Fylde part of vital rugby pipeline says RFU chief Bill Sweeney

The RFU supremo attended Fylde’s last home match against Rotherham Titans as the special guest of World Rugby chairman and Woodlands great Sir Bill Beaumont.

Sweeney was impressed by what he saw on the field and off, and spoke of the vital role clubs like Fylde play in the wellbeing of the sport.

He told the National League Rugby website: “The moment you stop investing in the community game, the moment you take your eye off keeping that thriving game in good shape, you cut off the pipeline.

“All of the players you see playing on a Saturday for England, they will have come through a community club somewhere, so we’d encourage people to go down to your local club.

“The quality of rugby at National One and National Two is really competitive.”

The RFU chief also highlighted how well clubs like Fylde had bounced back from Covid, which put competitive fixtures on hold for 18 months.

Sweeney added: “When you consider how many clubs we have got in the community game, I think it is absolutely incredible not one single club has gone bust over that period.

“That is a real testament to the volunteers in the game and the strength of the grassroots community game.

“We have learnt a lot through Covid. Most clubs are in better shape (financially) than when they started off in Covid.

“They have found ways to generate more revenue, which has been incredible, and they have figured out how to really manage the costs.

“When we got that additional government support, one of the reasons why we got a disproportionate amount compared to other sports was a realisation that rugby clubs are community clubs.

“They do a huge amount for the local community and this is why we got £135m of the £350m.”

The pandemic did take its toll on player numbers at grassroots clubs but Sweeney is pleased to report that more are getting involved again.

“It has been a major challenge,” he added. “There are more things to do with your time at the weekend.

“Quite often when you listen to the other sports, you realise that we are probably in a slightly better place.

“That is because grassroots rugby clubs tend to own their own assets.

“Fylde own their clubhouse. You can host the mini-juniors, you can throw events at lunchtime, whereas a lot of other sports don’t have that.

Hull stretched their lead over second-placed Fylde in National Two North to 12 points with a 50-22 win over Bournville on Saturday.

Rotherham were 48-33 winners at Stourbridge, meaning both sides join Fylde on 72 points. Fylde were without a game on the ‘catch-up’ weekend and return to action at Wharfedale on Saturday.

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