Time has been passing by quickly since my return from India, and much has changed. One of the biggest changes since my return has been my Dad's new role with the local rugby club, Birmingham and Solihull. It's been an interesting turn of events, as previously he's always shunned the limelight and just got on with it.
It was quite funny on my return to be greeted with news of his new involvement with the rugby club, though in honesty I was a bit anxious. Going down to Sharman's Cross Road on a Saturday afternoon was one of the few pastimes my Dad afforded himself, and having that turn into 'just more work,' wasn't a welcome thought.
Tonight there was a supporters meeting down at the club, to let the supporters know the new direction that the club is taking, and to keep them abreast of the developments since the old club went into liquidation. Since the old structure of the club was a "Members Club," it's pretty important that the supporters be kept in the loop about the club, not to mention the fact that were it not for the supporters there'd be no point in running a club. I though the meeting went pretty well, it covered all point that I should imagine a supporter would want covered, and at the end of the evening, there were very few questions.
Having come back, Dad was keen to get me involved with the Rugby Club as I try and 'process' what I've been doing over the last few months, and to give me time to build a game-plan for further charity work. One of the biggest challenges I can see for the rugby club is getting the community engaged. I was speaking to one of the management team, who walked around Solihull and asked 10 people where their local rugby club was. Not one of them could tell him.
Some might take that as a negative, but he saw it as a huge positive. People don't know about the rugby club and therefore don't come. If people knew where it was, and still didn't come - that's a bigger problem.
If you're interested in seeing what the rugby is all about down at Birmingham and Solihull, they're quite a friendly bunch. You can either get more information at their website, or come down and see them play. The next match is Nottingham, 2pm Saturday 19th December, at Sharman's Cross Road.
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