THE clattering of metal on metal was music to the ears of thelatest Scottish sporting star Mike Kerr yesterday as he brought hisGreat Britain team-mates back to his home city of Glasgow.The 29-year-old was paralysed diving into a swimming pool on holiday inCorfu 11 years ago, but, sport having been the main focus in hislife before then, the former amateur football centre-half has usedwheelchair rugby to move to a new level of competition.After fiveyears battling to win a place in the fully professional GreatBritain squad, he finally achieved his dream this year, and theformer Uddingston Grammar School pupil is looking forward tocompeting in the Paralympics in London and claiming a first medalfor GB.He told The Scotsman: 'It is fantastic to be playing in myhome city because, for me, playing wheelchair rugby has been aboutfour or five-hour trips south.'I've been in chair for 11 years inAugust past. I had a diving accident on holiday. I say a divingaccident, but I dived into a swimming pool at the shallow end andknew from the moment I hit the bottom of the pool that I wasparalysed. I just knew. I'm paralysed from the nipples down. When Ifirst had my accident I was really weak and it took me a long timeto build up my strength, but wheelchair rugby gave me a real focus.I played football, a little rugby and some other sports before theaccident. Sport was all I was ever good at.'A year after my accidentI tried wheelchair rugby and fell in love with it. It was fullcontact and that was the big draw, and I'm really fit and healthynow.'The main purpose of Kerr's and the GB squad's visit to theKelvin Hall was to launch a new Scottish team that will compete inthe British league, joining the Gaelic Warriors from Ireland, Welshand English teams. The Glasgow players like the name 'Warriors' too,and the SRU and able-bodied Warriors and Scotland skipper AlastairKellock have offered their support. Scotland attack coach GregorTownsend gamely had a shot in the wheelchair yesterday and declaredit as tough as it looks, while the Wooden Spoon charity are alsobacking the venture.The sport is played by teams of four players ona basketball-style gym court, with defenders and attackers graded bytheir disability, and wheelchairs specially adapted, at a cost of upto GBP4,000, to mirror their roles in the game. Funding is,therefore, a major issue with this venture initially supportedlargely by English sport.What was also launched yesterday, however,was a UK pilot scheme for youth wheelchair rugby. It kicks off nextweek at Ashcraig School in Craigend, Glasgow. The team will becoached by Steve Palmer, one of the UK's leading internationalistsover the past decade. The former GB captain, who suffered a spinalinjury 15 years ago in similar circumstances to Kerr - he was pushedinto a pool by friends on holiday in Rhodes - lost his place to theScotsman in the GB team and has retired at the age of 38.He said:'After 11 years at the top level I don't have the same fire now,whereas Mike certainly does and he is really grasping hisopportunity.'But when I was asked to get involved in this pilot inGlasgow and then taking the initiative across the UK, I hadbutterflies in my stomach again.'The Paralympics in Beijing was thebest three weeks of my life and the memories will live with meforever. I've probably had a better life being in the chair andplaying wheelchair rugby than I had beforehand. Before, I was justanother guy who goes to work; ends up in the pub of an evening. I'ma lot healthier now than I would have been, I've travelled the worldseveral times, I've got friends in places like Australia, NewZealand, USA, Canada and all over Europe, and experiences of beingpart of Olympics, World Championships and Paralympics opening andclosing ceremonies, competing on the world stage.'I tell you whatwheelchair rugby has given me as well, the knowledge that I could gointo a training session in a bad mood, and in this full-contactsport, you can hit a few people [in chairs], get rid of a lot of badenergy and go home with a smile on your face.'Although we're all'love your fellow man' we all love a bit of violence, especiallywhen it's legal. I know there's a bit of tenacity in the Scots aswell, so I think we'll get going up here pretty well. Wheelchairrugby has been fantastic to me and I feel I'm a better person forme.'Palmer is an engaging and ambitious character, and havingwatched youngsters from Ashcraig having a ball yesterday learningthe game - Ashcraig will be the venue for all youngsters and adultsinterested in playing wheelchair rugby to join up - he sees a futurefor a Scotland national side, and French and Italian teams leadingto a championship that mirrors the Six Nations.Kerr added: 'To getselected for the Paralympics would be the pinnacle. I need to keepworking hard and hoping for the best. I've never done any other job,so if I lose my place in this team I will lose my job. When I had myaccident a lot of people helped me so I'm pleased to be able to givesomething back. It's nice to be the face of the sport in Scotland,but my hope is that seeing us performing well internationally andinitiatives like this will make more people in wheelchairs realisethat they can have fun and a future in sport at a very highlevel.'More info: www.gbwr.org.uk
