Murrayfield Wanderers Rugby Trust Foundation A Charity registered in Scotland: SC039024

through enthusiastic leaders h2021 Newsletter

Giving Young People a Sporting Chance 1

A Word from our Chair

A warm welcome to our 2021 Newsletter and what a challenging year we’ve just had! Hopefully, 2021 will be an improvement as the vaccine rolls out and we get back to normal.

My thoughts go out to everyone who has been affected by the Andy Jones pandemic or prevented from participating in sport over the last year. I remember rugby being frozen off for six weeks when I was at St. Andrews and I was beside myself with pent up energy, desperately hoping for a break in the weather so matches could resume. Fortunately, we have managed to maintain sessions for the kids in a limited fashion over the past few months and I know the children will be itching for more sport as soon as possible.

Last year, we said goodbye to both our Club president Davy Young and our Development Officer, Murray Hastie. Readers will be aware of the contributions both made to the Club over We are now registered at the years and the Trust expresses its gratitude for their service. AmazonSmile. It donates 0.5% Club stalwart and legal eagle Bobby Fraser has taken over the of the net purchase price reins as Club President and he has ambitious plans for (excluding VAT, returns and improving the facilities and performance of the Club in the coming years. A message from him is contained in this issue. shipping fees) of eligible purchases to the Murrayfield Wanderers Rugby Trust We welcome Marko Mladenovic as our new Community Foundation. Coach and Development Officer. He has an interesting background having played rugby in different countries and at AmazonSmile is the same various levels in France, England and Scotland, as well as Amazon you know. Same captaining Cyprus at international level. products, same prices, same service. From personal experience he appreciates the importance of rugby as a vehicle to drive confidence, communication and Please support us by doing all friendship in people, whilst experiencing the true meaning of your shopping at what it is to be a part of a team and a community. He joins us smile.amazon.co.uk and naming from George Watsons College where he delivered high quality us as your preferred charity. sessions to enrich the rugby programme under the school’s Head of Rugby and SRU directives.

He is full of enthusiasm and has some interesting ideas of how to develop youngsters at the Club and we look forward to supporting his efforts over the next few

Giving Young People a Sporting Chance 2 years. He is being ably supported by Nathan Smith and a team of volunteers whose untiring work is vital to the success of the sessions.

Changes at the What was a difficult situation for rugby in Scotland has been exacerbated by the pandemic. It is vital that we can continue Trust supporting young people into rugby in the long-term. We are doing everything we can to provide support but, as ever, we are reliant on our friends, members, and supporters for funding.

Recently, we registered with Amazon Smile which donates a small sum of every purchase to us. We urge our supporters to use this free service to generate funds.

Further donations are our lifeblood so I ask you to give generously. At the end of this Newsletter is a Gift Aid form. Any donation, however small, will help us achieve our objectives.

Natasha Burgess recently returned to Australia in the wake of the pandemic and we will miss her enthusiasm and We would love to receive further financial vigour. Richard Monk has now kindly agreed to step in as support to: Treasurer. He grew up in and,  Continue our Personal Development Plan following studies at Aberdeen  Provide and extend support for our Development Officer University he has worked in financial services for over 20  Roll out an expanded programme for children and years. He is VP/Director and Global Head of Product  teenagers in Edinburgh Development at Franklin Templeton Investments where he  Fund the development of Modern Apprentice heads various committees.  Provide kit and practical support for our children He played second row for Murrayfield Wanderers Pirates for several glorious years.

Outside of work he enjoys golf, travel and music. After living in Edinburgh for many years he now lives in Fife with his wife Ginnie.

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Club President’s message

It was with great disappointment that we learned that the adult rugby season 2020/21 was cancelled due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Whilst it came as no surprise it is still a huge blow to the club and the wider rugby Bobby Frazer community in Scotland.

I want to reassure everyone that the Club’s committee is doing all it can to continue training and, at the same time, plan for season 2021/22 which, hopefully, will be unaffected.

Please read the undernoted message that head coach, Derek O’Riordan, sent to the players following the SRU announcement which, I think, best sums up the situation at this time:

“Today’s news is a blow lads - I have to admit I am struggling without rugby at a time I, like most of us need it as a stable part of my life to feel like there is some degree of normality, structure and purpose. With a view that we are on the home stretch coming out of winter and into spring I would still like to offer and facilitate one session per week to keep us together as much as possible as a group.

18 months without rugby can take its toll on a squad and our focus as a Club has to be on staying connected as a community and staying together for the future. All of us, where possible, need to stick in and support the playing side to keep the Club alive and allow us to ride this storm through the 21/22 season.

Let me know if you are keen for training once a week from the New Year (within the guidelines) as we start the slow build to the season come the summer.”

It is encouraging to report the very high level of positive responses there were to this within an hour of it going out. It’s proposed that men’s training will initially resume at Roseburn Park on a Saturday once the go-ahead is given that it is safe to do so and Edinburgh has come down from level 3 restrictions.

In addition, we remain in active discussions with the Ice Rink over the Riversdale Suite re- opening but we are also exploring alternative venues to use as temporary clubrooms should the former not be possible. We will keep you updated on all developments as we hope to make the most of what we can over the next few months.

Meantime, it is pleasing to report that the Girls section, under Kirsty Fisher, and the Mini section, led by Vice President Jim McDonaugh, have continued to train and attract new members. If you get a chance please come down to Roseburn Park on a Wednesday evening or Sunday lunchtime to watch some very enjoyable junior rugby training and, at the same time, catch up with those that are there.

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May I also take the opportunity to welcome Marko Mladenovic to MWFC as the Club’s new Development Officer who takes over from Murray Hastie. He is already attending these sessions and again, if you get the chance, please come down to say hello to him. He has impressed everyone so far with his undoubted enthusiasm and positive attitude in all that he has done.

In these challenging times I would ask anyone who has not already done so to pay their sub and support the Club in any way they can. Every little thing makes a bigger difference. Currently, we are working on various fund-raising ideas and we will reveal more in due course.

Finally, it’s always good to finish on a positive note and I leave you with the following message from New Zealand. The father of Mitch Chapman, the supporters’ player of the season, says everything about the Club and what Murrayfield Wanderers stands for:

“It means as much to be recognised by the supporters as to be chosen by the players themselves, I know Mitch would rather be staying on and playing longer for your club but unfortunately the virus thing has made things tough with getting visa extensions. I’m sure if he can in the future he will return as he seems to have made some close friends in his time there. Thanks for looking after him so well while he has been with your Club, much appreciated many thanks, regards Murray Chapman.”

My sincere thanks to everyone who has continued to help the Club during this time. Stay safe and well. Hopefully next year brings much better rugby news at Roseburn and beyond.

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Spotlight On Our New Development Officer

Having played rugby in different countries and at various levels in France, England and Scotland, and captaining Cyprus at international level, I have come to appreciate the importance of rugby as a vehicle to drive confidence, communication and friendship in Marko Mladenovic people, whilst experiencing the true meaning of what it is to be a part of a team and a community.

In July 2015, I undertook the position of ‘Rugby Development Officer’ at COP Rugby Club in Le Puy En Velay, France. During this period, I was tasked with introducing and coaching rugby to children at an introductory level along with creating stable relationships with the key individuals in order to consolidate the link between the school and Club. One of the challenges of this task was introducing rugby skills and basics to a group of primary children which had recently come into the area through a refugee relocation programme.

The job also required that I deliver high quality coaching within the academy of COP Rugby Club, under the precursors of success and expectations set by key individuals, whilst providing support and direction to other staff members and volunteers. My willingness to undertake such a position in a foreign country while learning a new language and succeed is testimony to my commitment and dedication.

At George Watsons College I helped create an environment which prepared the players for the right level of skill and intensity needed for the progression up to senior school. I am confident in my ability to deliver and strengthen the Wanderers programme which inspires individuals to be the best version of themselves and express themselves through the vessels and channels of rugby.

Murrayfield Wanderers FC Club/Community Development Officer

Telephone: 07547 759 430 [email protected] https://www.facebook.com/Murrayfieldwanderers/ https://twitter.com/wandiesrugby

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Development Team update

The current circumstances and COVID restrictions have meant that access to schools to deliver curriculum activity has been problematic. However, a ‘thinking outside the box’ approach towards this challenge and the Jim development of extra-curricular programmes, aimed at both McDonaugh primary and secondary school pupils, has meant that the first 6 weeks of the development team’s labour has been rather fruitful.

We launched our ‘NextGenWandies’ project with our 4-week P3-P7 (U12’S) after-school rugby programme at Roseburn Park. We had an average of 24 (P3-P7) children attend each session, while gaining access to 21 new (to Wandies) children. The atmosphere at the flood lit Roseburn Park was fantastic as it provided a platform for the children to learn some core rugby skills and games while socialising with our mini members who were also invited to attend. 41 children from both our after-school rugby programme and the minis section attended our annual ‘Minis Xmas Party’ at the World of Football to finish the year in style. The coaches worked hard and were on very good form on the day to provide a fantastic event with many presents, prizes and memories that the kids took home.

Despite encouraging feedback, the hard work starts this year when we try to transition the new players and parents from our after-school sessions to our Minis section. We face this challenge confidently as we have already established positive rapport with prospective parents through the events that we have run. The ‘Wandies Academy’ (S1 to S6, u18’s) project was also successfully launched at the end of November acting as the natural progression from our Wandies Minis and the pathway that will one day feed our senior Club.

TheJim Wandies McDonaugh Academy trains every Friday 1:30-3:00 and so far, we have had an average of 15 players per session. The majority attending are from Tynecastle High and WHEC and in particular we are very proud of how the boys from WHEC have acted very responsibly to arrive to training by taking the bus and doing the same to return home. This is a very important part of the project, attainable because of COVID, and we are very confident that we can continue operating effectively through the practices that we have already put in place over the last 6 weeks. Not only are we wanting to create rugby players, but also a platform for these young people to exercise the best version of themselves.

We are very pleased by the positive feedback that we have received from players, parents and schools in regard to the projects we have launched, and we look forward to building on what we have created over the last 6 weeks as schools open their doors to curricular access. If this is not attainable because of COVID, we are very confident that we can continue operating effectively through the practices that we have already put in place over the last 6 weeks.

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Murray Hastie Reflects

I had 5 fantastic years at Murrayfield Wanderers FC as the Community Coach and Development Officer and now it is time to take up another great opportunity in my hometown of Kelso. Murray Hastie A massive thank you to everyone at Murrayfield Wanderers FC and Murrayfield Wanderers Rugby Trust Foundation for giving me the chance to create a strong rugby pathway for young people in the community.

We have made some giant strides in providing opportunities for young players to enjoy rugby both on and off the field, regardless of their experience. A big thank you to all staff members across all our cluster schools. In particular, the Physical Education staff at Wester Hailes Education Centre and Tynecastle High School for making me feel so welcome within their department.

Murrayfield Wanderers FC will always bring fond memories for me and I hugely appreciate the opportunity they have given me to take my first steps in rugby development, a job that I love.

I will be assisting the Club to ensure that there is a swift transition of my role and I wish the Club and the Trust all the best in the years to come. I look forward to seeing how things progress.

Competition:

Do you recognise anybody in the team photo below? Email [email protected] with your answers. The most complete answer will win a bottle of Malt Whisky!

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Project “Opportunity-Rugby”

Back in 1996 Wanderers had another eureka moment following on from the establishment of Club Mini Rugby in Scotland during 1975 which in turn soon led on to the development of Midi Rugby in season 79/80. Mike and Trustees Both were firsts in Scottish Club Rugby. The eureka with moment was a project first called “UB40”, but this soon took on a more positive title of “Opportunity- David Campese Rugby.”

The playing strength of the Club had fallen over the previous decade, because the once-much-coveted source and allegiance from private schools was now being shared with historically former pupil-only Clubs (F.P.) that now developed open-door policies for players from anywhere.

Wanderers needed to secure a new and local source of future players in order to fulfil this short-fall. Gone too were the days when the Club could field a 1st XV with 2 or 3 internationalists and six or seven Edinburgh players.

Opportunity-Rugby proposed to introduce rugby to a totally untapped source within the local community. The target was to involve unemployed 16 - 23 years old who lived within the City boundary. The Club at that time played on SRU Murrayfield’s back pitches which lay between private housing north of Murrayfield and the less wealthy, and high density tenements of Dalry, Wester Hailes and south west Edinburgh.

Now the Club plays at Roseburn Park adjacent to the ’s North Stand. The Club’s main secondary schools’ catchment area is to the south of the railway line, namely Tynecastle HS, Wester Hailes Education Centre and eleven primary schools in South West Edinburgh.

Whilst this project was primarily self-serving to Edinburgh Wanderers, there was a much wider community-benefit for society and to rugby in general. In essence, Opportunity-Rugby seems a natural follow-on extension to the Mini and Midi programmes.

The Trust Foundation’s Objectives (established in 2007 as a Scottish Charity no SC039024) are ideal for this project.

By March 1998, the Club had opened up discussion about Opportunity-Rugby with the civil and rugby authorities. Verbal interest and some support had been achieved from amongst the Scottish Sports Council, National Playing Fields Association, Secretary of State for Scotland, Scottish Office, a local M.P. and an M.E.P. the Lord Provost City of Edinburgh Council with another senior Edinburgh Councillor and the Chief Superintendent of the West End Police Station. At that time, the Scottish were not supportive and the project had to be abandoned.

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The Foundation also works to help young people, both boys and girls to develop initiative, self- worth and to gain an understanding of community values. Team centred activities engender responsibility and commitment as well as creating good habits such as respect for all others. Team sports have the additional benefit of forming long term friendships whilst diverting youngsters away from less constructive activities and preparing them for adult life.

Now would be a good time to resurrect and plan the project Opportunity-Rugby which if successful, could be adopted on a franchised regional basis.

Should anyone have a serious interest in furthering discussion or ideas, do please contact Andy Jones, Chairman of the Murrayfield Wanderers Rugby Trust Foundation, ([email protected]).

Our Founding Objectives:

To foster and promote life skill development through the provision of sporting activities within a secure and safe environment

Provide these activities through enthusiastic leaders who are appropriately qualified to enhance participants’ learning and enjoyment

Educate young people about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle including activity and diet

Introduce children to the benefits, friendships and values of team activities and the wider rugby community

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Murrayfield Wanderers – Special Times

Is there a more welcoming club for Edinburgh waifs and strays than Wandies? I suspect not!

Trustee Christian I defected from Glasgow Accies and HAWKS in the late Bruce in Action 1990’s after taking a job in Edinburgh training as a surveyor. I assumed I’d head to one of the obvious former pupil (FP) Clubs where I knew a load of folk and waltz into a 2nd or 3rd XV before proving I was good enough for the 1st XV.

I won’t bore you with the reasons why I didn’t gel with Edinburgh Accies or Watsonians, both excellent and highly revered establishments (these disconnects may well say more about me than those Clubs) but I was lamenting my inability to get a decent game of rugby to former team mate, Jack Caddell and he said, “Mate, you have to come and play for Wandies, they won’t care who you are!” As is becoming rarer now, we were embarking on our professional careers in the same city we’d been schooled at and still wanted to play, indeed “lusted” after, the game of rugby.

I duly turned up for training and never looked back. The coach was the inimitable Peter Wright who referred to me and Jack (we played centre and wing) as the “silver spooners” and “shiny bums” because we were posh boarding school boys who spent all day shining our bums on office chairs and not doing a proper job like say, a blacksmith, which was his profession to trade.

Peter possessed (for a prop forward anyway) a sharp mind, an intimate understanding of the game of rugby and the most important quality, the ability to get the best out of every player in his squad. He used very different means to motivate different individuals. I think he thought Jack and I were unmanageable so he pretty much left us to our own devices and certainly, we rarely if ever got praise. I do recall, however, that he was extremely hard on our left winger, Chris Dove, who along with his family were club stalwarts. He would constantly shout at Chris and sometimes, I thought Chris might walk off or burst into tears but instead he would go and score a bunch of tries the next weekend “just to show him”. Peter knew that treatment would motivate Chris.

Oh and what a team we had - too many heroes to name here but that team of 2000-2003 had the perfect blend of old has-beens (like me) and young pretenders. We had Mike Pender at prop who was easily 50 when we played in our era-defining Scottish Bowl Final at Murrayfield, Steve Cully our other prop, a gnarly cue ball bald policeman (sadly now deceased and sorely missed by all), Neil McCallum (former Boroughmuir 1st XV) who captained a season or two at No.8, Graeme Jessop (former Watsons 1st XV in the Hastings era) at 12, and the likes of young Bambi (Adam Broatch) and Chris Dove in their early 20’s on each wing – both lighting quick. Another incredible weapon we possessed was an Australian torpedo at 13 called Drew Miller. He led by example, bulldozing through the centre at every opportunity and chopping down anything that came anywhere near him. Regardless, we were happy to follow him into any battle and that is a priceless quality in any captain. Like many Wanderers before and after him, he served his time in Edinburgh and returned down under – I still miss that madman.

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I think we won three league titles and promotions in a row and won the Scottish Bowl Final. The game itself was no spectacle. Gary Donaldson at scrum half, a Corstorphine man originally, nipped over for a typical sniping scrummie’s try and I recall kicking a lot of penalty goals which, given the shortage of blinding performances on the day, won me man of the match. Sponsored at the time by BT Cellnet, I was given a mobile phone, however, without the contract to use it! I gave it to the young lad that used to trot on with my kicking tee, our recent President Davy Young’s son and now first fifteen prop, Mikey. Davy wasn’t too happy that his boy now had a mobile phone which Dad was going to have to pay for!

I don’t remember much about that night but the work hard, play hard attitude was alive and well at Wanderers and we enjoyed some ridiculous unofficial traditions. One being to attempt, monkey- style, to traverse the exposed steel beams in the ceiling upside down from the pitch-side windows to the bar; falling from 12 foot at the apex was not an option. The other was to stand and roll the beer keg the length of the bar. I do recall doing a decent job of that though I never managed the steel beam! Occasionally, a rendezvous would be arranged in town later on, often ending in Fingers Piano Bar, but I recall we regularly just stayed put at the Club, it was too much fun. We were a special team at a special Club, we played some delicious rugby at times but best of all, we made life-long friendships which in the end is what amateur rugby is all about.

We also had a strong 2nd XV, fielded a 3rd from time to time along with the infamous Pirates (over 35s) side. The latter was made up of anyone who fancied a game on a Saturday. I recall in one of those games, playing at 10, I called a Lomu move 20 metres out from the opposing try line, which was, unsurprisingly, a charging winger on the inside ball heading straight for the posts. The rollicking run that day was made by none other than fellow Trustee and former Treasurer of the Trust, Roy Leckie. That’s a try I’ll never forget although I can guarantee everyone else will have!

There’s no doubt that die hard Club men like Joe Barrett and Mike Dawson were the glue that kept the machine moving and in my time we had great sponsorship support from John Little who rarely missed a game. So, as the Club enters a transitionary period, with new grounds and exciting plans for new facilities, we will see the dawn of a new era for all associated at Wanderers.

It is our ambition as Trustees to continue to help foster the game of rugby, drawing grass roots talent from the local community. Specifically, we are encouraging participation by individuals who might not otherwise enjoy the benefits of team sport, the friendships it kindles and the respect it nurtures for fellow team mates, opposition, referees and indeed the game of rugby itself.

There’s no doubt in my mind, with the new Development officer in place, alongside current players and coaching staff, Wanderers will once again create for its faithful the wonderful community ethos it has provided for over 150 years, forging life-long friendships through working hard and playing hard.

Boy, do I miss it!

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Murrayfield Wanderers Rugby Trust Foundation

A Charity Registered in Scotland No: SC039024

PO Box 17497 Edinburgh EH12 1PJ

Telephone: 0131 442 1469

Email: [email protected]

Trustees:

Andrew Jones (Chair), Christian Bruce, Bruce Cartwright, Bill Fell, Roy Leckie, Richard Monk, Gordon Murray, Bobby Frazer

Development Officer:

Marko Mladenovic Telephone: 07547 759 430

Useful Links:

http://www.pitchero.com/clubs/murrayfieldwanderersfootballclub/ https://www.facebook.com/Murrayfieldwanderers/ https://twitter.com/wandiesrugby

Introduce a Friend:

Know anyone who would like to donate or become involved? Email their address to [email protected]

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Gift Aid Form

Are you a UK taxpayer? If so, you can use Gift Aid to make your donations go further by completing this declaration. The MWRTF will reclaim 25p of tax on every £1 you give. Please complete the form below and return to:

Murrayfield Wanderers Rugby Trust Foundation (Charity registered in Scotland: SC039024) PO Box 17497. Edinburgh, EH12 1PJ

Declaration

I would like the MWRTF to treat this and all future donations I make to the MWRTF as Gift Aid Donations until I notify you otherwise. I confirm that I am a UK taxpayer and understand that if I pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax in the current tax year (6 April – 5 April) than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all my donations it is my responsibility to pay any difference. I understand that Council Tax and VAT do not qualify.

Signed ______

Date ______

Name ______

Address ______

______

Postcode ______

Notes:

You must pay an amount of Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax for each tax year (6 April one year to 5 April the next) that is at least equal to the amount of tax that the MWRTF will reclaim on your gifts for that tax year. By signing the above declaration you confirm that you have paid or will pay such an amount of tax and that you understand Council Tax and VAT do not qualify.

1. You can cancel this Declaration at any time by notifying the MWRTF in writing 2. If your circumstances change and you no longer pay enough income or capital gains tax to cover the amount claimed by the MWRTF, you can cancel your declaration. 3. If you pay Income Tax at the higher rate you must include all your Gift Aid donations on your Self-Assessment tax return if you want to receive the additional tax relief due to you. 4. Please notify the MWRTF if you change your name or address.

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