Dear Members, we trust you’re all enjoying the sunshine and the abundance of sport on our screens. It's been great to see the club full of life again, hosting the recent England Football Euro games and the British & Ireland Lions Tour matches. Thank you to all who have attended these events. Now that restrictions are lifting, we hope to see many more of you down at the club enjoying a drink and the remaining Saturday Lions Test matches on 24th and 31st July and 7th August.
HOSPITALITY
Many of you maybe expecting a full return to normality at the clubhouse, but in the interests of safety and responsibility, the club will be adopting a flexible and cautious approach for different occasions. It will be at the discretion of the club bar manager and bar volunteers how they wish to best provide a service. If you arrive at the club for an event and the table service cards are displayed please take a seat and order your drinks and food using your phone and club’s table ordering app; your order will be brought to your table as usual. If there are no table cards displayed please feel free to order and pay at the bar in the traditional fashion.
The Government rules maybe be suspended but the club insists that all members and visitors respect our volunteers and continue to observe sensible social distancing and hand hygiene. Customers and volunteers are free to chose to wear a mask inside if they so wish. The virus doesn’t watch the telly or read the papers! It’s not gone away just because Boris wants a holiday! There are millions of people still testing positive and missing work or school due to islolating, so please let's remain considerate and respectful to each other as we relax and enjoy the summer.
EVENTS
Our Ladies Brunch will go ahead as planned on Saturday 24th July. Please can all those who have still not yet confirmed their attendance with Hilary to do so asap hilary.berry@hotmail.co.uk
The 3-day Eccles Beer & Gin Festival is planned to go ahead on Friday 20th, Saturday 21st, Sunday 22nd August. On the Saturday we hope to host an invitational Mens Rugby Tournament to commemorate 100 years of playing in Blue and White Hoops. Teams will compete for 'The Eccles Cup' and the winners will also take home the collected donations for their nominated charity. Full details on this fund-raising community event will be published soon.
RUGBY
Although it's no longer a legal requirement for club visitors to scan the NHS QR codes displayed on site, the club will be continuing to use the Pro-Active App. All players will be required to submit a pro-active declaration before arrival and team coaches/managers will continue to use the app to report hazards, risk assemsents and first aid incidents.
Following RFU confirmation, the new 2021/22 season is set to start as normal for the whole community game. Scrums and mauls can be re-instated in training from Monday 19 July and in matches from Saturday 7 August. With player welfare and safety in mind, the RFU have also ruled that due to the disruption to player development in the last 18 months due to COVID19, players aged 17 will not be permitted to train or play full contact rugby with adults until 2022.
At Eccles RFC there will be a graduated build up in activity over the summer to prepare players for full contact rugby and a return to competitive fixtures.
Managers and Coaches will be in touch with players (and parents) in the coming weeks to confirm a return to activity for each team. Until then here is a one-club overview of the important dates as they stand.
COACHING
Wednesday 25th August, 7pm - ‘preparing your players for the return of contact rugby’ Coaching CPD. All coaches are requested to attend.
REGISTRATION
Monday 16th August - Player registration and club membership for the new 2021/22 season opens.
MEN
All senior players are requested to join the HEJA group where details of training and weekly commitment will be published.
New players are invited to contact Director of Rugby Sam Simpson 07935 403171
Mens fixtures are published on the website in the usual placeTuesday 27th July - Senior pre-season training begins at 7pm.
Saturday 14th August - Pre-season friendlies for 1XV and 2XV at Sefton
Saturday 21st August - Eccles Hoops 100 Tournament, 1XV and 2XV
Saturday 28th August - Pre-season friendly for the 3XV v Trafford MV
Saturday 28th August - 1XV v Burnley, Lancashire Plate, first round
Saturday 4th September - League fixtures begin.
LADIES
New players are invited to contact Ladies Head Coach James Wright 07791 227616
Tuesday 3rd August - Preseason training begins
Sunday 26th September - Fixtures begin
COLTS
New players are invited to contact Sam Simpson 07935 403171
Wednesday 28th July - Preseason training begins (coaches will confirm Snr/Jnr details)
Sunday 5th September- U17 Junior Colts and U18 Senior Colts fixtures begin
MINIS & JUNIORS
New players (U6-U16) are invited to contact M&J Chairman Dan Nicholls 07789 202189
Sunday 29th August - Pre-season training begins
Sunday 26th September - U13s to U16s fixtures begin
Sunday 3rd October - U7s to U12s fixtures begin
The club is open right through the summer so please do come down and enjoy the facilites. If there is something you'd like to organise for your players please give me a call on 07971817375 or drop me an email at chrisgaffey@ecclesrfc.org.uk we'll make it happen.
Thanks. CG
First posted Monday 19 July. Amended Saturday 24 July.
