An Angus mum is running this Sunday’s London Marathon to say thank you to the Trust for how it’s helped hundreds of people including her children.
Eilidh McCartney, from Forfar, works as a physiotherapy support worker at Ninewells Hospital during the day. A qualified personal trainer and exercise referral instructor – someone who helps people referred by their GP to improve their fitness, she also leads classes in High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), Les Mills Core and Aqua at Forfar Community Campus for Angus Alive several nights a week.
Keen on sport all her life, Eilidh played rugby for many years, starting at primary school – where she played for West of Scotland in Mini Rugby. Sadly, she then had to stop when she went up to high school as there was no organised rugby for girls or women ladies rugby at that time.
Then, in the 1990s, Eilidh was able to take up the game again when ex-Scotland and British Lions player Sandy Carmichael started a ladies team at West of Scotland and Eilidh played fly-half for it and Milngavie from age 19 for a few years, including captaining the 2nd XV.
Children got involved
Now more of a rugby watcher – following Strathmore, Glasgow Warriors and Scotland – Eilidh decided to encourage her children Ishbel (19) and Ruaridh (15) to get involved in the game five years ago when she spotted the Rugby Academy rugby and life skills project for senior school pupils run by Strathmore Community Rugby Trust.
Ishbel joined the Friday afternoon sessions in 2020 and also helped with the charity’s award-winning autism-friendly rugby project for two seasons. Through the trust, she was put through the first two levels of her rugby coaching qualification as well as gaining volunteering and work experience. Ishbel now plays for the Strathmore Women’s rugby team.
Ruaridh joined the Rugby Academy project in August 2021 and through it has gained confidence and learned teamworking skills on a challenging assault course last Summer.
Natural
So when Eilidh discovered her “whim” application for this year’s London Marathon had been accepted, she felt it was only natural she do it in aid of the trust.
On her JustGiving fundraising page, Eilidh says: “What makes this journey even more special is my decision to run in aid of Strathmore Community Rugby Trust, an organisation deeply connected to my family and our shared love of sport.
“Rugby has always been a passion of mine and I’m thrilled that my son and daughter are carrying on that enthusiasm as active participants in the trust’s work.
Crucial role
“Strathmore Community Rugby Trust not only supports their development in the game but also plays a crucial role in empowering our local community through resources, support, and opportunities for people of all ages.
“Having my family cheering me on and feeling the strength of running for something bigger than myself has brought an incredible energy to this journey. I feel truly privileged to take part in this iconic event and can’t wait to make every mile count – for myself, for Strathmore Community Rugby Trust, and for everyone supporting me along the way”
Community Trust Manager, Maggie Lawrie, said: “We’re very grateful to Eilidh for choosing to support the trust with her marathon. As a small charity, we invest time and resource into ensuring our coaches have the right knowledge and skills to support people to participate and stay involved.
Vital
“This takes time and money. Sadly, investment from previous sources is becoming more difficult to come by, so fundraisers like this play a vital role in helping us enable people of all ages to take part in our projects. Thank you Eilidh, we really appreciate your support!”
The trust was founded in 2017 to increase public participation in sport, particularly rugby union and rugby league, in the Forfar, Kirriemuir and Brechin areas to benefit community health and wellbeing as well as develop young people into healthy, positive members of the community through the positive ethos and values of rugby.
It works in partnership with Strathmore RFC, Brechin RFC, Scottish Rugby, Strathmore Cricket Club, Angus Council, Angus Alive and Stracathro Estates and had its activities recognised at the Scottish Charity Awards with the Pioneering Project Award in 2020 for its ASD rugby for primary children project. The trust’s Royal Patron is HRH The Duke of Edinburgh and Earl of Forfar.
Eilidh’s fundraising page can be found at justgiving.com/campaign/eilidhs-marathon
To donate to the trust, go here
To find out how to take part in one of its projects, go here
Strathmore Community Rugby Trust are delighted to have been selected as recipients of a £2500 donation towards the running cost of our Autism-Friendly Rugby sessions by a new charity set up to support grass roots rugby in Scotland.
Much like the Trust, Grass-roots Rugby for Everyone Awards Trust (“GREAT”) is a Charity who believe that everyone should have the opportunity to play and enjoy rugby . Their mission is to grow the number of children and adults throughout Scotland who play and support rugby at grass-roots level. They do this through awarding grants to individuals, rugby clubs, schools and charities.
By providing new opportunities for children and adults to become involved in rugby, GREAT is hoping to grow the game, bring communities back together and improve the pool of talent in schools, clubs and the professional and national teams.
More information about GREAT, including how to make a donation, can be obtained on their website, www.greatrugby.scot.
Founding Trustee Stuart Gray was presented with the cheque by GREAT Patron, Gregor Townsend, on Friday ahead of Scotland’s clash with Wales on the 8th March.
We are extremely grateful to GREAT for their support. The funding will be put towards the facility hire costs for our Autism-Friendly Rugby sessions.
Kai’s 3D toys ‘thanks’ fundraiser for autism-friendly rugby project
An Angus 11-year-old is so thankful to the autism-friendly rugby project he attends that he’s been raising money for the charity behind it by making and selling fidget toys with his dad’s 3D printer.
Kai Coutts (11), from Edzell, has taken part in the autism-friendly rugby for primary pupils project at Strathmore Community Rugby Trust in Forfar since 2019.
He gets so much from taking part that he was wondering late last year how he could give something back to the trust as thanks.
Idea
When his dad, Alan, got a 3D printer before Christmas and printed him a fidget toy, it gave Kai the idea that if he liked them so much his pals at Edzell Primary would too.
So, with help from his dad, he picked designs online, printed some and “hounded” the school to agree to let him sell them at its Valentines disco.
Between mid-January and February 14, Kai daily printed several types in different colours, including a shark to represent Strathmore RFC’s youth Sharks team, and sold 41 at £2 each.
More orders
Since then pupils have been asking him for more, so he’s been producing them to order as well as selling ones left from previous batches.
Kai’s also sold more at Strathmore Rugby Club events, including its recent Ladies Day, to bring his fundraising total to date to £111. He says he’s overjoyed with that and grateful to his school for helping him ensure his orders and money are correct.
More sales planned
Kai plans to keep selling the toys in person at the rugby club as well as giving some to the club to sell on his behalf.
Community Trust Manager, Maggie Lawrie, said: “We are so grateful to Kai and his family for supporting the trust with this fundraiser because, as a charity, we pride ourselves in offering an inclusive environment for our community by investing time and resource into ensuring our coaches have the right knowledge and skills to support people to participate and stay involved.
“This takes time and money. Sadly, investment from previous sources is becoming more difficult to come by, so fundraisers like this play a vital role in helping us reduce barriers to participation within our projects. Thank you Kai, we really appreciate your support!”
Kai’s dad, Alan, says: “We are super-proud of Kai for doing this and for feeling he had to do it as he’d gained so much from the trust events and wanted to do his bit to make sure the trust could keep doing it for other people who need these kind of sessions and facilities.”
The trust was founded in 2017 to increase public participation in sport, particularly rugby union and rugby league, in the Forfar, Kirriemuir and Brechin areas to benefit community health and wellbeing as well as develop young people into healthy, positive members of the community through the positive ethos and values of rugby.
It works in partnership with Strathmore RFC, Brechin RFC, sportscotland, Scottish Rugby, Scotland Rugby League and Sporting Memories and had its activities recognised at the Scottish Charity Awards with the Pioneering Project Award in 2020 for its ASD rugby for primary children project. The trust’s Royal Patron is HRH The Duke of Edinburgh and Earl of Forfar.
To donate to the trust, go here
January 2025: Late last year, Mia White visited long term sponsor Stracathro Estates to find out more about what they do and how they support the local community. Stracathro Estates have sponsored our Rugby Academy project for many years, a project which has supported many young people like Mia with their future careers.
What an awesome time we had over at Willowgate Activity Centre on Monday 7th October taking on the Hold Fast challenge! Our Rugby Academy participants and CPAs who took part absolutely smashed it and it was great to see such teamwork on display as well as everyone digging deep when things got tough!
So what is the Hold Fast challenge? Traditionally Hold Fast is a term used by sailors, many of whom had these 8 letters tattooed on their knuckles. Hold Fast, physically and mentally and you will get through the storm.
The Hold Fast team are former Mine Clearance Divers, an elite branch of the Royal Navy and have weathered a fair few storms. The only way to prepare is to train hard and train well, and that is what the Hold Fast team wants to share – a unique outdoor military challenge like no other.
If, like the Hold Fast team, you love exercising in the great outdoors; or you want to experience something with friends and colleagues, that really challenges you, what are you waiting for? Step forward!
Massive shout out and thank you to Rob and the team for guiding us through it all. The support and organisation was awesome 
No fuss. No excuses. We got it done.
We were delighted to welcome along Trust Ambassadors and Scotland and Glasgow rugby legends, Matt and Zander Fagerson to Strathmore Rugby Club on Sunday 29th September. As part of our Cash for Kids Sports Challenge fundraiser the boys came down to sign autographs, take part in some challenges and get stuck in to whatever was presented to them!
They were an absolute joy to have along for the morning and certainly helped to create lots of memories for members of the rugby and wider community
