Today we can confirm that the action plan to commence a safe and phased return to grassroots rugby activity has been approved by the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (‘DCMS’). We are now at Stage C.

We are now able to commence larger group rugby activity, initially non-contact, subject to adherence with RFU  & government guidance.

The return will initially be through non-contact rugby focused on Ready4Rugby, a non-contact game, enabling two teams of up to 10 players to engage in training and match activity in their own club environment. Subject to satisfactory operation through August we hope to then be able to move to inter-club Ready4Rugby in September.

A video of Ready4Rugby can be found here. 

Having undertaken the required exposure risk analysis of face to face contact within game and training situations, the RFU’s action plan to the government is focused on the staged return, commencing with non-contact rugby - initially restricted to activity within individual clubs and focused on Ready4Rugby, a 10-a-side variant of touch rugby.

They will monitor this over the first few weeks and subject to satisfactory implementation, would then look to permit inter-club activity using approved non-contact formats. In parallel with this, the RFU will be considering the potential for some adaptations to the high-risk elements of contact rugby to see whether appropriate mitigations can be introduced. If this proves possible this would again be introduced gradually, initially through training and subsequently into inter-club matches. This would then continue until it is deemed safe, and appropriate government permissions are in place, to move back to full contact rugby – at least four weeks being in place between commencement of full contact training and match play for full contact rugby.

With this in mind, we currently remain at Stage B on the Return to Community Rugby Roadmap. We have to reach Stage F (which will not be reached until at least four weeks after Stage E) before full contact competitive league rugby can commence. As a result of the current position, the adult league season (Level 3 & below for men, Level 2 & below for women) will not commence in September.

The fixtures previously published will be amended at the earliest opportunity and this will be communicated to after the next announcement on September 1st.

The Maidstone facemasks for our members and supporters have been delivered and all 100 reserved. If you registered your interest or placed an order with the Admin Team, you will be receiving an email later today.

The cost will be £7 each with £2's of every sale being used on sanitiser for the club, as well as towards other costs that maybe associated with making sure we can re-open safely.

We are looking to offer a postage service as well if you cannot make it to the club, which will also be included within the email.

BRAND NEW for 2020 the club has launched its 'FANWEAR' range. We have teamed up with Nomad sports to offer a range of clothing in all sizes for casual wear. More items will be added throughout the year. Click the image above to see the new range and have items delivered straight to your door.

If you want to support the club but can't afford to part with more money, now you can. The club has teamed up with easyfundraising.org.uk so that our members can support the club whilst they shop. It doesn't cost you a penny!

Here's how it works:
Download the Apple app or Android app and register with easyfundraising.org.uk. 
Next time you want to buy a takeaway via Justeat or buy an item off of Amazon or from over 4,000 retailers, do so through the app. For every purchase you make, a percentage will go to the club. If something costs £10, it will cost you £10, but the club will receive a percentage of that.
No extra cash paid by you, but you would have supported the club!

All proceeds made by the club will be reinvested for the benefit of all club members.

As part of the club's efforts to forecast money for the rest of the year, it was felt that the Pounds For Pitches winnings should still be given out.

During the recent events taking hold, the RFU has set out guidance for club AGM’s.

It was discussed about having the AGM virtually. However, many people have appeared reticent. There are several platforms available but holding what could be a large gathering will be hard to administer to ensure everyone can share any comments that they wish. There can be gremlins in people’s systems which may mean they are unable to attend. The committee had also been working through Graham Norton’s report in conjunction with financial planning for the foreseeable as we plan to hopefully come out of lockdown. With committee members committed to continue for the upcoming season, it would be prudent to focus on the background tasks during these unprecedented times.

On the guidance of the RFU and in line with our constitution, the AGM was opened on July 14th and adjourned until a preliminary date of September 16^th 2020. It is hoped that by then, the club will be able to host the AGM, even with smaller social distancing practices in place.

Further details will follow, along with the club annual report.

Following productive meetings with The Mote CC, a management committee has been formed for the operations of the clubhouse during the restrictive period. The guidelines will be reviewed periodically and subject to change based on government and sporting instructions.

As of this evening, the clubhouse will open for toilet use only and again on Thursday night to support Cricket, Mote Runners & Senior Rugby training only.

As of Saturday 18th July the clubhouse will be open for drinks and toilet usage, with the following in practice;

• Patrons must use the one way system and observe social distancing of 2 metres.
• Register your name in the guest book.
• Use sanitisers provided when entering the facility.
• No more than one person in the restroom at all times.
• Only people from the same household allowed at the bar at any one time, when ordering refreshments.
• Contactless payments only.
• Maximum clubhouse occupancy of 20 customers. 

The clubhouse will also be open on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, with the above still in practice. We would also like to remind our members that we are in Cricket season and due to the restriction of numbers, would ask that our members understand that their usage of the grounds and clubhouse comes first. As ours would in our season.

For further information, you can read the Accountability overview here. Full practice guides and information is retained at the clubhouse

The RFU in conjunction with The Groundsman's Association (GMA) have put together a package where Volunteers at Rugby Clubs can gain a Grounds qualification at Only £25.

Maidstone Rugby Club is a member of the GMA and members are able to take advantage of this offer. The Level 1 Course is a recognized qualification and covers all the basics of Groundsmanship. We would encourage anyone young or old at the club that is interested in Grounds to take advantage of this discounted price.

If anyone is interested, please contact Martin 'Mayhem' Maytum. 

Coach and VP David Charlton went to the Chairman with an idea of asking the club & supporters to join in with a fun, money raising challenge. The premise was for people to pledge kilometres towards an overall target of 1,880km, in honour of the club's birth year and raise sponsorship along the way. The hope rather than expectation was that we would beat this target, but if possible, stretch to 1,880 miles. To help kick things off, GSV Land & Planning LTD made the first step by sponsoring the event with money towards new training balls for the senior section, as well as a whiteboard for coaching.

The stage was set for Saturday 27th & Sunday 28th of June with clement weather predicted. Members and supporters dusted off their trainers, hiking boots, cycles and exercise bikes and began the journey. From Maidstone to Margate, from the banks of the Thames to the far reaches of Kent, the club and its supporters began. There were swollen ankles, broken chains, sore knees, wobbly legs, flat tyres and even flat batteries, but still they ploughed through. People continued to inspire others, whether it was the likes of 1st XV prop Will Fox racking up an impressive 100km in one sitting, to the likes of President Paul Ehrhart along with VP's Jerry Sargent & Alan Hayward walking to Tonbridge, or even children as young as five.

The club is delighted to report that not only did they smash the 1,880km target, but went onto smash the stretch target of 1,880 miles. The official grand total sits at 3,300km or 2,051 miles trekked for this great club. The sponsorship monies continue to pour in for support of one of the oldest clubs in the world. As an added bonus, for every £140 hit by an individual with their personal sponsorship, that person will receive £10 in drinks tokens. Whenever the season starts.

It goes onto prove that standing united, the good of all people can rise up. With each person doing their part, it inspires others, working as one to achieve what was thought to be a faint possibility. This is what a community club exists for and the club wholeheartedly thanks all those that played a part.

The delivery of the blazers will be later this week. The supplier has been working hard to ensure that the delivery was in time for the Veterans tour, which has unfortunately been delayed for obvious reasons. 

We understand that payment for the blazers could be difficult at this time, so we can offer a payment extension to 15th September to those that have ordered. The total sum as disclosed before is £156. For delivery, please contact the Admin team or wait until we can re-enter the clubhouse.

You can do a BACS transfer to the club account using the details below.

Account name: Maidstone Rugby Club

Account # 00062872

Sort Code: 30-95-37

Ref: YOUR NAME & 'Blazer'.

London & South East Division 

London SE Division 2