The ‘Sunny South East’ lived up to its name on Saturday 20th July hosting the very first TagFest Brighton, which took place at Brighton Rugby Club on Waterhall Road. Close to 300 people across 24 teams joined together under the united theme ‘Flower Power’ to contribute to a day full of love, joy and happiness where the only rule – outside of the TTR Rulebook – was bring good vibes only!

Alongside our local teams, we welcomed travelling teams from Bristol, Coventry and London, plus we even had some players who flew in from Ireland for the weekend. After a fleeting rain shower before games kicked off, the rest of the tournament enjoyed perfect conditions with gentle overcast clouds and a light warm breeze, and the beaming sunshine arriving just in time for the Cup Final a.k.a. The Tuaca Jug. Judging by a few lobsters that were spotted down on the seafront at the after-party later in the evening, we are fairly certain that some folk were caught out by the clouds and forgot to put on their sunscreen as instructed!

Tag Rugby
In the morning phase, teams competed in pools before moving into Cup, Plate and Bowl divisions based on the results. The score lines were so tight that lots of phase 2 standings came down to points difference, meaning there was very little in it. We were very proud that one of our local teams made it into the Cup division against some of the experienced sides from London and beyond, big shout out to Tag Refest! The Grand Final, which saw a number of TTR legends and familiar faces taking to the field, was played in the best spirit, expertly officiated by local referee Michael Franks, to the cheers from our very own ‘Tagman’ Hill at Brighton RFC – it was the perfect end to our first tournament here in Brighton.

Finals & The Tuaca Jug
The Tortoises (who had everyone wondering if this was a playful nod towards the Turtles or if they are simply just another shell from the same tag-family tree…we may never know) were cool, calm and collected in the Cup Final, winning with a final score of 5-1. At presentations, they were the first to lift and drink from ‘The Perpetual Tuaca Jug’ which they graciously shared with their opposition and runners-up Johnny and the Masters of the Universe. It was left to Aaron Au to serve both teams who, in true British fashion, politely queued up to savour their first taste of the renowned Brighton & Hove liquid gold ‘Tuaca’. Other highlights from the finals included another local B&H squad Tagmanian Devils reaching the Plate Final against Tina’s Taggers, which ended in a respectable 7-4 victory to the latter, and the Clapham Cheeks (with their infamous message ‘spread cheeks not hate’) bringing it to Colin on Tour to win the Bowl Final 5-0.

The final standings across all divisions can be found at the end of this article.

Fancy Dress
Along with the overall event theme, the fancy dress theme was also ‘Flower Power’. During the presentations, entrants to the best dressed were invited to the Flower Parade and it came down to a crowd cheer vote between Brighton Tag Hoors (dressed in custom made tag shorts – so popular they’ve had a few requests for orders!) and Coventry Allstars (in the most wonderful tie dye get-up). What we really wanted to do was to combine the two team outfits and make an ultimate FLOWER POWER kit. In the end, the Tag Hoors won the crowd over and were awarded the second bottle of Tuaca on offer. Word on the street is that they were delighted because that’s apparently all they really wanted to win anyway, which makes us very happy!

Spirit of Tag Award
In true TTR Brighton fashion, we awarded a Spirit of Tag prize to the team who had the best attitude both on and off the field and who best embraced our ‘love and kindness’ event ethos. This is one of the most important awards, if not the best one, to win in our opinion, because it’s one that everyone has the potential and chance to pick up regardless of their Tagging ability. We truly believe that the people and teams who bring the best vibes are the ones who lead the way in creating the inclusive, supportive and social community & culture that our region prides itself on. Huge thanks and congratulations to Bristolian team Gurt Lush Tagging who won the Spirit of Tag Award 2024.

Skipping Rope Competition
We had a team skipping rope competition during the lunch break, and what a treat that was! More people & less skips or less people and more skips – that was the hot debate. The team who came in 3rd place managed to get the most people into the skipping rope for the most skips – that was Colin on Tour with 7 people doing 9 skips, 2nd place went to Brighton Tagliatelle with 4 people doing 17 skips, and the winners were the Tortoises Women with 3 people doing 23 skips – impressive stuff, especially as the rope turning got faster as the count increased. Highlights included multiple teams practising their jump timing with imaginary skipping ropes as they waited for their turn and our thanks go to our referee team who took turns turning the skipping rope, before being forced to do a referee team effort! The photos are worth a look.

Referees
We had a fantastic referee line-up with David Leverett, Ian Grey, Joshua Dowse, Kirsty Clarke, Marianne Bowtell, Mark Anscombe, Michael Franks, Sam Bedford and Sarah Jeffery officiating some excellent Tag Rugby games. They all did a cracking job and there was high praise all round, in particular for our female referees on the day. We very nearly achieved our target of having at least 50% female referees, and will endeavour to hit that next year!

Congratulations to our local referee Ian Grey, who received one vote higher than both Kirsty Clarke and Mark Anscombe to take the ‘Referee of the Day’ award. Well done to you all.

Photos
The photos from the day are available on the TTR Brighton & Hove Facebook Page.

Thank You
In addition to thanking all the players and referees, we would also like to extend our thanks to our event staff and partners for making the event such a success. A special thank you to Georgina, Max and all the team at Brighton Rugby Club for hosting us and to Trisha & Ronnie of T&R Medix for their care and attention to our players.

Finally, a huge shout out to our photographer Ryan Quinn who captured the essence, joy, love and flowery spectacle that was TagFest Brighton 2024. You can book Ryan for your own events here: www.ryanquinnphotography.com.

We hope everybody enjoyed the day and we already can’t wait for 2025!

RESULTS

Spirit of Tag Award: Gurt Lush Tagging (Bristol Region)

This award is given to the team who displays the best spirit across the day, voted for by referees, staff and other teams in the tournament for bringing the best vibes both on and off the pitch. Here in Brighton this is regarded as one of the best awards a team can win!

Cup
Tortoises
Johnny and the Masters of the Universe
Brighton Tag Hoors
Trynamite
Sally On Tour
Funderbuddies
Tag Refest
No Time To Try

Player of the Cup: George Blake (Sally on Tour)

Plate
Tina’s Taggers
Tagmanian Devils
Coventry Allstars
Gurt Lush Tagging
Petal to the Medal
Bad Flufferz
Making Scrums in Brighton
Cosmic Manatees

Joint Players of the Plate: Alex Dale (Tagmanian Devils) & Emily Stone (Cosmic Manatees)

Bowl
Clapham Cheeks
Colin on Tour
Hakuna Matagga
Tagliatelle Brighton
Tuaca Taggers
Velcro? Is It Me You’re Looking For?
Tuaca Hotshots
Brenda’s Fenders

Player of the Bowl: Max Fernie (Petal to the Medal)

Referee of the Day: Ian Grey

Flower Parade Winners: Brighton Tag Hoors

Skipping Rope Competition:
Tortoises – 69 skip score
Tagliatelle – 68 skip score
Colin on Tour – 63 skip score