Barry RFC members cycled for three days on mountain bikes to raise money for their friend Sam Bowditch.

After an operation before Christmas last year, Sam suffered complications that led to a coma. Once awake, he had to learn to walk again.

The team decided to raise some money for him, by riding from Barry RFC to London Welsh rugby club on mountain bikes. The trip is around 182 miles, the team wanted to make it a bit more of a challenge. They cycled from Barry to Bath on day 1 (67 miles), Bath to Reading on Day 2 (80 miles) and Reading to Old Deer Park on Day 3 (41 miles) to raise funds to support Sam and his son.

Barry RFC head coach Liam Scott told the Argus, “After Sam became ill, everybody was concerned and keen to look at ways to support one of our 'Bombers' Family. He is one of the nicest people you can meet and is highly thought of by all involved at the club, hence the response and support that has been received

“Around £5500 has been raised so far from 238 donations, including a number of people that we met on the ride in the various hotels etc that we stayed in, which shows just how greatly Sam is thought of.”

On the ride there was a real spread of representation, from players, supporters and coaches. Liam Scott said the team are the tightest bunch of players he has have seen, with a great committee that supports them. “We are a real community club with over 250 registered players and almost all of our seniors having played for Barry RFC from a young age. The relationships that the players have stretched far beyond the rugby field and really look after each other as one big family.”

The team lost a couple of riders to injury prior to the ride who are keen to complete a challenge once fully recovered. After such a great weekend and response they are all likely to jump on board and join them.

“Sam’s had a bit of a nightmare six months, so the boys wanted to do something for him,” said Joel William a Barry RFC member.

“There are 13 of us riding, there were 15 but we had a few injuries, myself included. Then there’s four of us following in cars.

“Our youngest rider is 25 and the oldest is 68 so it’s going to be a bit of a task for some of them.”

Barry RFC would like to thank everyone that has donated. Local businesses such as Ches Van Hire for providing them with a free van for the support team and Hawkeye with T Shirts, and also all of the messages of support for the ride, and most importantly for Sam.

The money will go directly to Sam for him to start to get his life back together, from walking aids to general living costs, when he is released from hospital.