Support Otley Rugby Club during COVID-19 Closure

Aim

Otley, a traditional rugby club, are looking to bridge the COVID-19 crisis and continue to support our local community.

Our Ethos and Who We Are

We are steeped in history

Otley RUFC established in 1865 has survived 2 World Wars, has hosted the memorable Northern Divisions victory over the All Blacks in 1979

 and hosted an RWC fixture, USA v Italy in 1991.

But we face a challenging future

Whilst we have the most exciting relocation opportunity ahead of us and an exciting new partnership with Old Grovians RFC, who will play all their rugby this coming season as guests of Otley RUFC, today we cannot look beyond the end of the summer. Survival for Otley Rugby Club is on a knife-edge.

We should have played our final game of the 2019/20 season on Saturday 25th April against our local rivals Wharfedale, a significant revenue earner for the club as well as the prospect of retaining our National League status.

History will tell a different story

Today we find our doors shut, our revenue stopped, our First XV relegated with no visible start to a new season or when our doors are likely to open again yet we still have costs to cover.

The impact will be felt wider than just Otley RUFC as we also provide the facilities for other local clubs and societies who currently have nowhere else to meet. Just as importantly, the club works with a variety of local companies and suppliers throughout the week and on match days, from catering to the printing as well as providing jobs on match days.

We have built many key relationships with local businesses that are also under threat, with no end in sight to the current pandemic. We and they will suffer significantly reduced cash flow following the cancellation of all rugby and other sporting and social events.

The solution we will drive forward

We have launched this crowdfunding campaign to help the club bridge the financial issues faced that are being caused by the Coronavirus pandemic to help secure our future

We are calling on all members, supporters of Otley RUFC, residents of Otley and further afield to help us through this crisis with an immediate call for survival funds. 

Can we raise the funds that will cover the revenue that the Wharfedale game would have generated? We appreciate this is a huge ask of our members and Otley community during these extremely difficult times for individuals, families and companies. 

We will come out of this crisis and local communities will need clubs, societies and organisations to provide the recreational facilities for juniors players, senior players and supporters that clubs like Otley RUFC can deliver. 

This is why the crowdfunding campaign has been launched, with a range of rewards and offers available to people who donate, including discounted match tickets, pre-match lunches and sponsorship opportunities.

We also want to extend this support to our new friends, Old Grovians RFC. You will see a pledge button that will ensure your pledge is used to support both Otley RUFC and Old Grovians RFC.

How will it help

During the close season, the club has many costs to cover to ensure we are in a position to begin the new season, costs such as:

• Maintenance and repair of our pitch maintenance equipment;
• Rugby balls - believe it or not, these are £100 each;
• Main pitch and training pitch maintenance;
• Repairs to changing rooms, grandstand and terracing;
• Additional safety measures required emanating from the impact of COVID 19 to ensure the safe participation of visitors, supporters and players alike

This list goes on.

With your support today you can help us ensure we cover some of these essential costs and that Otley RUFC will be able to provide safe and appropriate facilities to support sporting recreation when we re-open now and into the future.

Thank you in advance for your support.

The club would like to thank Edward Johnson (Otley) Ltd., Green Door Catering Co. and The Hoptimist, Guiseley and The White House Distillery, Otley for donating a reward to support our fundraising efforts.

This project successfully funded on 15th June 2020