Manchester RFC junior colts in Portugal

Over the October half term holidays, Manchester RFC U17s travelled to Porto with Tours 4 Sport. They spent 5 days in Portugal's second city, playing fixtures - and receiving excellent hospitality - in both Porto and Coimbra. 

This age group are one of several at Manchester RFC who have travelled with Tours 4 Sport in the past as well as hosted visiting tour groups with us, and we were delighted to work with them on their tour to Portugal. Lisbon is a popular destination for rugby and football tours, but Manchester were to find that Porto and Coimbra had plenty to offer as well.

Following an early morning flight from Liverpool, 49 tourists arrived at Porto airport on Sunday, where they were met by our friendly, local ground agents. As well as knowing the area, our reps really know their rugby so they get along well and are of great assistance to our touring teams. We had organised private coach transfers to their excellent 3 star city centre hotel which would be their base for the next four nights. After checking in and a quick orientation of the local area, the group were free to enjoy the beautiful city set on the banks of the Douro river.

Before the rugby got underway, the group were able to enjoy Porto, bathed in sunshine. What a pleasant change for a bunch of Mancunians to be in shorts and t-shirt in October! Players and parents alike sampled some great food in the local restaurants, and some saw the city and its famous bridges from a boat tour on the river.

We also organised free entry into one of the famous Port Houses. Following some tasting, not all of the bottles purchased lasted long enough to make it home! Helpful guides are able to describe the port-making process and history, and the venue is really impressive, some may say intoxicating!

This wasn't just a city tour though. This was a rugby tour, and we pride ourselves on our ability to organise good quality friendly fixtures with suitable hosts. The two games which Manchester were to play offered the right blend of competitive rugby and warm hospitality afterwards, which is what a good club rugby tour is all about in our opinion.

Portugal are an improving rugby nation, but we are always impressed by the standard of coaching in their clubs, and they are producing some good young players. Manchester are a talented team themselves, but they were pushed close here, winning 17- 7 in Porto and 8 - 3 in Coimbra. After both games they shared food, drinks, songs, speeches and awards with their welcoming hosts. Good Portuguese sides love the opportunity to test themselves against opposition from the UK, and both hosts did themselves proud on and off the field here.


Manchester's tour organiser Neil James left us a message on behalf of his Junior Colts: "Just wanted to say what a great time Manchester junior colts had on tour in Porto. The tour was well organized and our rep in Porto was fantastic – very keen to help organize both visits to the port factories and to help us with both booking of restaurants and finding our way around Porto during the days there. The Rugby we played there was great , the teams were very competitive and of a very good standard, and the hospitality we received was outstanding. The Portuguese teams are very keen to receive teams from other countries and I would consider arranging another tour there in the future.

Thanks for all your help and organization on what was a great trip"

Tours 4 Sport organise junior rugby tours in Lisbon, Porto and Coimbra. Contact us on 0800 043 3887 or info@tours4.com to discuss your requirements with one of our knowledgeable tour managers.