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AUGUST NEWSLETTER

AUGUST NEWSLETTER

John Kenny11 Aug 2015 - 18:44
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CHAIRMAN STEVE OLIVE REPORTS

When I wrote in June we had just started work on refurbishing the Clubhouse, well in truth tearing it apart at that time, and we had just obtained confirmation of planning permission for the new floodlights and we were looking forward to the upcoming attempt on the Guinness World Record for the longest game of full contact, competitive rugby union.

So not surprisingly the last couple of months have been pretty hectic even though it is the close season. Work on the Clubhouse had started a little later than we had hoped, but fortunately we were able to use it over the weekend of July31st/August1st, even though it was not fully completed.

I am delighted to confirm that there will be formal ceremony to open the refurbished Clubhouse on the evening of Friday September 4th. The Mayor and Mayoress of Sefton have accepted our invitation to perform the opening ceremony and John Pugh MP has also accepted our invitation to attend.

The evening of September 4th is also the first ‘Friday Fun Night’ of the season for the Mini’s and Junior’s so this promises to be a full and enjoyable evening. More details of events on that evening will be posted on the club website.

Work is well underway on installing the new floodlights and they will be available for use from the beginning of the season, if needed. The one project that I mentioned in my previous letter that has not progressed is the proposed children’s play area. This is unfortunate but we will continue to look for opportunities to improve facilities.

I also touched on the subject of the Ball in my June Letter. Well the Ball was a great success even though ticket sales were well below the prior year. The auction proved successful for both the club and for fundraising for the charities supported by the Guinness World Record attempt. Thank you to all those who so generously donated the auction items and to those who put their hands very deeply into their pockets to buy them! So all in all it proved a financial success. It is my intention before the end of the calendar year to engage informally with members, both the junior and senior sections of the club to discuss how we can improve this great night out still further.

Moving on to Rugby matters and of course the first stop is not surprisingly the Guinness World Record attempt. Many words have been written and glowing adjectives deservedly used to describe the performance of the players and the support they received from volunteers and the crowd over those two days, July 31st and August 1st. It was a truly awesome event in all respects. If you were there you could not be anything other than proud of being a member of Southport Rugby Club. Thanks are due to so many for creating such a memorable occasion and again I would like to extend my personal thanks and those of the whole club to the players, the volunteers, in all capacities, and to the supporters who turned up in their hundreds. Now we move on to the ratification process which, if successful, will mean those 46 players truly are World Record Holders!!

The senior players, men and women, have been undertaking rigorous pre-season training since the beginning of July. This year the senior coaching team have engaged Dan Palmer of Pioneer Fitness to assist in the design and delivery of the pre-season programme. Dan himself played at Level 3 and has previously devised and led pre-season programmes at clubs such as Waterloo and Fylde. A detailed and demanding day by training day programme has been developed .The first half of programme has a clear focus on ‘fitness for rugby’ from day one, and not just fitness for its own sake, also alongside the fitness are high tempo core basic skills sessions and, as we near the start of the season, emphasis shifts to honing core set piece skills (scrummaging, line outs, re starts), backs moves to different phases, continuity and combination work. All designed to ensure we play rugby the ‘Southport Way’.

It’s not just the seniors who have been busy in the close season. Steve Hart, Director of Mini and Junior rugby, has been actively engaged in providing leadership to the Southport and Formby Emerging Schools rugby project (SAFE) and cementing strong relationships with those schools. The leagues that will comprise the SAFE programme for 2015/2016 can be accessed via the club website.
The league competition will culminate in a finals day for each division including all teams, with plans that they will be played under floodlights at SRFC towards the end of the season.

As well as encouraging the development of rugby in the eight participating schools, we are developing relationships that will attract even more young players to the club. In light of that it is pleasing to report that our ‘partnership’ with Birkdale High School continues to prosper and they have agreed that we can use their pitches as overspill when necessary on a Sunday morning. A big thank you to Birkdale High is in order. Details of how this facility will be used will be communicated in the very near future.

Looking to the future the new season is almost upon us. A season of course which will be dominated, at least pre Xmas, by the Rugby World Cup. The Clubhouse now provides a first class facility for watching major sporting events with likeminded folk and of course we will be showing the majority of the games live. Match ‘Packages’ are available to purchase to watch key games, with lunch (or dinner depending on kick off time) and wine, in the new VIP lounge area of the bar. For details please contact Sue Astwood at xxscuexx@live.co.uk

The main bar is of course open at no charge to members and guests throughout and details of fun activities on RWC big game afternoons and nights will shortly be posted on the website and in the club bar.

Immediately post the RWC on the evening of Saturday November 7th we are holding the Gentleman’s dinner at the Floral Hall. This year’s guest speaker is Nigel Redman ex Bath, England and a British & Irish Lion and currently Elite Coach Development Manager for British Swimming. In addition comedian Mike Farrall will be entertaining us at the dinner. Tickets are available from Sue Astwood . xxscuexx@live.co.uk

Nigel is planning be at the Club during the afternoon of November 7th, when the 1st team play Ruskin Park. This, looking at the teams in the league, could well be the home game of the season. So as much support as we can muster will be most appreciated!!

We have now instituted an ‘Important Dates ‘page on the website designed to let everyone know what is happening at the club in the upcoming 6 weeks. The intent is for the site to be updated every couple of weeks.

In June I referred to both the Cluster groups and the Strategy group and the work they were undertaking. I am pleased that in spite of the holiday season we continue to make progress. It is anticipated that a first draft of the Clubs on and off field strategy and the role of the individual Cluster groups be presented to the Board at the end of August. There will undoubtedly be a number of redrafts before we are ready to ‘go public’ and enter into discussions with members before finalising the Strategy.

The first team pitch looks great,( Thank you Shane!), the pitches ‘over the wall’ have, I am told, had more care and intention than in previous years (Thank you Sefton !) so we are just about ready to go for another season. Thank goodness!

Look forward to seeing you at the Club.

Steve O

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