St John’s pupils hand over £1000 to Matt Hampson Trust Fund

Southsea Schoolboys present charity cheque to Leicester Tigers Rugby victors

St John’s College Head boys Simon and Jonathan Priestley handed over a cheque for £1000 to Guiness Premiership rugby champions Leicester Tigers, after their showdown match against London Irish at Twickenham last weekend. The amount raised will go towards the Matt Hampson Trust Fund, a charity set up in the name of the former emerging Leicester Tiger, who suffered a dislocation to his neck during the collapse of a scrum and is now paralysed from the neck down. He is unable to breathe unaided but remains as determined and as mentally strong as he was in his playing days. Matt is now an inspirational figure in the rugby and wider communities, leading an independent life despite his disability, writing a local sports column and coaching rugby, as well as raising awareness and funds for spinal charities. Despite being supporters of London Irish, the twin Head boys were invited into the Tigers’ dressing room after the match to present the cheque to All Black Aaron Mauger, Samoan winger Alesana Tuilagi and England Saxons Richard Blaze and Brett Deacon. Simon said: “It was a pleasure to meet the Leicester Tigers players who gave us a really warm welcome. It was kind of them to spend time with us after winning the trophy and we were delighted to be handing over a cheque for such a worthwhile cause.” Jonathan added: “Matt is a really inspirational character; quite a few players from St John’s follow his story – he was the same age as us when the accident happened.”