Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Highland Rugby Club offers helping hand to those in need during coronavirus hardship

Iain Chisholm of Highland Rugby Club.
Iain Chisholm of Highland Rugby Club.

Through the dark, light emerges.

With the world mired in the coronavirus pandemic, where negativity and fear come home to roost, any green shoots have to be grasped and clung on to.

Stories of communities rallying together, people and businesses going out of their way to bring charity to those in need and random acts of generosity become a new life source. A reminder the world can still be an uplifting place.

Highland Rugby Club are one of those stories. They have made great strides in recent years to become a community club, expanding their programmes into Inverness’ schools and beyond, promoting girls’ rugby and opening their doors at Canal Park to share their impressive, multi-million pound facilities.

But to them, community outreach goes beyond the rugby pitch. In this period of unprecedented sporting shutdown, Highland players will be available to those in need, for menial or vital tasks around the home or businesses.

Iain Chisholm, the club’s development officer, is the point of contact but it has come from a club-centred desire to pay back the backing they have been given.

“We have got a lot of teachers (in the squad) who are probably going to have a lot of free time on their hands,” said Chisholm. “They don’t want to be idle. It was their choice.

“We’ve got players stretched out across the Highlands; Tain, Aviemore, Grantown, Alness, Inverness. We say that 90 per cent of rugby has nothing to do with rugby and that’s the case here.

“If anyone comes forward with any requests, we’ll do it. Be it shopping or even if it’s just having a chat, which might be valuable if we are stuck indoors for a few months.”

Their first request has already been taken, with The Oxygen Works, a multiple-sclerosis therapy centre in Inverness which has close links with the club, receiving help with painting its interior. Lifts have also been suggested if patients need to get to appointments.

Chisholm at Canal Park, the home of Highland RFC.

“As long as guys are OK doing it, we’ll get stuck into it,” added Chisholm. “We’re a community club and they support us really well. It’s times like this they need our support.”

Chisholm is trying to play his part helping club staff as well, putting on web seminars to educate and improve their coaching team with the help of former club captain Andrew Findlater, one of those within the club who works as a teacher.

With the world draped in a cloak of gloom in this crisis, amplified by social media, finding your own way out of the shadows is a challenging but pivotal task. Tales like Highland’s, just one example of kindness, offers a new path.

“It’s very hard to stay positive all the time, especially with a lot of the rubbish going around on the internet and social media,” said Chisholm.

“We put a lot of focus, with our kids, on being aware of what they’re putting on the internet, as it’s a massive danger towards mental health. I’ve seen it myself; refreshing Twitter and seeing what comes up. It’s a strange and difficult time.

“If the club gain another supporter or sponsor, then great, but it’s not about that. It’s about giving back to the community that’s giving us a lot.”

  • Anyone who would like assistance from Highland RFC can contact them on Facebook and Twitter, or contact Iain Chisholm on iain@highlandrugbyclub.org or 07436 796326.