The company charged with delivering high-speed broadband to rural North East England has stepped in to sponsor a cross-border rugby sevens competition with striking similarities to the company itself.
Scottish company GoFibre is headquartered in Edinburgh, the Scottish capital, and was founded in the Scottish border town of Duns. However, its engineering depot is in Berwick-on-Tweed, on the English side of the border, and it has been awarded key multi-million-pound contracts to deliver high-speed broadband services in both the South Western Scottish border regions and Teesdale and Northumberland in North East England.
In keeping with the spirit of cross-border harmony, GoFibre has signed a three-year partnership with the annual Scottish rugby sevens competition, the Melrose Sevens, which will support grassroots rugby and communities across Durham as GoFibre rolls out its full fibre network, levelling-up the capabilities of local clubs, homes, and businesses across North East.
As part of the deal, GoFibre is also sponsoring a new, grass roots competition which will run alongside the main weekend event at Scotland’s historic Melrose Rugby Club, kicking off on Friday, April 7.
Teams of sassenachs from Durham University and Berwick will be among the 16 teams competing for a £1,000 prize fund courtesy of GoFibre, with the winner also landing a qualifying place in the main 2024 tournament.
Neil Conaghan, CEO, GoFibre said: “Melrose Sevens is a globally recognised cultural event and we are immensely proud to partner with them to create this brand-new tournament.
“Alongside the roll-out of our transformational full fibre network, everything we do is designed to support local communities. Today’s announcement of the opportunity available for Durham University is another step on our journey towards those efforts and our commitment to improving the lives of people across the North of England and beyond.”
It’s no the first time the Melrose Sevens has gone cross-border. Several English teams have won the main competition in the past, including Sale Sharks in 2003 and Newcastle Falcons in 2006. Other past winners of the globally renowned event have hailed from as far afield as South Africa and New Zealand.
