Gillian gone... Rugby on!

I am just back from seeing off Gillian on her 36 hour travel to get back to New Zealand and as I mentioned in a previous post it is really mixed emotions. it has been great having her here but I know she has been feeling a bit frustrated being away from the people she cares about so much and look to her for support. I can’t wait to hear news of the new things Gillian is getting involved with while on the other side of the world.

I was thinking recently how much I love rugby... I have recently started playing rugby again for Boroughmuir rugby club and this has been great. 2 training matches so far and we lost one and won one. I say I love rugby for more than just the game itself; I love it for so much of what the people around rugby demonstrate. I was told rather aggressively recently that football (soccer) is a far better sport than rugby. I don’t think that either is ‘better’ than the other but I did feel in necessary to ask when was the last time they had heard of rugby supporter riots? It is a really brutal game and it is rare for a game to end at any level without a few bloody shirts/faces and a whole load of aches and pains but this seems to just dissipate at the end of a game. Everyone goes for a drink and after game food in the club house and talks over the game. Even as far as congratulating an opposition player on a particularly painful tackle preformed on them. It is not just between teams this kind of camaraderie is seen but much stronger within a club. I have been around the Boroughmuir club for a few years and seen how it works to a certain level. It really excites me to see younger players listening to older players, coaches and old boys of the club so intently. it is well known that this is how a good player will become a great player. Quoting the head coach of the 2’s,

“we are not teaching you how play rugby, we are teaching you how to think while doing it”

This was to really highlight to the team that communication was essential to the game flowing how we want it to. I think there are so many lessons to be learnt from what some people would call a really dark area of society in regards to Christians and being almost opposite to Christian living. I am very excited about the season to come and will keep posting about the going’s on in my rugby life at Boroughmuir and at Napier University rugby.

In Christ
Goose