Shrewsbury
Olly Hampton has had a long and positive association with Shrewsbury
Rugby Club. He recently told Rugby Club Magazine, “I started playing in
the club’s mini section and after a break I returned to playing full time for
the senior sides at Shrewsbury.”
“My main playing position is front row prop but unfortunately a serious knee
injury eighteen months ago has kept me from playing. I hope to be back
playing next season and so far so good with the healing process going
well, at least I’m back running now which is a positive!
“I’ve managed to watch most home games this season and the team has
made much progress in bridging gaps between the colts and our senior
sides. The players have really bought into the playing style and philosophy
of our coaches, making for a much more structured approach to matches.
“My company, OPH Joinery Ltd, have sponsored the club for the past
three seasons, slowly increasing our contribution as business has
developed. I would like to congratulate the Undefeated Champions on a
great season and wish all the teams, members and everyone associated
with Shrewsbury Rugby Club the very best of continued success for next
season’s campaign!”
We re-instated the Summer Ball last
season which was successful and will
grow again this year and our annual
Dinner night with guest speaker is
always a sell-out. This year we have Mike
Tindall so we are all looking forward to
the event.”
This Season
“The season has gone very well.
At the time of report the 1st XV are
undefeated and top of Midlands 3 West
North whilst the Development XV are
3rd with occasional 3rd/Vet XV matches
arranged. The Colts are predominantly
at the lower age range this season but are
starting to show promise for next season
whilst the Junior and Mini sections of
the club continue to flourish with rugby
provided from U6 to U16 in addition to
three girls teams.”
2019
“In 2019 we will focus on the
maintenance of our current status and
ensuring that our M & J section stays
strong. The current target for the 1st XV
is to be promoted to Midlands 2 West
North, hopefully as Champions and
with an undefeated record but we have
some testing games remaining.
We
want
continued
growth
throughout all sections of the club whilst
building better relationships between
the different sections. As a club, we have
made a great deal of progress in this area
in recent years but we still have work to
do to make it a ‘One Club’ feeling.”
Youth
“Youth rugby is vital to provide a
flow of players through to the Senior
Section, however, as with many other
clubs, retention is difficult as the
challenges of employment, university
and other social activities seem to be
against us. We are fortunate if we get one
or two players through to the Senior’s
each season.”
Integration
“At the moment, we have switched
the Colts training sessions to coincide
with the Senior training so that everyone
can become familiar. It is unlikely that
any Colts will move to Senior rugby this
time as they are all in the lower age range
but we anticipate a regular 3rd XV next
season to assist in the transition using
experienced and ‘social’ players.
We are very fortunate to have long
standing and experienced Colts Coaches
who have a proven track record of
developing players and on the financial
side, we have extended the reduced
Colts membership fees to U23 to try and
encourage more players to remain at the
club.”
Community
“We are a community club; we
encourage participation from all areas
of Shrewsbury, all age groups, and
both genders but our remote location
sometimes hinders our best efforts,
especially when it comes to social
functions. We still have work to do to
build further relationships with local
schools, colleges along with the wider
community.”
do now and what is in the best interests
of the club on a longer-term basis.”
Ambitions
“The club is in a good place at the
moment and we want to maintain that.
We will look to continually improve
on both the playing side and with the
facilities whilst trying to raise the profile
of the club within the community. We
need to maintain our healthy financial
status which is challenging as we try
to keep the club competitive with other
sports in the area.
Everyone plays subsidised rugby at
Shrewsbury and this is only possible due
to fantastic support from long standing
sponsors. Our Principle Sponsors are
Morris Lubricants who have been with
us eleven years.
Without their commitment we
would not have be able to invest in
various projects such as pitch drainage,
floodlighting and improvements to the
clubhouse. Salopian Brewery have also
supported us for seven years and we
have a number of other local companies
who contribute as well.”
Challenges
“Recruiting and retaining volunteers
to assist with all aspects of the club is a
priority. As with all clubs, it is similar
to running a small business but with
un-paid Volunteers and it becomes
increasingly difficult to ensure that we
are complying with all requirements
under
Governance,
Accreditation,
Safeguarding and Health and Safety
etc. whilst also striving for continual
development on both the playing side
and with the grounds and facilities. It
remains a challenge to keep everyone
happy all of the time as there are often
conflicts between what we would like to
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