Scotland 7s players to rally around former opponent

30 Sep 2022

The thing about playing international sevens – it’s all about intensity. The intensity of competition, the intensity of hauling yourself up mentally within a few hours of playing, win or lose; and the intensity of living on location with players who, at the mercy of the fixture card, can be breakfast partners one moment and sworn enemies the next (well, for 14 minutes).

EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND - NOVEMBER 30: Scotland 7s Head Coach Ciaran Beattie is pictured with Lee Jones as he announces the 12 players that will form the core Scotland 7s squad for when the HSBC World Sevens Series resumes in January 2022, in a year that will also see the Commonwealth Games and Rugby Sevens World Cup staged. Image taken during a Scotland Rugby 7's Launch at BT Murrayfield, on November 30, 2021, in Edinburgh, Scotland. (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

The fraternal spirit of players enables them to get through these long weeks away from home and in that very spirit, a number of Scotland 7s internationals have pledged to reach out and promote a very important cause for one of their past opponents.

Scotland 7s are supporting former Wales 7s player, Ethan Davies, who has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He urgently needs a blood stem cell donor. Could it be you?

Ethan, originally a stand-off/full-back hailing from Cross Keys in Caerphilly, has been diagnosed with Hepatosplenic T cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, a “very rare” form of blood cancer.

Scotland 7s players Robbie Fergusson, Paddy Kelly, Jordan Edmunds, Ross McCann, Lee Jones and Grant Hughes are promoting Ethan’s cause and will join the blood cancer charity DKMS’ register in the hope they are a match for Ethan or someone else.

Anyone can sign up and if you are aged between 17 and 55 and in general good health take the first step to register as a blood stem cell donor by registering for your home swab kit at www.dkms.org.uk/register-now

Chris Bain, DKMS volunteer, frames it perfectly: “For most people there is no single cure, a blood stem cell donation from a genetically similar person can offer the best treatment and could help give someone in need of a transplant a second chance at life. With just 3% of the UK’s population registered as potential donors, the more people we have on the register, the better the chance for Ethan and many like him, to find their lifesaving match.”

Scotland and Wales have been involved in numerous close matches over the course of the World Series circuit. This next match may prove to be the most important yet.

To find out more about blood cancer charity DKMS, visit www.dkms.org.uk