As the largest festival of its kind in the Highlands, more than 500 youngsters from clubs all over the north of Scotland ranging in age from primary two to primary seven, pitched up to Canal Park in Inverness.
All the players showed great endeavour and camaraderie on the day, and it was great to see teams make the considerable journey through from Banff and Huntly.
But the prize for furthest travelled would probably have to be shared between Lochaber and Caithness.
The supporting mums and dads were able to enjoy a tasty barbecue and home-baking, organised by our very own Karen Cameron, a senior associate in our litigation team. At the last count, it was reckoned that Karen had managed to feed 1,500 hungry mouths!
Organising the children was a band of 50 or so coaches from the various clubs, including me.
As a player, I thought I had faced a fair few tough challenges, but I didn’t know what had hit me when faced with herding dozens of excited primary four youngsters.
The team’s involvement continued with Victoria Leslie, one of our litigation partners, handing out the medals to all the players at the end of the day.
Modern facilities
This was the first minis and micros festival of rugby to be held at Canal Park since it has been newly renovated, complete with brand new clubhouse and 4G pitch.
One of the young visitors, not having played on a 4G synthetic pitch before was heard to be most impressed with the surface — not because it was fast, not because it was bouncy....but because it did a great job of cleaning and shining his muddy boots.
Rugby and the law
Aside from being an ideal opportunity to support the sports stars of the future, the event got me thinking about the other links between the legal profession and this game that I’ve loved playing for almost 40 years.
There may be far fewer scrummaging opportunities in the office or court than there are on the pitch, but it’s fair to say that training to be a great rugby player is a lot like training to be a good lawyer.
It takes a long time; a lot of dedication; plus, working as part of a team that includes skilled operators who are generous with their time and advice can make all the difference.
It’s no surprise then that, whether in the amateur or professional days, it’s never been unusual to see a solicitor tearing down the wing or getting involved in a ruck.
Here are some lawyers lucky enough to be very gifted with the oval ball —
Brian Moore (England) – voted Rugby World Player of the Year 1991
Andy Irvine MBE (Scotland) – some (of a certain vintage) would say he was Scotland’s finest ever full-back
Nick Farr-Jones (Australia) — a Rugby World Cup winning captain in 1991
Simon Geoghegan (Ireland) — once described by famous commentator Bill McLaren, with reference to his famous and exuberant side-step, as “a mad trout up a burn”
Conrad Smith (New Zealand) — two time Rugby World Cup winner
To find out more, or to get involved, visit the club's website, its Facebook page, or contact the club development officer at highlanddo@outlook.com.
