Member Article

Bradley Hall supports grassroots sport

A keen rugby player who took a break from the game to pursue other interests is making a comeback – by targeting a return to the club he once played for.

Robi Ham, who recently joined chartered surveying firm Bradley Hall in Gosforth, scrummed down regularly for Northern Rugby Club during his childhood years before falling out of the game due to work commitments.

Now the twenty-two year-old, who plies his trade as a scrum half, is aiming to get his career back on track at Northern in the North One East league.

His employer Bradley Hall – a long-standing supporter of local grassroots rugby – agreed to resume sponsoring Gosforth-based Northern having previously done so in the early noughties. The club will use the money to help cover the costs of running rugby activities.

Robi, who originally hails from Blackpool but moved to the North East when he was five, said: “I have always loved rugby and wanted to play after watching my old man play every Saturday. I used to play here week in, week out in my teens but then I picked up a series of niggling injuries and work started to pile up.

“Now, though, having been handed a new start at Bradley Hall, I thought it was the ideal time to resume my rugby career and I’ve started a training regime to get me back up to full fitness.

“The idea now is to break into Northern’s first team, although that will be a difficult task as they have some very talented players.”

After finishing ninth in last year’s North One East League, Northern started the 2014-15 season slowly, losing three of their first four matches. But an upturn in form followed, with four successive wins against Old Crossleyans, West Hartlepool, Driffield and Pocklington. Since then league form has been inconsistent but Northern, currently in eleventh place, will be looking to finish the season strongly with wins in the final four games against Rochdale, Ilkley, Horden and Alnwick.

Andy James, chairman of rugby and chairman of selectors at Northern, said: “We are always on the lookout for talented young rugby players as we try to evolve and improve season after season. If Robi is good enough, we’ll be more than happy to give him a chance, as we have done with other emerging talent over the years.

“In addition, we are extremely grateful to Bradley Hall for the sponsorship. We rely on generous donations from companies and individuals as we can’t afford to fund our running costs purely through the revenues we generate.”

Neil Hart, director at Bradley Hall, added: “Transport, training and general running costs are too much for some grassroots sports clubs, which is why sadly they don’t survive. We are proud to support Northern as we continue to help people in Gosforth and surrounding areas buy and sell their home.”

For further information on Bradley Hall’s residential services, please visit www.bradleyhall.co.uk or call the Gosforth office on 0191 284 2255.

Photo caption (from l-r): Andy James, Chairman of Rugby at Northern; Neil Hart of Bradley Hall; Ian Ramshaw, Honorary Treasurer at Northern; Robi Ham of Bradley Hall.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Bradley Hall .