Haringey Rhinos
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Haringey Rhinos
RUGBY FOOTBALL CLUB
Haringey Rhinos RFC is a fantastic example of the important role that a club
can play in their local community. Rugby Club Magazine recently caught up
with club Representative Helen Rayfield to find out more.
Helen told us, “I’ve been part of the club
since about 2005. My best friend started
playing for the Rhinos and encouraged
me to come along and watch a match.
When I came along, I discovered a great
club with a welcoming atmosphere and
a fantastic group of people. It turns
out I also really enjoy watching rugby
(although I’m still not completely clear
on the laws).”
“The Rhinos are a volunteer run club
and over time, I was asked to get more
involved in the club ‘behind the scenes’.
In 2011, I was approached by the then
club captain about helping him set up
the Rhinos youth teams. He assured
me it would ‘just be a bit of admin’. As
anyone who runs youth rugby teams
will tell you, it’s a lot more than a bit of
admin!
“Our club is based on White Hart Lane
in Haringey, we’re in the poorest ward
in the 4th poorest London borough
and the 2011 London riots took place
at each end of White Hart Lane and
our youth players are some of the most
disadvantaged in London.
“We know that cost is one of the key
barriers to rugby for inner city children
and young people, so we only charge
kids a £10 membership fee for the
whole season or £15 for families. A lot
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of my time is spent fundraising to pay
for everything the kids need, such as
playing kit, transport to away games and
equipment.
“In 2015, the club Chairman stood down
and I took over as Club Chair. A big part
of my job is making sure the players have
everything they need to enjoy a great
rugby experience. I look after facilities,
funding and make sure we have the
right volunteers in the right places to
make sure the club develops and attracts
new players.
“Our biggest challenge is finding
funding against a continued backdrop
of austerity. There’s less money to go
round, so we have to work harder for
it. Ongoing challenges relate to our
facilities and making sure we have access
to pitches as and when we need them.
Recruiting players is another challenge
as Haringey is a football-mad borough
(Spurs are just down the road), which
makes recruiting players quite difficult!
“The most rewarding part of my role is
watching the Rhinos win! I try and make
it to every home game and watching
any of our teams win is fantastic. It’s
also really rewarding to see our junior
members transition into the senior teams,
it makes all the hard work worthwhile.
“I love getting emails from parents
about the positive changes they see in
their children who are part of the club.
Although I’ve learnt to avoid reading
emails which say ‘thank you’ in the
subject line when I’m at work, they can
be real tear-jerkers.
“The atmosphere at the moment is really
positive. For the first time in years, we’re
fielding a vets team which has brought
some older players back to the club. The
men’s team are recruiting new players
and benefitting from youth players who
are now ready for senior rugby. The
ladies team are second in their league
and our youth programme is attracting
new players and volunteers. We’ve
nearly secured our facilities for the next
fifteen years, which will give the club
real stability.
“It has been a good season so far! We had
a bumpy season last year but we spent
the summer consolidating and planning
for this season. We’ve recruited some
great coaches and across the club, we’re
winning more than we’re losing! We’ve
had a number of youth players re-join