MY MATE MATT - HELPING HAMBO

I first met Matt Hampson in the spring of 2006, just over a year after the accident which had left him paralysed from the neck down. I’d heard about what had happened to him, and had helped arrange a collection for him,  at a game soon after his accident. When I visited him, he was still in Stoke Mandeville Hospital, barely able to move much more than his neck, and still finding breathing so hard that his voice was faint, and it was hard to hear much of what he said. Despite that, it was obvious that he was somebody who was not  prepared to lie back and wallow in self-pity. After a couple of hours in his company, I left the hospital both uplifted and inspired by this young man, to whom fate had dealt such a cruel blow.

My visit came shortly after a game at Welford Road, in which his beloved Tigers Academy had taken on England Under-21s, to raise money for his trust fund. When he told me that he’d ended up in the bar, playing drinking games with his old team-mates, I commented that he would be at a disadvantage, as he could only drink through a straw, which (I have always understood) means that the alcohol takes effect rather more quickly. He grinned, and said: "Yeah - that’s why I made it a rule that everybody else had to drink through straws!" Boys will be boys. He also took great delight in telling me about an early carer who was a part-time undertaker. "He used to look at me, as if he was measuring me up for a coffin!" chuckled Matt, with his infectious trademark grin.

The Matt we see today  has made enormous progress since our first meeting, although he’s still paralysed from the neck down, and still requires a ventilator to breathe. The spirit, the smile, the cheeky sense of humour are all still there, but his upper body is now much more mobile - at times, he almost climbs out of his chair, when talking, and the voice is much stronger and clearer. Since leaving hospital in June 2006, he’s won the admiration of the entire rugby world, and many people beyond, for the whole-hearted way he’s thrown himself into  making the most of life, and  showing all of us just how to cope with Hamlet’s slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.  He writes a regular column for his local paper, he does high profile interviews for a rugby magazine, he coaches his local school. He’s even attended a garden party at Buckingham Palace, and regularly hobnobs with princes when he attends matches at Twickenham.

I’ve got to know Matt and his family well, since arranging a Wasps’ supporters walk from Adams Park to Welford Road, in April 2007. His parents, Phil and Anne,  invited me to visit, the week after the Heineken Cup final. Mercifully, Wasps had won that encounter, sparing me what might have been a couple of days of Tigers’ gloating. They did get some revenge. After a night out in Oakham, we returned chez Hampson, and I was forced to don a Leicester shirt, for a souvenir photograph. I retaliated, by saying that when I came back with a large cheque for the walk’s proceeds, I’d get him in to a Wasps shirt. That happened, so honours were even.

Exciting things are happening, and Matt has recently bought a new exercise machine, which allows him (with help) to stand up and exercise his legs. He’s  looking forward to moving in to his own place, having bought a plot  of land just up the lane from his parents’ house, in a small village in the picturesque Rutland countryside. His father Phil, who’s a builder, took me to see it, a couple of weeks ago. The plot includes some farm outhouses, and Phil - who built Matt’s current pad, by converting a barn - is in charge of turning them into Matt’s des res, which should be ready by the end of next summer. It’s a former piggery, and you can’t help feeling that props and piggeries go well together!

The word most often used to describe Matt is ‘inspirational’, though those close to him could doubtless come up with many more! He realises that his high profile has enabled him to draw attention to the fate of  others, with similar injuries to his own, and sees it as his responsibility to do everything he can to help them, and to further the cause of spinal injury research. He spends a lot of time visiting other paralysed players. I visited one myself, two days ago, and he could not speak too highly of Matt’s support and generosity. He’s also become the patron of the charity SpecialEffect, which is a cause very close to his heart. http://www.specialeffect.org.uk/

Now is the chance for the entire rugby community to do their bit to help Matt, SpecialEffect, and other charities, by putting its collective best foot forward, in what will undoubtedly be the biggest charity walk our sport  has ever seen.

All twelve Guinness Premiership clubs have joined Premier Rugby Limited and the Professional Rugby Players’ Association, in giving their unreserved support to the walk, which will take place at the end of the season.

Nearly 150 walkers will set off from Rugby, the birthplace of the game, and walk down the Grand Union Canal, all the way to Brentford, before joining the Thames for the final few miles, to Twickenham, the modern home of rugby.

This walk will take place in the week leading up to the Guinness Premiership Final, setting off from Rugby on the morning of Friday, May the 7th, and ending in Twickenham, the following Friday - the eve of the final. It is also being backed by British Waterways, and a fleet of twelve narrow boats - one for each club - will follow the walkers, serving as support vessels and overnight accommodation.

Full details can soon be found on the special website which has been set up:  http://www.matthampsonwalk.org

In supporting this walk, you will not only be supporting one seriously injured player - you’ll be supporting them all, as well as SpecialEffect, and twelve other charities nominated by the clubs. The sad news of the death of  the Tynedale prop Ali Johnson, so soon after those of England Students hooker Daniel James and  the  Neath scrum-half, Gareth Jones, serves as a tragic reminder of the risks involved in playing rugby, and the vital necessity of doing everything we can to help those players who suffer such injuries.

Adrien Chalmin and Hatt Hampson chez Hambos

Despite all the accolades he’s received, Matt remains humble and down to earth. Ask anyone who knew him before his accident, and they’ll probably tell you: "Hambo’s the same as he always was - still just one of the lads." That’s the way  he’d like people to see him. With your help, he’ll continue to be just one of the lads, but we all know what a special lad he really is.

[Footnote: In memory of Ali Johnson - http://www.rfu.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/RFUHome.England_Detail/StoryID/21438]

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