Hillfoots
Alan Kinloch is a qualified junior
and youth coach at Hillfoots
Rugby Club who has been
involved with Hillfoots RFC for
the past eight years. He recently
spoke to Rugby Club magazine
about his positive association
with the club, “I grew up in
Glasgow loathing football, which
is as close to an oxymoron as you
can get in that part of Scotland.”
“My father (Arthur Kinloch) was
a sports photographer/photo
journalist who covered global
sports events including World
Cup finals, Olympic games,
International rugby and boxing
etc. and as a child, he would
take me pitch side at Scotland
vs England or Germany or Brazil
at Hampden. This should have
been an amazing experience
as a kid but it was going to
matches at Greenock Morton or
St Mirren on rainy Saturdays that
killed stone dead any interest in
football especially as all I wanted
to do was play with my pals.
“The upside to his career however was other trips such as one
to Mull of Kintyre where he had been asked to photograph some
family or other. It’s a long drive from Glasgow to the bottom of
Mull of Kintyre but I was sold on the fact that there was a beach
at the end of the journey. I remember when we finally arrived an
‘old guy’ with a funny accent invited me into his farm for lunch
on hearing how long we had taken to get there. Over lunch I
was asked if I played any instruments and mentioned I was
learning the piano. I was shown this massive piano and joined
on the stool and given quite a long lesson.
“Many years later I was watching a documentary on the band
‘Wings’ and they played the `Mull of Kintyr’ video, which was
shot on a farm next to a beach. My mother asked me if I
remembered visiting this farm and beach to which I replied, ‘yes
It seems strangely familiar’ – at which point I was informed that
the old guy who gave me piano lessons was Paul McCartney
with Linda cooking lunch and Stella showing me around! Doh!
“I eventually found my way to rugby via Allan Glens RFC in
Bishopbriggs. Many years later and now living and working in
London my flatmate played for London Scottish which led me
to train there (hold the tackle-bag) and latterly with Wasps also.
(Bringing the water on!)
“Frankly I was rubbish at the
game and now live my rugby
‘aspirations and dreams’ through
Conan, my son (13) who is
a budding hooker at Dollar
Academy and Hillfoots RFC and
the reason I re-engaged in the
sport again.
“‘Conny’ loves his rugby and
the two of us haven’t missed a
Scotland international match in
11 years. He’s one of the few
at his age who can boast for his
youthful age that he has seen
Scotland beat England no less
than three times. He also through
family could actually be chosen
to play for Scotland, England,
Australia or The All Blacks. With
my wife growing up in Wellington
NZ there is a lean in that direction
but at the moment Scotland is his
team.
Hillfoots RFC lives in the shadow
of Stirling County and Dollar
Academy and is close enough
also to Falkirk to see a combined
affect on playing numbers. But Hillfoots junior section is all
about getting kids playing rugby, as opposed to fielding just
the best kids or winning games. This is unique and reinforced
when you understand players like Hue Jones didn’t find rugby
until he University.
This unique culture we have at Hillfoots where ‘Everybody
Plays’’ is solely down to the impact that Mike Powers, Mike
Robins, Paddy Sherrard and Eddie Ingles have had on the club
over the last eight years and was the reason that last year my
wife and I decided to sponsor the club via our company Genoa
Black.
What the future holds for Hillfoots is unclear but there is
no lack of ambition and the fact that the club has produced
international players and indeed Jon Humphries, Glasgow
Warriors forwards coach and ex Welsh international Captain
who is local to the area takes his youngest son to Hillfoots is
testament to the club. I just need to now cajole Jon and his
colleague’s Dave (Rennie) and Jason (O’Halloran) to give us a
few coaching sessions before they are all headhunted to coach
Wales or Ireland (or England!). I’m working on that one.
Myself, Claire and Conan and Tay would like to congratulate
everybody at the club on a great season and wish all those
associated with Hillfoots Rugby Club the very best of enjoyment
and continued success moving forward!”
www.rugbyclubmag.com
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