TWENTY-two of the remarkable men who competed in the world’s longest ever rugby match earlier this year are coming to March later this month.
They will take part in a charity match between March Bears and a Scotty’s Little Soldiers XV at Elm Road Sports Field, March, on August 31 at 2.30pm.
There will also be a disco, barbecue and more in aid of the charity, which was set up to support children who have lost parents who were serving in the armed forces.
The charity was founded by Walpole St Andrew widow Nikki Scott, whose late husband Corporal Lee Scott was killed in Afghanistan in 2009.
Former soldier Simon Whittaker, 40, of Norwood Road, March, was one of 44 men who slugged it out for 24 hours 50 minutes at Leicester Tigers’ Welford Road stadium to raise £60,000 for armed forces charity Scotty’s Little Soldiers in June.
Whittaker, who retired from the armed forces this year after 23 years of service which included tours of Iraq, Afghanistan, Northern Ireland, Kosovo and Cyprus, served in the same regiment as Corporal Scott for eight years.
He said: “It will be fun to get everyone back together. There are players from Scotland, Wales and all over who will be coming to March.
“Thankfully it’s a normal length game this time round.”
As well as being the longest match in history, June’s marathon match was also the highest scoring, with the Armed Forces XV beating the Scotty’s Little Soldiers XV 1742 - 828.
You can make a £5 donation to Scotty’s Little Soldiers by texting CARE13 £5 to 70070. To find out more about the charity go to www.scottyslittlesoldiers.co.uk
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