Shahid Rafiq RIP

The Ironsides family is sad to share the news of the passing of a hugely admired and respected member, Shahid Rafiq. A much loved and sorely missed Ironsider.

Shahid was a much-loved Ironsider who contributed a massive amount on and off the field over three decades.

He joined the Ironsides in the late nineties after moving from Glasgow to London. 

He represented most teams at the club, playing as a back rower and then, in his later years, as a prop. 

He was hard as nails on the field, never taking a step back in the loose. His rallying cry of a ‘big bundee’ from the back of the scrum was always sure to be answered with a big pack drive. 

He was a keen rugby netball player at Clapham Common in the summer. 

Shahid was also one of a select number of Ironsiders to have won an international cap, after he twice represented his native Pakistan.

Off the field, Shahid contributed massively. He managed the club’s IT for many years and also worked with the British Asian Rugby Association to encourage more British players of Asian descent into the sport. 

He also helped to steer the club through critical times, securing our future at OpenView Road and was a leader within the seniors as we merged together with the junior section.

He toured (voluntarily) many times with the Irons and, as a tee-totaler, could always be relied upon to remind every tourist of their misdemeanours the morning after the night before.

Curiously, Sha revelled in the festive spirit more than most. Donning his traditional Scottish regalia every year at the annual December dinner, tormenting the English, Welsh, Irish and antipodeans equally,  never missing an opportunity to share in the camaraderie that has made our club renowned. 

He was always ready to ferry worse-for-wear Ironsiders back from The Swan in the early hours, with the Shrek figurine perched on the end of his car’s aerial making him easy to find.

He was often the first person to welcome new joiners into the club and always offered a sympathetic ear to anyone that needed it. 

He understood the ethos of our game: playing hard, sometimes on the edge of the rules, but always exemplifying teamwork and humility after the day was won or lost.

In recent years, Shahid battled illness relating to a diagnosis of diabetes, which, among other things, forced him to give up his beloved Irn Bru. 

In recent weeks he sadly suffered kidney failure and then a heart attack from which he didn’t recover. He was his typical positive self right until the end; never complaining, always being positive, and always looking forward. 

Our thoughts are now with Shahid’s family, including his wife Shazia and his twin children.

He will be remembered as one of the kindest and most inclusive members of our club - the first to volunteer and the last to let anyone down - always there to help anyone out. Always positive. Always someone you could rely on. 

The sight of Shahid smiling proudly in his full kilt and sporran at club events will be sorely missed. But his spirit and values will live on. 

RIP.