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BBC Sport News Story here
Guernsey Rugby Club, eighth in the RFU English National Three London & SE league, is not usually the first port of call for sporting superstars. Rugby legend Jonah Lomu - one of a handful of sporting icons whose global fame transcends their sport - made a memorable visit to the Channel Island club's Academy during a trip to the island.
Now 38 and suffering from the serious kidney problems which have dogged him for many years, Lomu arrived at the Guernsey RFC clubhouse (having spent six hours at the island hospital for dialysis treatment) supposedly for a brief meet and greet before heading to a charity dinner.
"He was supposed to stay for about half an hour and he ended up staying for nearly two hours and made himself late for the dinner," Guernsey's academy director Charles McHugh told BBC South West Sport.
McHugh said that apart from some technical tips and advice on how jujitsu techniques (my bold)could be adapted for use on the rugby field, Lomu - who is awaiting a donor for a second kidney transplant - also imparted some broader lessons.
"He told the boys, who are all from Guernsey which is really a small island in the sea, that being from here shouldn't inhibit them from progressing in their rugby and that if they want to take it further and move to a professional career then that was very possible," he said.
Guernsey Rugby Club, eighth in the RFU English National Three London & SE league, is not usually the first port of call for sporting superstars. Rugby legend Jonah Lomu - one of a handful of sporting icons whose global fame transcends their sport - made a memorable visit to the Channel Island club's Academy during a trip to the island.
Now 38 and suffering from the serious kidney problems which have dogged him for many years, Lomu arrived at the Guernsey RFC clubhouse (having spent six hours at the island hospital for dialysis treatment) supposedly for a brief meet and greet before heading to a charity dinner.
"He was supposed to stay for about half an hour and he ended up staying for nearly two hours and made himself late for the dinner," Guernsey's academy director Charles McHugh told BBC South West Sport.
McHugh said that apart from some technical tips and advice on how jujitsu techniques (my bold)could be adapted for use on the rugby field, Lomu - who is awaiting a donor for a second kidney transplant - also imparted some broader lessons.
"He told the boys, who are all from Guernsey which is really a small island in the sea, that being from here shouldn't inhibit them from progressing in their rugby and that if they want to take it further and move to a professional career then that was very possible," he said.
