New Year’s Letter From Our Chairman

Fellow Towcestrians

May I start by wishing you all a Happy and Healthy New Year.

2018 brought a number of challenges to the club both off and on the field.

On the field we had to endure some battles with relegation and weren’t always successful, but it is not how we get knocked down but how we recover, and I am proud to say that all the sections have reacted well and their futures look bright. The secret of that success is the fact that we have such a fantastic amount of juniors in each sport, which has over the years enabled us, as a club, to punch way above our weight, bringing on new players to such high attainment. I must pay tribute to all those volunteers who coach and run the junior sections, the club would not be as healthy as it is without you.

Off the field, we had to cope with losing some great long serving Towcestrians. We are indebted to them and our thoughts are with their families. We shall miss them dearly.

However, there were some other notable achievement last year. Most notably the purchase of 8 acres of much needed land that we want to develop, new rugby training lights and refurbishing the lights on the 1st Team Pitch.

The new land will give us new grass pitches, to take the strain off the existing land we have and to enable us at long last to bring Hockey back home after a 20 year absence. I will come back to our plans presently. My thanks to the

Development Committee, and others, who have spent the last 3 years bringing us to this point.

What lies ahead for 2019? Read More

Although we can’t look into the future, we can certainly make plans and all the sections, and the General Committee have produced plans and aspirations to work towards making this the premier sports club in the region.

I feel it is worth reminding everyone about some of the club’s ethics and explain a little, especially to newer members, how the club works.

To some, it may appear on the face of it, that we are a wealthy club. We indeed have a magnificent clubhouse, and top quality playing facilities. But all that comes at a price. you should all be aware that it costs around £1,200 a week just to run the club with all it’s overheads and that is without staff costs. We only have 3 part time permanent staff on our books as well as bar staff as required. This all needs paying for, and that it is why it is so important to pay subscriptions on time and to support club functions, even if it is just staying and buying a drink from the bar.

Our other main sources of income apart from the newly refurbished modern bar, are club hire, fundraising and sponsorship.

It may on occasions be slightly inconvenient that the clubhouse has a function in it, be it a wedding, party or meeting, but without that income the club simply couldn’t survive. The same can be said for the magnificent support of our sponsors, many of whom have been supporting us for years. We thank you most sincerely and we are continually looking how we can also help promote your businesses in return. (we are always looking for more sponsors!)

Whatever monies we have left over each year we have ploughed back into the facilities as we hope you have noticed. I am sure you will have noted the vast improvement in the condition of pitches 1 and 2, thanks to spending more money on materials and the hard work of James Taylor and his team, Chris, Richard and Kit!

However, we can all help in other ways. Every action we take at the club, being it playing, supporting or socialising brings its own costs. Litter for instance. If we don’t dispose of our litter responsibly then we have to employ people to do so or rely on overstretched volunteers to do so. Please put your empty plastic glasses, bottles, cups and other litter in the bins provided.

The same goes for the cleanliness of our entrances, rooms and changing rooms. They all have to be cleaned at a cost which ultimately, we all end up paying for.

Right, now for the future. This year sees what could be a dramatic year in the development of the Tows. Our Development Committee has plans to start work, weather and funds permitting, in a staged fashion starting in spring. Before that we hope to start work on providing a temporary additional car park behind the tennis courts.

The DC will at all times keep you up to date with scheduled work.

We have obtained planning permission to have a new entrance of the road on the other side of the cricket pavilion and from there a temporary service road will be put in down the side of pitch 2 and pitch 3 to enable our contractors to start work on the new land.This part of the project will be achieved by the kindness of our contractor and sponsor.

We have applied for major grant funding and we will know if we have been successful later in the spring. If successful, this will enable us to carry out our extensive plans for the future.

What ever your sport or interests are in this fantastic club, that I am so proud to be associated with, enjoy the year ahead and I look forward to seeing at the club at some stage

Happy New Year everyone, let’s make the best ever for the Towcestrians!

Frank Osborne

Chairman

January 2019