Club Notes: Progress On And Off The Pitch At Kilrush RFC

Earlier this month, Kilrush RFC reached a milestone in the club’s development as the they fielded an adult junior team for the first time in five years.

The West Clare club have been working hard to further develop their underage structures and this has helped generate players who are ready and available for adult rugby.

“The last number of years, the numbers haven’t really been there for many socio-economic reasons but the great thing now is that we’re starting to see a resurgence of that,” Kilrush RFC Director of Rugby Andy Burke said.

“It’s great to have it back because it really is the soul and the driving force behind the club to have a junior team back going again. It’s a great achievement, and like that, if it wasn’t for our volunteer base who work so hard to generate the momentum, to put all the infrastructure and the administrative structures in place in order to get that team up and running again, then we wouldn’t be here.

“It’s not just a win for the players, it’s a win for the volunteers, it’s a win for the underage, it’s a win for the coaches and it’s really a win for the club and for West Clare.”

The strong emphasis the club has put on its underage sides over the last 10 years has seen players from the club represent Munster at age-grade interprovincial level.

Now that an adult junior side is in place, Burke hopes that players will remain with the club or those who return to West Clare to settle down can now avail of an adult rugby offering.

“We really believe that a lot more people since the pandemic are staying local, looking to live local, operate remotely and we can benefit off that by having the team available for them. This is a really positive move for us.”

The club are also looking forward to the formal opening of their second, full-sized pitch in the coming weeks with the next phase of that project being the installation of LED floodlights.

Looking into the future, the club are still passionate about fielding an adult women’s side as they currently have strong structures in place at underage level while they hope the return of junior rugby will generate more momentum and excitement in all areas of the club.

For more information on playing with Kilrush RFC at any level, please email andyburke78@gmail.com