King Penguin Keith"s Rwandan rugby try

Published: 22 Jul 2014 11:300 comments

A RUGBY club vice-president has returned from “the trip of a lifetime” after swapping Neilson Park for Rwanda.

Keith (sitting, centre) with young rugby players in Rwanda

Keith Wallace, who plays prop for Haddington RFC and is the club’s vice-president, ventured to the African country in June.

The 10-day trip saw Keith play as part of the King Penguins, the over-35s team of the Penguin International Rugby Club, the world’s premier touring team.

However, it was not just a game of rugby that took him to Africa.

He said: “Despite having more than 7,000 kids playing rugby, Rwanda has no proper rugby pitches and very little kit.

“This is restricting development in a nation which sees rugby’s great values of discipline, diligence, teamwork, respect and above all else friendship, as aligned with their focus on reconciliation and unity.”

The charity work saw the King Penguins take out a total of 1,500 items, including 150 coaching booklets and videos, 75 balls, 12 full sets of strips – including a set of strips and a dozen balls from Haddington RFC – and 10 pumps for balls.

The 51-year-old, originally from Haddington, added: “In addition the King Penguins managed to: fund studs for the national team, first aid kits, a bag to carry supplementary gear and one year of essential injury cover for the national team, courtesy of money donated by North Berwick RFC when I spoke at their dinner.

“Secondly, pay for the orphanage kids to have a day out supporting us at the national stadium, bringing all a fantastic experience.

“Thirdly, raise money for an injured national team player, funding his healthcare for three years, and pledging to seek to arrange treatment in New Zealand.”

On the field, the King Penguins, made up of players from six countries, faced the Rwandan national team in the Amahoro Stadium.

That came on the back of a game in Hong Kong between the two sides three years ago, which left the King Penguins so moved by the efforts of the Rwandan team – in their first overseas trip – they pledged to return and square off once again.

Keith admitted the game proved “a clash of styles”, with the Penguins having an average age of 44, compared to just 22 in the home side.

And it was youth that eventually triumphed, with the hosts taking the glory 22-19, thanks to a last-minute try.

Coincidentally, Keith was not the only man in the country with an East Lothian connection.

Instead, he was joined at a post-match dinner by ex-HRFC and Scotland A man John Kerr, Kari Spence and Abbie Herriot, from North Berwick, and Hannah Rae, from Glenkinchie, who were over doing charity work.

The trip came about through the Penguins International Rugby Football Trust (PIRFT), The Friends of Rwandan Rugby and Inspire Worldwide, who are all funding a full-time CEO for Rwandan Rugby for three years and the building of a club and pitch as a home for the national side.

Already, Keith is looking ahead to next year, when eight teams could head out to Rwanda to help build the clubhouse, with discussions already under way with Knox Academy.

He added: “The trip was a great example of what rugby can do.

“It was also a chance to see how we can learn from Rwanda: a country which tore itself apart 20 years ago has done an amazing job of reconciliation, whilst the memorial is a vital place, lest we forget; where the people are wonderful with so much joy and happiness, despite having little, a humbling lesson for all of us in the materialistic West; finally where there is hope and opportunity, and there is a unity of purpose in what is described as ‘the Singapore of Africa’ in a clean, law-abiding country, best exemplified by Umuganda, where on the last Saturday of the month, everyone meets to do three hours of community service.”

Article source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/10794382/Rugby-World-Cup-keep-the-fans-together.html

King Penguin Keith"s Rwandan rugby try