Harrogate
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Harrogate
Junior RUGBY CLUB
Based at Stratstone Stadium on Rudding Lane in
North Yorkshire, Harrogate RUFC is a fine example
of the important role that a club can play in its local
community. They are led by Chairman Iain Salkeld
while Mark Garrett is their Junior Chairman.
One of the highlights of the Harrogate
set up is the superb junior section that
the club has in place. This part of the club
looks to provide young players from the
local community 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 looking to
be successful to be able to produce their
own talent, particularly in the current
financial climate and this is an area they
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appear to have covered. It will certainly
be exciting to see how their youngsters
can progress in the coming years.
In order to help make sure that these
players enjoy a smooth transition into
the senior game they also run a number
of additional sides. This allows them
to gain experience of adult level rugby
even if they are not yet considered
ready for first team action which can be
an important step in the development
process.
Another benefit of having extra sides
is that it allows the first team to benefit
from far greater strength in depth. If they
are ever left short on numbers through
injury or work commitments they have
the option of calling up replacements
with a limited amount of disruption.
At first team level, Harrogate enjoyed
a fine season this time around as they
put together a record of nineteen wins,
one draw and six defeats from their
twenty six matches. This saw them finish