ARKlow
Arklow
B
Based at The Oval in Ballyrichard on Irelands South East Coast, Arklow RFC currently competes in Division 3 of the
Leinster League. They are led by the team of President Sean O’Farrell and Chairman Paul Neill and the club has made
a considerable amount of progress under their guidance.
The club states on their official website
that their primary aim is, “to promote the
playing of rugby for all who are keen to
take part in the sport.” This highlights
their commitment to playing an important
role in their local community and they
always provide visitors with a warm
welcome.
First established in 1936, the club retains
its strong amateur ethos through to the
present day and volunteers remain a
key part of what they do. Without the
work and support of these people the
club would not be able to play such an
important role in their local area.
This season it would be fair to say that
their first team did not perhaps enjoy
the campaign that they would have liked
as they put together a record of three
wins and nine defeats from their twelve
matches. This saw them finish bottom of
the table.
There were some positives for the team
to take from their performances however
and they will be keen to build on these as
they prepare for the 2015/16 campaign.
So long as they can retain their current
group of players and perhaps make one
or two quality additions they should be in
with a good chance of pushing on up the
table.
Arklow is not a club to focus solely upon
their senior section however as they also
have a thriving youth set up. This part
of the club looks to provide youngsters
from the local area with an opportunity
to play the game in a safe and enjoyable
environment whilst helping them to reach
their full potential.
It is important for any club to be able to
produce their own talent, particularly in
the current financial climate and this is an
area that Arklow appears to have covered.
It will certainly be exciting to see how
their juniors can progress in the coming
months.
A further example of Arklow’s
commitment to playing an important
role in their local community is the
Ladies team that they run. It is known
as ‘The Amazons’ and was first set up in
September of 2010.
The club hosted its first ever Tag Rugby
league that summer and after a few of
the girls expressed an interest in playing
the contact form of the game Joe Bollard,
Gareth Dunne and Tommy Godkin set
up a side. The Ladies Team encourage
anyone interested in getting involved to
get in touch.
Although Arklow’s first team did not
enjoy the campaign that they would have
liked this time around, this should not
take away from some of the fantastic work
that has bee