One of my friends was murdered when I was 17. I was due to go to the same party but stayed in because I had rugby
SAYS RORY HUGHES
FOR Rory Hughes, it took tragedy to hammer home how easy it can be for youngsters from deprived areas to head down the darkest of paths.
As an unruly teenager growing up in Castlemilk on the outskirts of Glasgow, he confesses to having had his fair share of run-ins with the authorities.
Unusually for a boy from his background, however, he was ultimately saved by his passion for rugby.
Others weren’t so lucky. Scotland and Glasgow Warriors star Hughes recalls how one shocking incident in particular transformed his whole attitude to life.
Due to go to a party with pals, the then 17-year-old Hughes had a late change of heart because he had a rugby match the next day.
The following morning he was informed that one of his friends had been stabbed to death.
He reluctantly remembers this harrowing episode for Sportsmail purely to explain his support for the School of Hard Knocks charity, which uses rugby and classroombased activities to enable people from disadvantaged backgrounds to realise their potential.
‘I was a wee bam,’ said 25-yearold Hughes. ‘I only quietened down when a guy I knew, one of my friends, got stabbed.
‘I was due to go to the same party but I stayed in because I had rugby. He was out at a house party and that’s what happened, he was murdered, stabbed.
‘Until then I had maybe been with the wrong crowd at times. Got mixed up in things I shouldn’t have. But that all changed after that.’
Some of his old school pals are in jail. Others are on the dole. Many of the people he knew have done well for themselves in life.
But it was the oval ball game that helped put Hughes on the right path.
Despite going to a school with no rugby programme, his mum took him along to GHA at a young age because his grandad had played the game.
His burgeoning talent later took him to Stirling County and the Scottish Rugby Elite Development system in 2011.
After being assigned to the Warriors, the kid from Castlemilk never looked back. But Hughes hasn’t forgotten how hard it can often be for decent people from tough, working-class areas like himself to make it in the world through no fault of their own.
That’s why he became involved with the School of Hard Knocks, which uses a combination of sports like rugby and boxing to help kick youth unemployment into touch.
He is particularly enthusiastic about their Glasgow operation,
Pit Stops, and also a new project set up in Glenrothes which is offering practical help to a course of 26 unemployed people who are trying to make something of their lives. That support could be as basic as providing the job hunters with a made-to-measure shirt to wear at interviews.
‘It’s tough being unemployed and trying to get an interview when your self-esteem is low,’ said Hughes. ‘And when you do get an interview, what happens if you haven’t got any money to buy anything decent to wear?
‘I remember I used to go to school at times in a shirt with a 17 collar that was miles too big for me. It was so long it was halfway down my legs.
‘People who maybe don’t have a lot of money are in the same position. What is vital is to at least
have a nice shirt to wear, along with a tie to look the part at interviews. Walking into an interview feeling confident is a big boost when you’ve been out of work for a while.
‘It also shows the employers you’ve made an effort and are serious about coming there to fight for a job and haven’t just been sent there by the job centre. ‘That’s why I’m backing this
School of Hard Knocks project. ‘I went to Fife to present the shirts donated by the firm ShirtbyHand to those on the course. I’m hoping it gives them a chance to start a new chapter of their life.
‘I’m not sure what I would have done if I hadn’t been a rugby player, maybe working in construction.
‘But who knows what the future would have held for me? Hopefully rugby can help those on this course like it did me.’
As Hughes talks, sitting next to him is Gordon Fraser from Glenrothes. He heard about the School for Hard Knocks at his local job centre and it’s helped to change his life. Based at Glenrothes Rugby Club, it gives the unemployed locals, and teenagers who have struggled to fit into the school system, a chance to play the game, learn employment skills and raise their self-esteem. ‘The School of Hard Knocks has certainly changed my life for the better,’ said the 37year-old, who now plays at centre for one of Glenrothes Rugby’s teams, despite taking up the game a few months ago after joining the course.
‘I suffer from social anxiety and was unemployed and going through a hard time with my mental health, but that has improved a lot since becoming involved. ‘On the course there are two hours learning how to play rugby, plus a couple of hours learning about how to apply for jobs and the right way to go for interviews.
‘I was working for another charity picking up litter on beaches, but I had been out of work for a few months when I started this.
‘I was reticent to begin with but, through playing rugby, I made friends, learned about teamwork and I look at positives more than negatives because of it.
‘I’m not scared anymore to be part of a group. I have better selfesteem and I’ve been given the right tools to go to try and find work and have a career.
‘Mentally I am in a better place for my wife and kids. I am out and about, trying to do things, keeping myself busy and looking for a career now.
‘It’s great having a lovely made-to-measure shirt to go to interviews. I wrote a job application to Sky television and I’m waiting to hear back from them.
‘Hopefully I will get an interview and get the chance to wear it.
‘I can’t thank Rory and everyone involved in the School of Hard
Knocks enough.’