Pontefract
“ I first played for Pontefract when I left school at 16 in 1982 . At that time the club had a tremendously successful Colts Team , and I followed my older brother to play for them . Watching him and his friends playing the Yorkshire Cup finals really gave me an appetite for club rugby and I was lucky to be able to play in two Yorkshire Colts Cup finals myself and to win one of them . Playing rugby at a club like Pontefract was a great way to learn about life and it was during this period that I met many lifelong friends . Although my neck is too fragile to continue to play rugby these days , I regularly play golf with the lads that I met when I was 16 , and I wonder if this would be the case had I chosen another sport . Sadly some of those lads , including my brother are no longer with us . When you have suffered a loss , the rugby family becomes even more important . Pontefract RUFC were incredibly supportive , and the minutes silence they held at one of their games is still one of the most moving things I have ever witnessed . My brother died from testicular cancer , the risk of which all men should be aware of . Following his loss the club helped us to not only raise awareness of the issue , but to raise around £ 50K for cancer charities including , McMillan , Yorkshire Cancer Research and other good causes . The sport of rugby has always been good to me . In the mid 1990 ’ s I went to live and work in Kent for a short period . This could have been a difficult time , but I joined New Ash Green RFC and it provided me with an instant circle of friends and a social life . That is why as the Managing Director of ACT ( National ) Ltd , I am proud to sponsor Pontefract RUFC . Being involved in the sport is truly like having an extended family , and I wanted to support the club and the development of the sport . I am always impressed by the enthusiasm of everybody involved whether players or volunteers , and I am sure there are exciting times ahead .”
Phil Atkinson , Managing Director , A . C . T ( National ) Ltd .
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01977 797359 www . actnational . co . uk | mail @ theactgroup . net continue to grow the senior squad with the 2s and 3s . The junior section is going from strength to strength and it is going to be very exciting next season to see rugby played on Saturdays and all day Sunday ! The club house should be full all weekend !”
This Season
“ The first team this year missed out on promotion to Yorkshire One , due to a few frustrating losses throughout the season , however the team has bonded well and is targeting promotion back to Yorkshire One next season as we were relegated two years ago from the Yorkshire top flight . One of our highlights was getting to the semi-final of the Yorkshire Shield this year losing after to extra time against Bridlington .
We have an ever improving team and the team has progressed this year with experienced players like Glenn Boyd nurturing some of the younger first team players at the club . We seem to have a good mix of youth and experience throughout all teams which should hopefully see improved league positions throughout the club next season . I forgot to mention
The second and third teams have continued to produce good players who have moved up through the teams this year .”
Next Season
“ The plans for next season have already started as preseason is all but sorted , kit and stash is ready to go for next season with a new online shop has been created for players and fans alike . We are mainly focusing on working more with our sponsors who have helped us throughout the year such as our main shirt sponsor ACT National who not only sponsored the team but helped us immensely when we hosted a British and Irish cup game for Yorkshire Carnegie last autumn .”
Youth
“ Youth rugby is vastly important to Pontefract RUFC especially as the first team and majority of the second team is made up of players who have come through the ranks at Pontefract . The club has always had a solid structure in getting players from juniors to colts and then into the senior sides . Just this year , we had four players from the colts side of last year making their first team debut with even more who have come back to the club after university .
It is very rewarding to see the junior and girls sections grow . I have only had a small part in this , but it has been the hard work of the junior committee , coaches and our Development officer Andy Fradgley in creating a safe fun environment for the kids , juniors and girls to play rugby every weekend .
The junior and girls sections have grown immensely this year , and it is also good to see that the numbers coming down are improving on the rugby pitch as well . They are working on their core rugby developments but also other skills which they can use outside of rugby .
The club has recently become part of the Childrens University which enables the kids to be able to have a passport stamped with learning objectives to show they are not only learning rugby but also skills which can be used in everyday life too . Phillipa Dykes and Nicola Fradgely , part of the junior committee , worked very hard to make this happen .
The juniors and girls are the future of the club so to see them come back in the past two years has been great to see and with more teams planned for the next few seasons it ’ s only going to get busier !”
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