India’s rugby union sevens team have been back in Bradford.

They played in a sevens tournament at Wagon Lane in 2010 as part of their preparation for the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi And, having tested themselves as a guest team in the Melrose Sevens in the Scottish Borders, the tourists attended the Bradford Bulls v Wigan Warriors game at Odsal before spreading the union gospel at Parkinson Lane Primary School in Halifax.

The following day, the roles were reversed when Hamish Pratt, rugby development officer for West Yorkshire, welcomed the Indian party, and members of the West Yorkshire rugby development team put them through their paces in a coaching session at Bradford College.

The visit was organised by Ikram Butt, manager of the British Asian Rugby Association, who was full of praise for the visit.

“The Indian lads were on a steep learning curve in Melrose and will have learned from the experience, but they will also have learned even more from their visit to Bradford and Halifax,” he said.

“The rugby content delivered by Hamish and his colleagues will add to their fund of knowledge, as will the rugby league experience at Odsal, while meeting the youngsters at Parkinson Lane Primary and the reception they received will have provided them with a feel-good factor that they are bound to remember for a long time.

“Having a group of personable, friendly young international sportsmen paying them a visit was a big thrill for the children, and the response from the players made it quite clear how much they warmed to the friendship and hospitality.”

Indian team manager Manech Unwala said: “Our visit has undoubtedly been a great experience for the lads to come to this part of the world because while the boys are accustomed to travelling, it is generally around Asia.

“We expected the visit to Melrose to be a learning curve, and so it proved, but I think we did fairly well in the circumstances, with not much time to prepare and the weather against us.

“Our visit to Bradford was excellent and we are indebted to Ikram Butt for putting in place all the various inputs that we enjoyed and which I know will be very beneficial to our squad.

“We had two training sessions in Bradford, which is why we were here, but it was important for us to include some social activity, and going to Parkinson Lane Primary was the cherry on the cake.

“Interacting with a group of charming, delightful kids and warm, friendly staff led by headmaster Gugsy Ahmed made the session totally enjoyable for us and we all fully appreciated what was done for us. The boys were all very happy to have made the visit and I was happy that we did so.”

Pratt said: “The players are outstanding role models within sport and they are building bridges within rugby’s wider family. We hope that these links can only get stronger as we look to exchange ideas with the Indian Rugby Board.”