England Rugby welcome IPF members to Pennyhill Park
It’s not every day you get to watch England train up close, or to chat rugby with a Rugby World Cup winner and current stars of the game.
That was the experience enjoyed by members of the RFU Injured Players Foundation (IPF) this week, having been invited by England Rugby to join them at Pennyhill Park.
While focus remains firmly on New Zealand this Saturday, the England team and coaches still made time to meet the injured players, have photos and, of course, discuss the All Blacks Test ahead of them.
The IPF is England Rugby’s Official charity and supports players at any level of the game who have sustained a life-changing injury while playing rugby union in England. Thankfully, catastrophic injuries remain extremely rare in the game, but if they do happen, the IPF will arrange to be at a player’s bedside within 48 hours and will continue to support a player and their family for life if needed.
As avid rugby fans, excitement levels were high watching England’s preparations. Those levels peaked as IPF guests spotted a certain World Cup winner wandering up the path, boots in hand, ready for a kicking session with England’s fly halves.
24-year-old IPF member Hamish Minton said: “I was buzzing seeing all the England players and coaches, who were unbelievably welcoming. It was incredible to see the speed and intensity of training so close. Then, we suddenly spotted Jonny Wilkinson coming up the path and I thought, you’ve got to be joking!
“Jonny was so friendly. He’s a member of the IPF squad that the charity has set up in support of its members, but he just happened to be there for training. When he saw us, he came straight over and spent around 20 minutes chatting. It was clear he understands the importance of the IPF and the support it gives players.
“I was injured two-and-half years ago and didn’t really know anything about the organisation. Now I’ve seen first-hand the work they do and the help they give players throughout their lives, I can honestly say, if the worst happens, they are the best people to have on your team. If you’re seriously injured on an English rugby pitch this is the best charity in the world.
“After training, so many England players and coaches came over to say hello. It was a bit of a who’s who of fly halves as we spoke to George Ford, Marcus Smith and Fin Smith, who’s also a member of the IPF Squad.
“I told Fin about my younger brother, Rory, who’s a solid player but didn’t quite make the cut for a Quins contract recently, so he’s off to the southern hemisphere now. Fin then sent a voice note telling Rory to keep up his kicking practice and said Marcus would be ready to meet him when he’s back in England.
“It’s funny, these guys may play for England, but they’re still just rugby lads like me. We’ll never forget the afternoon and nor will my mate Callum or Rory. A huge thanks to everyone at England Rugby.”
Kendall Akhurst explained how the strength of the rugby community was felt in full force in Bagshot, saying: “Within five minutes of arriving at Pennyhill Park and looking over the impressive training fields, Fin Smith and Marcus Smith came over to say hello and shake hands. They were just such nice guys.
“It felt surreal as more and more players stopped to have a chat as they came out of the changing room. These are some of the best players in world rugby, who you normally only get to see on TV. I was blown away by how down to earth everyone was, from Steve Borthwick and the coaches to the players.
“They were just a really good group of people. Then Jonny appears, a legend of the game, and he was so humble, I could’ve talked to him for days. I felt very lucky meeting and watching such a talented group of players, the accuracy and intensity in training was incredible. It was such an amazing day, I had to pinch myself at the end to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.
“It can sometimes seem a bit of a cliché to talk about the rugby family but trust me, it exists when life throws you a curve ball. Being invited to spend time with the England Rugby team was yet another example of that. I was injured while playing in New Zealand, but the IPF has a reciprocal arrangement and welcome players who move to England, as New Zealand would an injured player who moves there.
“I couldn’t be more appreciative of the support the IPF and the wider rugby community has given me since my injury. A massive thank you to everyone at England Rugby for making us feel so welcome and still an integral part of the game.”
Jack Fishwick, who has been superbly supported by his club Wimbledon RFC since his injury, echoed Kendall’s thoughts, saying: “It was a pleasure to speak to so many of the players and a happy reminder of how close the rugby community is, discovering mutual friends and exchanging club stories.
“It was amusing listening to Jonny and my friend Liam, remembering old English cup and counties competitions from back in the day. To see the mutual respect between the amateur and professional players was brilliant.”
Jack, who now works as a sports injury & rehabilitation specialist at Bounce Gym, was also not surprisingly paying close attention to England’s training drills, adding: “It was really interesting to see England’s training set up and get a pitch-side view of how fast and specific their sessions are put together. We wish them all the best this weekend, a lot of us will be at the match supporting them.”
Jon Terry and his wife Marissa had a great time and Jon said: “It was a real privilege to be invited to watch the team training at Pennyhill Park. The highlight was definitely meeting the players, they all took so much time chatting with us and making us feel welcome. As always with these events arranged by the IPF, it’s an honour to be included and get to experience things that I wouldn’t normally be able to do.”
IPF welfare officer John Burgess, who is also an IPF member following a catastrophic spinal cord injury sustained 20 years ago, understood the value of the invitation to watch training: “The impact on those attending has been phenomenal so thank you to all involved at England Rugby. Injury may have taken rugby away from these players, but you can’t take the players away from rugby. They are still very much part of our sport and the rugby community.
“To have this opportunity, and for the England team to engage in the way they did, reinforces why we love this game so much. It’s a family, from those little minis that fly around on Sunday mornings, not really understanding why but doing it anyway, all the way up to those players who will be walking out to 82,000 this Saturday and absolutely everyone in-between, it’s the game we all live, breathe and love.”
Find out more about the IPF here.
