StacksChat This is the first StacksChat club update since the last home match programme in March last year. What we all thought would be a rela=vely short-lived hiatus from rugby has turned into a dystopian nightmare with no signs of an end in sight. Vaccina=ons will be the solu=on. Let’s hope the roll-out gets us something like back to normality by early spring. Anyway here’s a quick update on Ilkley Rugby Club’s 2020 post last season’s abrupt termina=on. On the field Covid terminated the season in March and we were arbitrarily relegated to league North One east. Make no mistake we had thoroughly enjoyed our five years amongst the semi pro’s and were sad to lose our posi=on in North Premier league. Rhys Morgan bemoans the loss of 20 quality 1st XV players over the last 2 years either for work or a higher standard of rugby but all leP on good terms. We have high hopes the majority will return to Ilkley. The wonderful weather of spring inspired the players to keep the team ethos together by holding a sponsored run. Some huge efforts resulted in a dona=on to NHS chari=es of well over £3,000. Well done boys! Training started in July and there were record numbers in aXendance with many new players and a new assistant coach, Andrew Clitheroe. Welcome to all! Joe Lowes and Chuckie Ramsey con=nue as Captain and Vice-Captain respec=vely. With the excep=on of Blake Morgan, Luke Pearson and MaX Dakin all the squad of last season were training. Our budding youngsters Harry Smith, MaXy Sheard, Finn Gateley and Kodie Brook were joined by Oli Ham, Jake and George Kapur to strengthen the cohort of lads coming up through our Junior ranks. Watch out too for Jack Leibster, Jack Popely and Rob Sigsworth, Steve Costellow, Phil Warboys, Jack Brown, Luke Gamble, George Hill, Josh Pinder and George Wilbur with another 6 or so s=ll to come. There are also a host of students from Leeds. So far we have Sam GarbeX, Will Downs, Oli Pearson, Tom Akehurst, Tom Holden, Adam Hopkinson, Angus Kinder and several more. Students coming from Northumbria Uni are the Ilkley born and bred Graham brothers, Callum and Alex both in great nick along with Hugo and Benny King and Harry Boyd. Charles Morgan has been down to help the development of our prospec=ve number 10’s. Jack Maplesden has also promised to come and help with the number 9’s. Referee Richard Arthur is lined up to come and help through the new laws. The 2nd XV had a really tough season last year oPen playing short of numbers. Coach Si Sutcliffe will con=nue to look aPer the 2’s with new skipper Adam de la Rocca. Training con=nued building up to the normal September start to compe==ve rugby in North 1 East league. The Centurions will no doubt gather as and when called for but several have been to training. There are surely a few players amongst their ranks who are capable of holding 2nd or even 1st XV places down should their life choices allow. Andrew Munro and Rhys Morgan had to work within the RFU Return to Rugby protocols developed by RFU and approved by the Government. However, when it became clear there was no compe==ve rugby in sight, and the virus really took hold, training was paused for a month. Training has since resumed with the tantalising prospect of a hybrid form the 15-a-side game without scrums and mauls or contested lineouts which can be played between clubs locally. Our cluster is Morley, Moortown, Sandal, York and ourselves. Provisional start date and Tiers permieng is 23rd January with a possible friendly on Jan 16th. Our lads are straining at the leash to get going with some form of compe==ve rugby, in fact, any form of compe==ve rugby! We await final instruc=ons as to whether spectators will be allowed to aXend. Age Grade rugby (juniors and youth in old money!) A severely weather interrupted 2019 and then Covid had starved the Juniors of rugby in 2019/20. The restart aPer lockdown therefore came as great relief to once again benefit from physical ac=vity and social interac=on. We were able to move with the RFU protocols up to stage C in August and then D in September. Come December we have progressed to stage E. The protocols have prevented set piece rugby but handling and evasion skills are enabling the running and passing game to flourish. RegreXably no matches are possible just yet but there are prospects of compe==ve rugby in the second half of the season. Sean Gilbert and his team of volunteer organisers and coaches have organised training for all age groups ensuring everything was Covid safe and risk assessed. Coaches were soon familiar with sani=sing equipment and gels. We were blessed with some lovely weather and the bar did open all but flee=ngly and a bacon buee van provided the tradi=onal Sunday morning fayre. It has been heartening to see as many as 250 youngsters enjoying their Sunday mornings once again, expertly looked aPer by 40+ trained coaches. Parents and carers on the touchline are limited to one per child. The kit swap shop and limited tuck shop have raised over £900 for the pitch improvement project. One of the striking photographs of the season was of every young person in every age group lined up on and around the 1st XV pitch in 2 minutes silence in memory of MaX Ratana tragically killed on duty. Police Sgt Ratana was Head coach at East Grinstead Rugby Club who many will remember were our opposi=on when we reached the Na=onal Intermediate Cup final at Twickenham in 2014. The England Rugby Player Development Programme con=nues to draw in the players who show excep=onal promise at their age group. Jack Gilbert, Fergus Ramage and Sonny Gibbons are in the under 15’s group and Will Ogden, Will Cuffe and Woody Luffman are with the under 16’s. Our under 17’s have Jake Kapur, Archie Medway, Harry Jackson and Fred Gazeley in the EPDP. These boys will be qualifying for places in our senior teams next season. Anyone watching Sale Sharks either in the Gallagher Premiership or Heineken European Champions Cup will have seen MaXhew Postlethwaite come on from the bench or start at Lock (4). MaXhew started his rugby journey at Ilkley as a 6 year old and progressed right through the age groups before taking a place in the Sharks academy. We will watch his future progress with interest and pride. Finances Just about everyone is worried about finances either in business or domes=cally. The club is no different on that score. The clubhouse development project was paused because our applica=on for addi=on to our loan was approved but later postponed. When the RFU will have funding available is anyone’s guess. Planning approval has been extended to May 1st 2021, but we are looking at what work would be necessary to permanently secure the current permission. We are therefore fortunate to have a substan=al cash pile for the project but due to current cash raising difficul=es it will probably be at least two years before the project is completed. However due to our careful financial management over the years and the con=nued support from members and sponsors and the spring and summer allowing us to re-open facili=es, our Treasurer who has worked =relessly through the pandemic is confident the saving made on outgoings should allow us to get through to next season 2021-22 rela=vely unscathed when, hopefully, normality will return. Nothing is certain though and, un=l this thing is over the future is uncertain. We look to our Membership Subscrip=ons and Sponsor contribu=ons to get us safely through this year. We have benefiXed from the Business Interrup=on scheme, furlough grants and other fund raising schemes presented to us by the RFU. We have one more effort for next year which we hope you will help with. Richard Scargill has not let up on his fundraising task. Through his dogged persistence the club Golf Day, the annual cricket match versus Ilkley Cricket Club and the Christmas Draw have taken place, all contribu=ng handsomely to club funds. Annual General mee?ng This eventually took place as a virtual mee=ng, organised by our Treasurer. It was “aXended” by more than a quorum and both the Chairman’s and Treasurer’s report gave some comfort about the financial health of the club as well as a review of the past season and prospects for the future. Those “aXending” signed off with a nice warm feeling despite trepida=on about where Covid would leave us. We are in good hands! Membership Chris Meyrick has ini=ated an online membership system which will make collec=on of subscrip=ons and maintaining of membership records more manageable and reduce the workload on our Volunteers. There were a few early teething problems but it is now up and running. We are grateful to members who have paid their subs despite having liXle to show for them, at least to date. We are budge=ng on the majority of members renewing their memberships. Bar The bar has hardly pulled a pint in anger since lockdown in March. We made it as Covid-safe as possible but it has not proved viable due to Covid regula=ons.