Thousands of people went to York’s Community Stadium today to see the England men’s rugby team hold an open training session at the ground.
The squad returned to York for the second time in two years, during their Six Nations break.
Stars including Maro Itoje and Eliott Daly trained under the watchful eye of coaches Steve Borthwick and Kevin Sinfield.
Video
Former England flanker Richard Hill was delighted by the day.
“It’s massively important for us to be able to come away – a new stimulus, come up to the north of England where we’re not often seen,” he told YorkMix.
“We really want to be inspiring young people, not only to take part and play rugby, but also just that following of it.
“Being in the city of York, it’s been a beautiful place to come, the second year that we’ve come on the trot.
“And we’ve got a number of players that have come in between, because they’ve enjoyed the history of the town and very much wanted to to engage in the local community as well.”
Many school parties were in the crowd, among them St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Primary School in Pickering.
Pupil Teddy Turner, aged 11, is a big rugby fan. He told YorkMix: “It’s really exciting. It’s a nice atmosphere.”
He said one of his favourite players was Eliott Daly. “I’ve been watching rugby quite a lot of my life. I’ve been watching him a lot of the time, and I like his how he plays.”
And Teddy was hopeful that England could go on to win the Six Nations.
The team’s next game is against Italy on Sunday, 9 March.