Over the years, several members of the group remained in contact, and some have met up over the years, although the majority went their separate ways. They have all enjoyed successful careers.
Angus, Terry, Ced, Dave, Des and John reunited in Amboise, France for a three-day catch up and updated each other on their ventures after Loughborough.
Shortly after graduating Angus Cox made a trip to North America in 1972. The alumnus went on to hold a well-travelled lifestyle by going to Australia shortly after and eventually East Asia which he accumulated by working as many as 35 different jobs in his life before returning to the UK and his teaching profession. He retired in 2008 as Assistant Head of Oxted Comprehensive in Surrey.
Angus was joined by Terry in travelling, and he worked in South America. Terry decided to take a different route to Angus by moving to South America shortly after and eventually making his way around the globe to New Zealand in 1973. After several years Terry returned to the UK and taught in schools in South Wales. Terry celebrates his 50th year of teaching this September!
Ced stayed close to the University after graduating and went on to teach at Loughborough Grammar School where he remained until his retirement in 2011. Whilst working at the school he was heavily involved in coaching rugby and athletics. The alumnus became involved in county, midlands, and England U18 Rugby teams. During this time, he organised many rugby tours, taking the school team to places including Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Canada. His contributions were recognised by the RFU and he received the ‘Services to Schools Rugby Award’.
Much like Ced, Dave Cooke remained involved in rugby after graduating. He played for the Loughborough 1st XV and then Harlequins, even going on to represent England four times. In his professional career Dave went into teaching like many of his friends but progressed into financial administration before retiring in 2012.
Des also played for the Loughborough 1st XV and 1st VII, going on to play for Gloucestershire in the 1970s and playing rugby in Italy for 3 months. In 1972 he joined Angus and Terry in their adventures in the USA for seven months before returning to Maidstone for a teaching post where he stayed until 1990. Whilst at Maidstone he coached Maidstone FC for eight years before going on to Blackheath FC from 1980-1984 and Kent for two years. The alumnus was appointed the Divisional Technical Administrator for RFU London and Southeast in 1990 and RFU Coaching Development Manager in 1998. Des retired in 2010 and was the President of Blackheath Rugby from 2012-2018.
John Gray is very much like his contemporaries - the prime example of a sporty alumnus. He played for Loughborough 1st XV and 1st VII and was an England trialist. He is a professional cricketer, rugby union and rugby league player. In his early years the alumnus was offered a football contract by Coventry City but went on to focus on cricket and rugby. He played rugby and cricket for Coventry RFC, Barbarians and Warwickshire. In 1974 he signed up for the Wigan Rugby League Football Club and was eventually selected for Great Britain Rugby League. In 1975 John went to Australia to play for the Sydney Bears and was awarded Player of the Year in 1976.
It is wonderful to hear about their reunion that took place in Amboise, France where they decided to spend two nights as a group with their partners reminiscing their Loughborough memories and commemorating the reunion.