The goalball taster day also marked the launch of the British team’s new London training hub at the facilities belonging to the national spinal injuries charity, Aspire.

Goalball performance director Tabo Huntley said: "We hope that the Saracens players will enjoy the challenge of playing ‘blind’.

"At national level, this is the only sport in which fully and partially-sighted or blind people can take part on a level playing-field.

"Since the ladies squad took the gold [at the European Championships] in Munich last year, goalball is starting to take off in the UK, and we hope to receive more funding and grow as a sport in the run-up to [the] 2012 [Paralympics].

"We are very grateful to Aspire for agreeing to lend us their facility for training our London-based players, up to now all their training has been centred in Bedford."

The taster day is one of several community projects supported by Saracens chairman Nigel Wray and will take place at Aspire’s national training centre in Stanmore, Middlesex.

Goalball is a strategic sport played by both fully-sighted and partially-sighted or blind players, all wearing blindfolds.

Played by two teams of three on an indoor volleyball court, the aim is to roll the ball into the opposing teams net.

Spectators are expected to remain silent whilst the ball is in the play to enable the players to hear the ball.

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