Stewartry Rugby Club celebrates women and girls’ rugby with Scotch Beef and ‘Eat to Compete’

Stewartry Rugby Club celebrates women and girls’ rugby with Scotch Beef and ‘Eat to Compete’

Stewartry Rugby Club welcomed over 120 players, their families and rugby fans for a special Eat to Compete Day on Sunday 21 September, celebrating the growth of women’s and girls’ rugby while highlighting the role of nutritious food in sport.

The event, supported by Quality Meat Scotland (QMS), featured an U12s mini-festival, an U16s fixture, a live Scotch meat cook-along with Scotland international Alex Craig, and a senior women’s match between the Stewartry Sirens and Ayr RFC. Attendees enjoyed Scotch Beef burgers, goodie bags, and hands-on nutrition education, all reinforcing the message that good fuel matters.

A highlight of the day was the launch of the new U16s strips, proudly sponsored by two local Castle Douglas farmers, Richard Barbour and Craig McMiken. The jerseys feature the Scotch Beef logo, reflecting their support for the team and the wider sport. Richard and Craig’s sponsorship ensures that the young players are equipped in style while promoting the role of locally produced Scotch Beef in a nutritious diet.

Richard Barbour commented: "Craig and I are proud to support the U16 Girls Stewartry Rugby Team. We wanted to give something back and help promote our sector. As a beef farmer myself, using the Scotch Beef logo was an obvious choice. Farming is a big part of our local community, and we hope this will encourage other farmers to see supporting local sports teams as a great way to showcase our excellent produce.

Eat to Compete, QMS’s innovative resource for young athletes, was showcased throughout the day. Designed to help develop sporting performance through nutrition, the guide is packed with:

• Exclusive advice from athletes and experts on diet, performance and recovery.
• Simple, tasty recipes using Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb and Specially Selected Pork.
• Insights into farming, sustainability, and career pathways in agriculture.

Importantly, red meat plays a significant role in women’s health, particularly in supporting recovery and athletic performance. As the Eat to Compete booklet explains, Scotch red meats are rich sources of high-quality protein, iron, and other nutrients essential for building muscle, maintaining energy levels, and aiding recovery post-exercise. These nutrients are especially vital for girls and women athletes, whose iron and protein requirements can be higher due to growth, training, and menstrual needs. Consuming red meat can help counteract exercise-induced muscle damage while supporting immune health and overall wellbeing.

Tracy Martin, Reputation Manager at QMS, said: “This was a fantastic day celebrating women and girls’ rugby here in Stewartry. Events like this bring the Eat to Compete resource to life, showing young players and their families just how important good nutrition is - not just for performance on the pitch, but for overall wellbeing. It was brilliant to see so many taking part, asking questions and enjoying Scotch Beef together after the matches.”

The event is part of QMS’s broader programme of rugby development sessions across Scotland, as community engagement partners with Scotland’s two professional rugby teams, which combine nutrition workshops, cookery demonstrations, strength and conditioning insights, mental wellbeing support, and practical rugby skills, all delivered with input from professional athletes and experts.

For more information and to download the Eat to Compete guide, visit qmscotland.co.uk.