Dursley Does It All
Dursley Rugby Club in southern Gloucestershire provides every kind of rugby.
They also offer a fantastic hospitable social space for both members and local villagers.
There’s competitive rugby for men, women, mini and youth players, social and touch rugby and walking rugby too. Having also resurrected their Stragglers Cricket Club and with a running club they have some 1,200 people actively involved.
Major refurbishment at Stinchcombe has brought an updated gym, new changing rooms and kitchen, an improved courtyard main entrance and social space extended into their old pavilion veranda.
The ground staff have done sterling work on playing surfaces for rugby and cricket and the club is thriving at the heart of their community. Now they are fundraising for the next phase, looking to acquire more land for a running track and a further rugby pitch to relieve wear on existing grass surfaces.
The club and bar open one Friday each month for the villagers of Stinchcombe. Their Last Night of the Proms concert supporting Rotary, an annual charity rugby match against a Smiths XV and yearly hosting of the Challenge for Hope charity cycle, make them a popular place for the community
Recently they’ve brought in TGIFF, Thank Goodness It is Fixit Friday, which on one Friday afternoon a month sees a group of volunteers led by Phil Sprague take on maintenance tasks.
Every June the club holds a weekend of events, now a tradition in the community and beyond. The Friday night summer ball black tie event attracts some 400, followed by Saturday’s popular beer festival. Sunday evening’s Last Night of the Proms organised by the Rotary Club of Dursley raises money for various charities. Next year’s bumper weekend is planned for the 5 to 7 June and is sure to be another success.
Said John Darlaston: “I am extremely proud and honoured to be President of such a successful club which has the respect of the rugby playing community, other sports organisations and the local community and which has huge support from long-standing and a new generation of volunteers.”
