With the festive season in full swing we bring you a tale about a rugby club – Leith RFC- who are standing up for what they believe is right and doing their bit for their community. Leith RFC are from a coastal village in the east of Scotland, just north of Edinburgh, who play in the BT East Regional League Division 2. In a statement released by the players on Friday they confirm they are going ahead and honouring a commitment they have made even if it will cost them from a rugby point of view, as they face a points deduction in their league.

Leith Rugby club are supporting Bethany Christian Trust’s Caring Christmas Tree Project, which raises money for Edinburgh’s Winter Care Shelter, giving homeless people in our community an opportunity to come in from the cold this Christmas. As well as promoting the project, we the playing squad volunteered to sell Christmas trees pre-ordered from the Caring Christmas tree website, at Ocean Terminal this Saturday 20th December, the last shopping Saturday before Christmas.

Unfortunately due to inclement weather, our fixture with Forrester RFC was postponed last weekend (13th), and rescheduled for this coming Saturday (20th), one of the standby dates in East League 2. It was, and is our error as a club that we did not initiate a dispensation request at the point of arranging to volunteer on the 20th, it being an published standby date for postponed fixtures. Our request for dispensation, made on Monday was rejected by the East Region Championship Committee, and we have been instructed to fulfil the fixture against possible sanction, normally a 2-point deduction, should we refuse.

We believe our request for dispensation should have been granted, particularly given there are 7 further standby dates available to complete the fixture before the end of the league season, and we have decided, as a squad of players, supported by our committee, to fulfil our commitment to the Caring Christmas Trees project, and to volunteer, rather than play this Saturday.

Leith Rugby Club is an important part of the community in the ‘burgh of Leith, and we believe our participation this Saturday in this volunteering project is the correct course of action to take. The project and the work they undertake is so vital to its users, particularly at this time of year, that we are in no place to deny them 20 volunteers. We are also firmly committed to helping our community and whilst rugby is our core focus, at this time of year, and with so many other alternative, and agreeable dates available on which to play this fixture, we believe our commitment to Caring Christmas is more important, and we are proud to honour it. We will accept any sanction which transpires as a result of our refusal to play, and look forward to getting back to playing rugby in 2015.

We would like to pass our apologies to Forrester Rugby Club for the inconvenience this state of affairs has created for them. Finally, we would like to convey our huge thanks to our committee for their support, and to everyone in the wider Edinburgh, and rugby communities who have sent us messages of goodwill and support, both directly, and via social media. We have been overwhelmed by the response.

Thank you, and Merry Christmas.

Leith Rugby Playing Squad

BT East Regional League Division 2 – Results

Sat 20 Dec 2014

14:00	Forrester	P – P	Leith Rugby Club
Was 13 Dec now 20 Dec. Leith not able to fulfil.
14:00	Inverleith	P – P	Edinburgh Northern RFC
was 13 dec now 20 dec
14:00	Earlston RFC	28 – 24	Liberton FP RFC
was 13 dec now 20 dec
14:00	Penicuik RFC	75 – 0	Trinity Academicals RFC
was 13 dec now 20 dec