THE NEWLY BRANDED Ireland Police Rugby team – which is made up of members of An Garda Síochána and the Police Service of Northern Ireland – will take on a British Police Select Team in Belfast later today.

The game will form part of the tenth anniversary celebrations of the formation of the PSNI.

The team will be playing their first game in their new kits – which display the newly designed Ireland Police Rugby badge. The new badge shows the symbols for the four rugby provinces, the surrounds from the Garda crest on the inside, and the PSNI crest on the outside.

PSNI Chief Inspector Tim Mairs said that the team was a “vibrant and positive example of all-island co-operation and integration, reflecting the ongoing professional and developing relationships between both Police organisations.”

He added: “Today marks another important milestone in the development of our team and will only help to strengthen the good relationships we have with our colleagues from An Garda Síochána.”

Similarly, Garda representative Detective Superintendent Eamon O’Grady said that the Ireland Police Rugby team was a reflection of the “close cooperation and a friendship that exists between our organisations and rugby clubs in the four provinces of Ireland”.

Speaking ahead of the match, Co-Operation Ireland’s Chief Executive Peter Sheridan said:

Rugby has always been a unifying sport, particularly in Ireland where one team represents the whole of the island on the international field. Here the sport is being used as a vehicle to further the relationship between our two police forces, breaking down barriers and promoting greater understanding and respect.