Welsh couple set to break Guinness World Record in brutal rugby challenge

Welsh couple set to break Guinness World Record in brutal rugby challenge
The Welsh couple will be pushed to the brink this week
James Burge-Davies (left) and his wife Melanie Burge-Davies (right) with son Ethan and daughter Esme
A Welsh couple are aiming to break a Guinness World Record by taking part in the world's longest ever rugby match this week.
James and Melanie Burge-Davies from Porthcawl will travel to Ireland this week where they will participate in non-stop full-contact games of rugby which will last 36 hours. There will be a men's and a women's game at Mulligar RFC, just outside of Dublin, between June 18-19.
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IT manager James and GP Melanie will be raising money for rugby charity Wooden Spoon to help change the lives of disadvantaged children. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby.
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A full 80 minutes of extreme physicality is often viewed as pushing your body to the limit but 36 hours is off the charts.
"The teams are made up of 23 players each so there'll be eight subs," James told WalesOnline.
"It's a full-contact rugby game and all union rules apply. There'll be six referees throughout that period for both of the games.
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"The tactic is to play for four to five hours and then you come off for an hour and a half break before going again.
"There will be water breaks like you do in normal games, but that's spread throughout. During the day we will be having smaller stints and smaller breaks.
"The idea then is during the night you have longer stints on the field which means you get a bit more of a break, so you can have a power nap for an hour.
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"How do you prepare for a 36-hour rugby game? We found out in January we were going to be doing this so we've tried to lose weight and eat healthier. We've been doing a lot of cycle rides and gym work.
"We've also joined a local touch rugby team of which Mel is the captain for the women's team."
James, 42, and Melanie, 41, both have rugby in their blood, with the husband and wife having both captained Porthcawl RFC men's and women's team up until recently.
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They hope to help raise money and awareness to help disadvantaged children and people who are struggling with their mental health.
"We have both captained Porthcawl seniors in season 23/24 but we stepped back at the end of last season," James told WalesOnline.
"We saw this opportunity come up to raise money and awareness for those three charities. We are also having a good go at the Guinness World Record.
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"We are very much a rugby family and coach the minis at Porthcawl. We are currently coaching the U11s.
"Most husbands and wives with kids try to get away for a romantic evening or a special weekend but we've decided to go away to play rugby for 36 hours.
"Myself and my wife have always been part of a charity called Wooden Spoon.
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"They tend to support disabled and disadvantaged children around the UK.
"They've teamed up with Looseheads which is another sporting charity supporting mental health and also the British & Irish Lions trust which supports former Lions.
"They've teamed up with the other charities to form an event prior to the Lions game next Friday against Argentina.
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The current world record for a men's game of rugby is 30 hours, 29 minutes and 41 seconds while the women's is 24 hours, five minutes and 15 seconds. Join our WalesOnline rugby WhatsApp community here.
But both James and Melanie are confident of setting a new record this week.
"The event itself is looking to raise over £100,000 and we are already at 84% (£84k) of that," said James. "Myself and Melanie have targeted raising £3,000 and we've pretty much made that now.
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"We've raised that money from begging family and friends. We've done leaflet drops around the local area but a vast amount has come from corporate sponsorship.
"It's going to be tough but we are confident we can do it."
You can donate to James and Melanie's cause by visiting their JustGiving page here.

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Johnson had 19 points and 14 assists, and Finals MVP James Worthy had a monster triple-double: 36 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists. 1984: Boston Celtics defeated Los Angeles Lakers 111-102 Finals MVP Larry Bird had 20 points and 12 rebounds and was one of three Celtics who scored at least 20 points (Cedric Maxwell 20 points, Dennis Johnson 22 points). 1978: Washington Bullets defeated Seattle SuperSonics 105-99 Five Bullets players scored at least 13 points led by Bob Dandridge's 19 points and Finals MVP Wes Unseld's 15 points, nine rebounds and six assists. 1974: Boston Celtics defeated Milwaukee Bucks 102-87 Dave Cowens had 28 points and 14 rebounds, and Finals MVP John Havlicek had 16 points, nine rebounds, six assists and three steals. 1970: New York Knicks defeated Los Angeles Lakers 113-99 Known as the Willis Reed game because an injured Reed hobbled onto the court, inspiring his teammates and Knicks fans. Though Reed missed Game 6 and didn't play the second half of Game 7, he was named Finals MVP. Walt Frazier delivered 36 points and 19 assists in the finale. 1969: Boston Celtics defeated Los Angeles Lakers 108-106 Headed into Game 7, Lakers owner Jack Kent Cooke had a victory celebration plan, which infuriated Lakers star Jerry West. John Havlicek scored 26 points, Sam Jones added 24 and player-coach Bill Russell had six points, six assists and 21 rebounds. Wilt Chamberlain had 18 points and 27 rebounds for the Lakers and, after averaging 37.9 points, 7.4 assists and 4.7 rebounds, West was named Finals MVP - the only player from a losing team to win the award. 1966: Boston Celtics defeated Los Angeles Lakers 95-93 Bill Russell had 25 points and 32 rebounds, John Havlicek contributed 16 points and 16 assists and Sam Jones scored 22 points for the Celtics. It was the final game as Celtics coach for legend Red Auerbach. 1962: Boston Celtics defeated Los Angeles Lakers 110-107 (OT) Bill Russell collected 30 points and 40 rebounds. Yes, 40 rebounds, which canceled out Elgin Baylor's 41 points and 22 rebounds for the Lakers. Los Angeles' Frank Selvy missed a jump shot at the end of the fourth quarter that would've won the game for the Lakers had the shot went through the hoop. 1960: Boston Celtics defeated St. Louis Hawks 122-103 Bill Russell had 22 points and 35 rebounds, Bob Cousy had 19 points and 14 assists and Frank Ramsey had 24 points and 13 rebounds for the Celtics. 1957: Boston Celtics defeated St. Louis Hawks 125-123 (2OT) This started the Celtics' unprecedented dynasty. Tom Heinsohn had 37 points and 23 rebounds, Bill Russell had 19 points and 32 rebounds and Bob Cousy had 12 points and 11 assists. It is the only Finals game to go two overtimes, and Bob Pettit (39 points, 19 rebounds) missed a shot at the final buzzer that would've forced a third OT. 1955: Syracuse Nationals defeated Fort Wayne Pistons 92-91 Seven Nationals players scored at least 11 points led by George King's 15 points and Billy Kenville's 15. Red Kerr and Dolph Schayes each had 13 points and 12 rebounds. This was the first season of the 24-second shot clock. King's free throw with 12 seconds left won the game. 1954: Minneapolis Lakers defeated Syracuse Nationals 87-80 George Mikan had 11 points and 15 rebounds and Clyde Lovellette had 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Lakers. 1952: Minneapolis Lakers defeated New York Knicks 82-65 George Mikan led the Lakers with 22 points and 19 rebounds. 1951: Rochester Royals defeated New York Knicks 79-75 Arnie Risen contributed 24 points and 13 rebounds for the Royals. Some historic players were involved in this Finals: Dick McGuire, brother of Al; Ernie VanDeWeghe, father of Kiki; Red Holzman, the famous Knicks coach who played for the Royals; Nat Clifton, one of the NBA first Black players; and Harry Gallatin, who was one of David Stern's favorite players when the one-time NBA commissioner was a kid.