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WHAT ARE THE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVES IN BEING CLUB PRESIDENT ? The positive part means I meet all other team Presidents and officials and we exchange ideas that work – and some that don ’ t ! I also attend meetings at Murrayfield and hear all the latest news and differing views of other clubs .
On the negative side there are not enough days in the week to do all that I would like to see done . Money also is a restriction , especially as we have not been able to hold functions etc to increase funds because of Covid 19 .
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ADD ANYTHING ELSE YOU WISH TO MENTION . We have a great bunch of Junior and Senior players being taught the basics of rugby by our coaches who do a great job in bringing on these youngsters . They are also well supported by their managers . Earlier I also mentioned my committee . What I ’ m trying to say here is that those very people , coaches , managers and committee members are all volunteers who give up their precious home time to promote rugby and ensure that Dumfries Saints RFC remains a competitive but friendly and welcoming community Club . |
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HOW ’ S THE GENERAL MOOD DOWN AT THE CLUB AT THE MOMENT ? Considering the awful time we have come through during lockdown and the pandemic the general mood at the club is very optimistic . Our 1st XV are sitting second in the league and our supporters are back on the touchline enjoying their usual banter and giving their vocal support to the team . On the admin side I have a strong and supportive committee who simply want their club to do well and are prepared to work towards that goal . Our sponsors have stuck by us over the past two years and we are very appreciative of their help and support . So , |
yes , the general mood of the club is upbeat .
DO YOU HAVE ANY SUCCESSFUL PLAYER CONNECTIONS THAT HAVE COME THROUGH OR PLAYED FOR THE CLUB OVER THE YEARS ? The club ’ s player development success stories are often overshadowed by success stories from the Borders ; however , Dumfries Saints has a proud history of producing professional and international players . The club has 14 former players who have gone on to represent 22 professional teams around the world while 12 have gained senior international caps , 25
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youth international caps , 2 Barbarians invitations and 1 British and Irish Lions selection .
In the last season alone Alex Craig and Scott Steele , two former youth players at Saints were both selected to represent Scotland in the last 6 nations campaign . With the success of our former players , it is easy to see the high standard of players that the Saints youth system can produce and although being the biggest youth system in D & G the club continues to be an amateur club and as a result will continually have to punch above its weight nationally . A full list of players , who have gone on to play at higher levels of Club or
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International rugby , is to be found on our website .
PLEASE FINISH OFF BY TELLING ME WHAT MAKES DUMFRIES SAINTS SUCH A GREAT CLUB TO BE PART OFF ? Without a doubt it ’ s the people ! As I mentioned earlier , we have a very loyal following of team supporters and sponsors . I can ’ t emphasize enough how important they are to the success of our club . The local community have also shown great support during the years before Covid 19 when we held the annual Beltie Beer Festival . All being well the Festival will again be held in June 2022 .
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CONTACT THE CLUB Dumfries Saints RFC Park Farm New Abbey Road Dumfries DG2 7LU |
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01387 253572 www . dumfriessaintsrugby . co . uk |
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