Helensburgh C&RFC
UPDATE: The project has now been successfully completed and Friends of Scottish Rugby congratulate Helensburgh C&RFC on their hard work and achievements.
Helensburgh Cricket and Rugby Football Club Development Project
Introduction
Thanks to a grant from the Friends of Scottish Rugby, Helensburgh Cricket and Rugby Club has been able to finalise its own funding package, and
submit an application for an SRU/SportScotland Club Sustainability Fund grant to build a new Grounds Maintenance and Storage Building.
Background
The origins of Helensburgh C&RFC date back to 1882 when the Cricket Club was established. The Rugby Club started in 1963 and the joint club
was formed in 1973 with the building of a club house at Ardencaple on land leased from Luss Estates. This lease also included a cricket pitch
and a former Soccer pitch. The adjacent land, to the west of this, was owned by the Local Authority (now Argyll and Bute Council) and comprised
a hockey pitch a soccer pitch and a blaes soccer pitch. At the time of the formation of the joint club, none of the three soccer/hockey pitches
were in good condition, with two being virtually unplayable except possibly in the summer.
Over the intervening years, a considerable amount of work has been undertaken by the club in installing field drains and treating the surfaces to improve the quality of the pitches. Whilst this has proved to be successful, in part, technical advice suggests that the soil structure needs to be improved to ensure that water can penetrate the top surface of the pitches more easily and reach the drainage system. This results in a high proportion of training sessions and matches being cancelled or postponed. This is hindering the further expansion of player numbers and activity levels at the club.
Over the past forty years, with the decline in the playing of many team sports in state schools, the club has played an important role in providing facilities for children and adults in the local community.
To ensure that the club can maintain and expand the facility and service it offers to the community, it is vital that a professionally organised grounds management facility be established at the Ardencaple.
The second need that this facility seeks to address, is to provide additional dry storage for sports equipment and space for fitness and conditioning equipment. At present dressing rooms are being utilised for some storage and fitness work.
This project has been designed to do meet these two pressing needs which are limiting its ability to expand the club's activities.
Project Scope
The Grounds Management Development project aims to establish a purpose built groundsman's facility and storage, including soil biology equipment, together with enhanced storage. The new grounds maintenance facility will enable volunteer staff to:
- make improvements to drainage and pitch playing surfaces; and
- put in place an effective regime for the maintenance and garaging of grounds maintenance equipment.
Improvement of the drainage and playing surfaces will enable greater use to be made of the grass pitches, for training, coaching and competitive games at a time when it is anticipated that increasing numbers will wish to play rugby and cricket.
Existing sports equipment storage accommodation is inadequate for the current playing numbers and results in dressing room accommodation being utilised for storing sports equipment. The new storage facilities incorporated in the building will offer:
- extra, dry storage for sports equipment, releasing space in existing changing rooms; and
- a small strengthening and conditioning facility to meet the needs of our senior players.
The collection of containers and derelict portacabins on the left will be replaced by the new building on the right and the site re-landscaped.
Andrew Nisbet
Project Development Manager
Click below for Helensburgh RFC website:
Helensburgh RFC