Ellingham and Ringwood
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Ellingham and Ringwood
RUGBY FOOTBALL CLUB
Ellingham and Ringwood RFC is a fine example of the important role that a club can play in their local community . Rugby Club Magazine recently caught up with Club Representative Steve Benson to find out more about the good work the club has been doing lately .
He told us , “ I first joined Ellingham & Ringwood in 1979 when I moved to the New Forest from London and over the years I ’ ve fulfilled many roles in the club including chairman , secretary and fixture secretary . My current role is Director of Rugby , which involves responsibility for our three men ’ s teams , our women ’ s team , our colts and our successful girl ’ s sides .”
“ I was originally attracted to Ellingham & Ringwood as it was a proper community club that was involved in most activities in the small market town of Ringwood . Our 1st XV currently compete in Hampshire Division 1 and one of the most satisfying aspects of my role is to see most of our 1st XV players being products of our mini and junior academy that I helped establish back in the 1990 ’ s .
“ Our biggest challenge is recruiting , motivating and retaining the army of volunteers that are required to run the club . We understandably have to meet all the requirements of the rugby football union and other regulatory bodies , but we also have to remember that rugby is our pastime that has to be squeezed in to other important demands such as our work and family lives .
“ The club was formed in December 1966 , so last season we celebrated our golden jubilee . This involved a variety of events from traditional rugby evenings to a grand jubilee ball . As you can imagine the club is in high spirits and we ’ re all looking forward to the coming season .
“ We have a beautiful club house with two pitches on a site we share with the Ringwood Junior School . This facility was opened in 2008 by World Cup winner Richard Hill . Each Good Friday we hold a festival of touch rugby and real ale . This is our major fundraising event and the profits from the day help us repay the loan we took out to pay for the building .
58 Issue 73