Iain Whyte of London Scottish has been nominated for the Mitsubishi Motors Volunteer of the Year Awards for their work as a rugby volunteer and their dedication to the game.
The awards are part of the Mitsubishi Motors Volunteer Recognition Programme which provides grassroots rugby clubs and the rugby community with opportunities to recognise and reward the volunteers who make up such an integral part of the game.
Iain has worked for Tullow Oil, based in UK head office, for past 8 years supporting Exploration and Development data acquisition and determinations of how productive new and existing oil wells are for Tullow Oil globally. He is married and has three sons (18, 15 and 9 years). Coming from the small Scottish West Coast Scottish Island of Islay and with his wife originating from Cape Town. Iain became involved with London Scottish when his youngest son joined the minis at age 4. Rather than stand on the sidelines getting cold, Iain decided to start coaching and has never looked back!
Iain believes deeply in the One Club philosophy and is the man behind the Minis Festival which has become a huge event on the local minis rugby calendar. It’s a massive morning which requires a huge amount of planning. 21 visiting clubs descend on the The Athletic Ground including sides from Under 7s to Under 11s, with one team making the trip over from Holland.
The Minis Festival hosts 1650 children with around 4500 people in total including parents, supporters and coaches all being accommodated across 33 pitches spreading all over the RAG and Old Deer Park. The 2017 festival was 50% larger than the festival the previous year and the entire 1st XV was down this year to help support the coaches and encourage the players.
It’s fair to say this season’s Minis Festival was a roaring success and ran very much like clockwork and a lot of that must be credited to Iain Whyte. The festival acts the single biggest revenue generator for London Scottish Minis section and helps them to pay for hardship funded players to go on tour and buys an end of season gift for the children in the forms of tour hoodies or a rucksack.
Iain is one of a select group of rugby volunteers in the area who is invited to attend an awards event held at The Spirit of Rugby at Twickenham Stadium. At this event, one volunteer will be announced as a Volunteer of the Year finalist – earning them a place at the Mitsubishi Motors Volunteer of the Year Awards night at Twickenham Stadium on Friday 7 September 2018. Three overall winners will be announced on the evening and each one will receive a Mitsubishi car for a year as a thank you for their continued support of the game.
As well as the Mitsubishi Motors Volunteer of the Year Awards, the programme offers a number of opportunities to say thank you to the thousands of volunteers who give back to grassroots rugby, week in, week out. Find out more about how you can show your appreciation for a volunteer in your rugby community by visiting http://www.englandrugby.com/my-rugby/volunteers/recognition/
