A CHARITY rugby team is gearing up for its second major fundraising match to net £7,500 for Cancer Research UK – with a game in Wales that will kick off in Kidderminster.

Spearheading the event is rugby-mad Neil Evans, from Bewdley, who has arranged for the match ball to be delivered by cyclists riding 105 miles from the town to the pitch in Lampeter.

The West Wales Cycle Racing Team will be given a 6am send-off from Kidderminster RFC – which has donated the ball - on Saturday May 14, arriving in the West Wales town by 1pm.

The Nags Charity Barbarians, which will play Mr Evans’ former club Lampeter RFC, has a 62-strong squad of players, who have signed up via the team’s Facebook page, and have to raise at least £50 for the charity to play.

The game, starting at 2pm, will have four 30-minute quarters, with a different team in each.

The Nags’ inaugural match two years ago, against Kidderminster RFC, smashed its £2,000 target for Cancer Research UK, raising £7,000.

Mr Evans, of Northwood Lane, said: “That total was beyond our expectations but it gave us the confidence to aim even higher this time.

“Once again the response has been phenomenal and we are so grateful for all the additional support from sponsors and the West Wales Cycle Racing Team for their magnificent challenge, which will undoubtedly boost the event’s profile and fundraising potential.”

His father’s choir the Treharris Male Voice Choir, will provide the pre-match entertainment and spectators will be asked to fill collecting buckets and buy raffle tickets.

Mr Evans came up with the charity game idea after pulling a narrowboat 30 miles from Birmingham to Worcester in October 2012 to raise almost £5,000 for the cancer charity.

The boat pullers were called The Nags – the name also given to the rugby team, which pledged to turn out bi-annually to play matches for the charity.

He said CRUK was close to his heart following the death of his grandmother from breast cancer many years ago.

Anyone wishing to make a donation can do so at www.justgiving.com/nags2016.