Bishop Auckland RUFC has launched a fundraising appeal after been completely flooded following the River Wear bursting its banks this week. The club’s pitches have been underwater ever since.
“Every pitch, every training area, is completely submerged,” said the club earlier this week as it launched a GoFundMe appeal to help with the clean up and restoration effort. “When we flew the drone up, you could barely see the tops of the rugby posts.”
“Right now, more than 250 local kids have nowhere to play,” said the club. “Our minis, juniors, boys’ and girls’ sections are all stuck at home while their teammates train elsewhere or not at all.
“This is where they learned to tackle, to pass, to be part of something bigger than themselves. It’s muddy knees and Sunday mornings and parents on the sidelines in the rain. For hundreds of kids in Bishop Auckland, this club is where they belong.
“We’ve had to cancel home fixtures and scramble to hire 3G pitches off-site at over £100 an hour just so some of the kids can keep training.
“When the water goes down, we’re facing a massive cleanup and full pitch restoration. Here’s the reality: we’re in a flood plain, so we can’t stop this happening. But we can invest in better drainage and recovery systems so the next time the river floods, we bounce back faster and the kids aren’t off the field for months.”
The club is aiming to raise £15,000 to cover:
* Getting the kids back training (pitch hire and transport)
* Cleanup and pitch restoration once the water recedes
* Replacing damaged equipment and repairing facilities
“Every pound gets us closer to getting the kids back on the field,” the statement added.
“If you can help or share this, we won’t forget it. We’re not going anywhere. But we need your help to stay.”
Gwyn Evans, club official and organiser of the fundraising effort provided an update on Saturday to say: “First of all — thank you. The support over the last 24 hours has been unbelievable. We’ve smashed through £4,000 already, and every single pound is going straight into getting our kids back playing as soon as possible.
“In progress so far, the floodwater has finally started to recede and we’re beginning to see patches of grass again. We’ve been able to assess more of the pitches today and can start planning the drainage and repair work needed, and we’ve already secured some temporary 3G training options to keep the kids active while the grass is out of action.
However, as many of have seen, we turned up this morning (Saturday 15 November) to discover that someone had illegally taken an off-road bike/quad across the pitches overnight. The damage won’t beat us — but it will slow things down and adds to the costs we now need to cover.
“Despite everything that’s been thrown at us this week, your support is what’s keeping the whole club going. The messages, shares, and donations are genuinely making a difference.
“Over the next few days we’ll be finalising temporary training arrangements, bringing in experts to assess the full repair costs and preparing for a community clean-up once the ground is safe to work on.
“We’ll update you every step of the way.
“If you can keep sharing the fundraiser, it would mean the world. The more people who see this, the quicker we can get 250 young players back on a pitch where they belong.
“Thank you again — we feel every bit of support.”
Bishop Auckland's local community newspaper.
Hello 🖐️
How much support do you still need to complete your target?
Betterrise Creative £600 at the moment 🩵💙🩵💙