Charity rugby match in memory of Scottish Parliament staffer

David Hill died last year at just 30, while playing for the Scottish Parliament Rugby team

David Hill
Author: Lewis MichiePublished 9th Mar 2023
Last updated 10th Mar 2023

A charity rugby match in tribute to a Scottish Parliament staffer who died playing the game he loved is to be held this weekend (Saturday March 11).

David Hill, 30, was playing for the Parliament team in Dublin against Ireland’s Dail and Seanad last year.

He became unwell on the pitch and sadly died - due to an undiagnosed heart condition.

David's family and friends have decided to raise both money for charity and awareness of early cardiac arrest.

The two teams will once again face off this weekend at Peffermill, with the David Hill Quaich the prize for the winner.

Scottish Parliament building

All funds raised by the match will go towards Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) and the Murrayfield Injured Players Foundation.

Not only that but David's Brother plans to take on a three peaks challenge later in the year, and then in the reverse fixture next March his Father Rodger plans to cycle from Edinburgh to Dublin with the match ball.

He'll stop at schools along the way to teach them about young cardiac death.

Rodger is keen to make sure young people in Scotland are aware that even at their age, with no prior warning, heart condition can be present, he said:

"We want to be clear that this is not a rugby injury, he died from a sudden cardiac death, and 12 young people in the UK die from it each week, and one in 300 young people will have a very significant cardiac defect."

Rodger, who along with other family members of David's will take part in the Rugby fixture, continued:

"It's raising awareness about sudden cardiac death. It is raising funds because although in Scotland, there have been 10,000 cardiac tests have been carried out - they've just passed that milestone.

"The population between 14 and 35 is about 1.2 million. So you know, it's a drop in the ocean.

"By and large those tests are being paid for from fundraising from families that are fundraising for this through charitable donations.

"We want to fundraise for that - certainly to bring cardiac testing down to David's home area in Dumfries and Galloway but beyond wider to that.

"And also wanting to lobby for change. We want to look at health policy, but that's a longer term goal is to look at what changes can we make in terms of our match our national approach to this issue."

The fixture has been arranged by another Holyrood staffer, David's friend Michael Mawdsley.

Michael told us: "David was one of the co-founders of the Scottish Parliament team, and so he's been involved since 2017.

"So it seemed a fitting tribute from my perspective, to play in the fixture named after him

"It'll be ourselves that Scottish Parliament against the Dail and Seanad - our Irish equivalents.

"We've got a squad of 45 players, which is much bigger than usual because Roger, for example, is playing David's brother, Alex, and I know some friends of David's who hadn't played for the club before.

"So it was a real opportunity to kind of demonstrate what parliamentary rugby is about making new friends and obviously doing it for such a great and fantastic cause."

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was asked about the memorial match at First Minister's Questions yesterday (March 9) by Conservative MSP Douglas Lumsden.

David was the head of office for Scottish Tory MSP and Holyrood justice spokesman Jamie Greene.

The FM said: "I think all of us still remember the shock of shock last year when we heard of David's passing, I had some communication at the time with David's parents Rodger and Sharon, and my thoughts remain with them at what I am sure is an incredibly difficult time.

"The fixture this weekend will be a fitting tribute to David, I wish both teams well and of course pay tribute to the charities that money is being raised to support."

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