As you may have seen in the last couple of weeks we have been talking about Club running costs and the 100 Club. It is no coincidence that these two topics have been linked as during the due diligence phase the new Executive Committee uncovered the fact that there are currently under 80 people participating in the 100 Club. On further investigation it was further found that only 36% of these people have a current ACTIVE link with the Club, most of the contributors being former playing members of the Club who have retired or moved away from the area.
As we have already communicated, the annual outgoings of the Club are in excess of £40k – the letts for the 3G Pitch and School facilities for access to all year round training are around £12k alone! This figure also does not take into account one-offs like provision of new playing kit, provision of training aids and the upkeep of the pitches where we can spend £8k on fertilising/pitch maintenance at Redcloak over one single summer when the pitch starts to show signs of excessive wear and tear. The monies the Club receive from SRU participation agreements, SRU travel rebates and our own Club sponsors equates to about £30k of these costs. The other £10k is a major area of concern to the continued success of the Club and us being able to continue to provide rugby for all ages across Aberdeenshire South and the Mearns.
As such the Executive Committee have decided to highlight the existence of the 100 Club to all areas of the Club. Indeed, the Senior 1st XV Players en-masse are already in the process of signing up to the monthly draw.
With nearly 350 players registered the Executive Committee believe there is a large untapped base of potential “customers” for this feature which could with say 200+ users (c.£1000/month income) go a long way to filling the current funding GAP in our Clubs Annual finances. Naturally as the draw base extends the monthly prize money will rise in line with the increase in participation, which means everyone will have the same chance of winning whether they’re a new or established member of the 100 Club.
As such the ExecCom invite and encourage you (and any grandparents/friends) to become a member of the 100 Club where after setting up a Direct Debit for only £5/month you can contribute to the continued success of the Club and with that also have the potential to win substantial cash prizes throughout the whole calendar year.
The 100 Club direct debit mandate is attached below – please give this your serious consideration as the recent years of running our finances in deficit can not continue indefinitely and your support in these types of matters will definitely assist the ExecCom in maintaining and improving the Club facilities going forward.