Rugby Club Issue 53 | Page 69

Lymington Mariners H lymington mariners aving first been established just six years ago, Lymington Mariners RFC has been making superb progress in recent times and is part of the Lymington Sports Association’s plans to develop a fantastic clubhouse and facility in the area. Rugby Club Magazine caught up with their Chairman Lee Thomas to find out more. Progress Community He told us, “Our progress has not always been a steady upward trend – there have been a few dips along the way as well as a substantial number of highs. The progress we’ve seen has been down to some hugely committed members –Pete Allen our President, Chris Rodway our coach and Owen Cavell our treasurer and fixture secretary to name a few. It’s also down to the commitment of a core group of players who through thick and thin have kept the close knit spirit of the club alive and have delivered week in week out. This season, our new young captain, Adam Harris, has brought energy and a new younger core of players to the club.” “We’re certainly a local club – our catchment area is small and nearly all our players live within a mile or two of the ground. It’s still early days for us – only 6 years old and considering we started with a bunch or players all past their best we’ve achieved more than we ever thought we would. Now with the new development and the LSA we believe we will go from strength to strength and become a focus of the community and sport for many generations to come. We’ve also been lucky with the support we’ve received from the local community. The town council invested heavily in providing us a first team pitch which must be the envy of every rugby club in Hampshire – the head groundsman from Twickenham visited recently and was incredibly impressed – from our first few years of playing on a pitch that didn’t stand u F