After several years of fundraising and planning for an extension to Ross Rugby Club’s facilities at their Greytree ground, the club is finally celebrating the good news that the Rugby Football Union has supplied a grant of £50,000 which will be used to build a community room at the club and strengthen the partnership with the RFU.

The grant will enhance the club’s facilities and provide a resource for use by the local community.

“The new facilities will improve the quality of the rugby experience for everyone using the site and provide more playing opportunities, especially for local people in the 14-24 age-group.” said RFU Area Facilities Manager, Tom Bartram

“This investment will also support the club’s financial sustainability and will create a lasting rugby union legacy for rugby in the community. The community room will help the club raise its profile and encourage more players, volunteers and spectators to share the special values that distinguish the sport.”

Club Chairman, Ian Phillips said: “We are delighted that our project has received this funding following its original identification by North Mids RFU. We will now have some of the best facilities in the area that local people from Ross-on-Wye and towns and villages in the area can use during the week.”

Plans for an ambitious extension were unveiled six years ago, which would have cost about £400,000 and enabled the club to have a community room and more changing rooms.

They currently have two changing rooms, for the home and away teams, but as there are two senior teams who often play at the same time, it would have been helpful to have extra space for changing facilities.

However, the biggest need was for the community room, a space where players, especially the younger members of the club can go after training or a match, where they can get warm and share a meal. It will also be a boost for spectators.

There are about 100 young members at this thriving club and it was felt that their needs were paramount, The Club Chairman, Ian Phillips told the Ross Gazette: “We have to ensure that the Club continues to attract young players and retains them. The senior, adult teams can still go to the pub which the Club runs, the Drop Inn, after games but this is not possible for the youngsters.”