch, in various disguises, has been played in Guernsey for a number of years.

However in the summer of 2003 two kiwis named Andrew Hutton and Rob Forbes decided to buy a ball and get a few ‘Antips’ together for a bit of a throw around. Over the summer of 2003 the weekly get together continued through the winter and into the next summer up until the European Championships in Jersey in July 2004. As a result of entering a team of ‘hacks’ into the Europeans, it was decided that a league should be born in Guernsey.

In December 2004 the first committee meting of Guernsey Touch was held and with the help of Lloyds TSB, the summer of 2005 saw the first summer league held at Les Beaucamps Secondary School in which 22 teams competed in two divisions, mixed and mens. Following the success of the Summer League, the inaugural Autumn League was run on Sunday afternoons in September and October.

In 2006, and a new Sponsor Ernst & Young, the Summer and Autumn Leagues were moved to Blanchelandes Girls’ College due to growth in the number of teams competing. Guernsey Touch also travelled to Edinburgh in the July to compete at the European Championships. A mixed team and a men’s team, who both had a tremendous amount of help from our London based coach Mike Abromowitz, travelled from Guernsey and enjoyed success in their respective divisions. With Guernsey being recognised by the Federation of International Touch in August 2006, both the mixed team and the men’s team competed at the Europeans in the ‘Rest of the World’ categories. The men’s team made the final losing to the Colonials, a primarily New Zealand team based in London, and the mixed team lost their semi-final to the UAE.

With the 2006 European Championships completed Guernsey Touch turned its focus back on the Summer League. In 2007 the Summer League moved once again to its new home at St Martins A C. With vastly improved facilities, a bar on site and the co-operation of the St Martins AC committee the success of the League was paramount. A record number of teams registered during the summer allowing the league to run its first ladies division with 5 teams competing for the title. Registrations were also received from 18 mixed teams and 11 mens teams. The Autumn League continued at Blanchelande Girls’ College and again a significant increase in the number of teams registering was seen.

Touch in Guernsey Today

The success of the domestic competitions, the Summer and the Autumn Leagues, hosted each year by Guernsey Touch speak volumes for the future of touch in Guernsey. The social, yet competitive nature of the game has enabled more and more people to realise the access that the game has across all levels.

Guernsey Touch continues to be represented in Europe by its Island Team and in 2008 the European Championships will be held in Paris, France. This year Guernsey Touch will send three teams to compete in the Mixed, Mens and Ladies divisions.

2008 will also see Guernsey Touch host a Channel Islands Club Championships and the annual interinsular series against Jersey.