History
Celebrations to mark the evolution of a famous cabbage patch at Twickenham into one of the world's foremost sporting venues have been in prominent focus in recent weeks as the new 82,000 seater stadium has been unveiled for the first time.
Not quite so ostentatious, but very impressive nevertheless, will be the official opening next Friday (December 8, 2006) of a new extension to the facilities of Tarleton RFC in rural West Lancashire, where cabbage patches in a market garden region tend to be on a grand scale. It has also proved a very fertile area for grass roots rugby to flourish.
Ironically, it was the combined thinking of two Celtic rugby followers – Hugh Paterson and Gwyn Morgan - back in 1990 that planted the seed which has blossomed into Tarleton RFC.
With assistance from Peter Buckton, one of the RFU's pioneer development officers, a come and try it session was organised at the local secondary school and within weeks the first "Tarleton Terriers" mini team took to the field against Sefton RUFC.
From that simple start, the development of Tarleton Terriers into Tarleton RFC has been dramatic, both in terms of facilities and manpower, evolving from a very humble beginning on a high school site, with two unqualified coaches, to become a thriving club despite its rural location.
With assistance from a variety of grant aiding bodies such as Sport England, the Foundation for Sport and the Arts, Community Landfill monies, Lancashire Playing Fields Association, not to mention numerous self-help fund raising schemes, the club has developed its own purpose-built facilities on land granted to them by the Lilford Estate on a 35 year lease. Those facilities now include an 8 team change clubhouse, dedicated pitches and floodlit training area - all achieved through the determination of the members and support from the RFU.
"We've come a long way from the idea being formed at a cub weekend where two rugby enthusiasts started to think about giving their children an introduction to the game," says Hugh Paterson.
"Initially we simply wanted to get some youngsters together to give them a start in the game. We had support from the local high school, changed in a portacabin and called ourselves Tarleton Terriers.”
"It was predominantly a football area, but we sent a flier round the schools and around 40 kids turned up for our first taster session. The rest, as they say....."
The rest involved an investment of £800,000 or so in eight years as the project gathered momentum, the obvious challenge to the pioneers and a growing band of helpers being to provide rugby for their young charges as they matured into teenagers and beyond.
Tarleton RFC is unique in that it has developed its senior and junior rugby sections in reverse of normal patterns, with the senior rugby evolving out of the already established mini and junior sides.
The inaugural Tarleton Nomads were the senior pioneers, embracing adults who should have been old enough to know better, and now the club is a fully fledged operation with a youth section catering for Under 7s to Under 19s and two senior sides playing in the league format.
In real estate terms, the club had a three-phase development plan which embraced creating two pitches and a floodlit training area as a first objective and then the first phase of a clubhouse comprising four changing rooms, showers, toilets and referees' rooms. Phase One was duly achieved, enabling them to transfer their matches from Edge
Hill College for the first time in season 2003/04, with Phase Two completed in the autumn of 2003.
The club now boasts a full mini structure, 4 junior teams and both junior and senior colts. With seniors included, the club now boasts an overall registered membership of over 250 members, and a volunteer workforce of over 50 driving the club forward.
Tarleton RUFC has developed strong links with the local junior and secondary schools, offering taster sessions and more structured arrangements with club coaches in attendance. Many 'after school clubs' have been set up based around the very popular TAG rugby format. Inter schools competitions have been hosted by the club at their ground with over 20 primary schools taking part.
A testament to the vision and hard work of the people involved is that 15 yearson, Tarleton RUFC achieved the second phase of the RFU Seal of Approval quality assurance kite-mark in respect of its management arrangements, with particular emphasis on its policy and procedures around child protection.
Said Stuart Urquhart, the RFU'S Rugby Development Officer for North Lancashire stated: "This is a well deserved and creditable achievement by the club. They are one of a handful of clubs in the North West to have obtained the second stage and have come through what is an extremely rigorous and demanding process.
They have over 50 adult volunteers involved in the club delivering an extremely high standard of sporting service and care to young people"
While the focus of attention has tended to be on the youth end of the business, the senior club is moving forward nicely. The senior side won North Lancashire Division Two at the first attempt and have won six of their first seven matches in Division One. The second xv is also going strongly in the Fairclough Homes north 4 league.
However, the spotlight at the moment is on the official opening of Phase Three and the extended clubhouse facilities at Carr Lane. Bill Beaumont did the honours in September 2003 at the opening of their inaugural changing room complex and playing fields and now the new £265,000 extension is ready for use.
The burden, if it can be so described, that falls on a club that generates such momentum is that another step forward beckons as soon as the last has been completed. There is no time to pause and reflect. Onward and upward is the cry, in Tarleton's case quite literally in that a first floor lounge is the next pressing assignment.
Discussions have also been held with a view to obtaining addition land for further pitches and car parking - all a far cry from the humble target Messrs Paterson and Morgan set themselves.
"We now have a lot of people who are proud to be involved in the club," says Hugh Paterson. "Some volunteers have fallen by the wayside, but we still have a core of people who've been involved for the whole journey.
"Of course people become more ambitious as they see the club moving forward and they lose motivation if they do not see progress. We have to keep moving to fulfill those ambitions."
Helping to mark the fulfillment of another part of the jigsaw will be local MP David Burrows, who will be doing the necessary at Friday's formal proceedings.
30 November 2006
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