Hello again Everyone
In our last communication we promised to communicate once we had some certainty around a return to play. Thankfully, we are now able to do so. Covid 19 continues to present challenges for everyone in our society and it is vital that we all support each other. #togetherwearestronger. As a club we always will take our guidance from Public health Authorities and the IRFU. The Club has completed its Covid 19 Safety Planning stage which culminated with the submission of our Covid 19 Health & Safety Plan to the Munster Branch IRFU and it was accepted. The Club has also appointed Niall O’Mahony as the Club Covid Officer.
Track and Trace
It is anticipated that full return to play for Adults will happen in Mid-August and Minis and Youths will return 1st week of September. The return which maybe staggered will present many challenges for us as a club to ensure member safety and welfare.
A vital part of the Covid safety plan is the ability to track and trace activity on the Club grounds. Having researched this in detail it became obvious that to try to do this manually is simply unworkable. Bandon Rugby have therefore engaged a well-known company Clubforce and will use that App to track and trace and to collect membership and lotto subscriptions this year. Clubforce is by far the preferred software provider for sports club in Ireland. Membership Link: https://bit.ly/2DjDwb8
Coupled with this the IRFU has decided to implement a new player registration system this year. Unfortunately, both systems do not speak with each other, registration this year therefore will require input of data on two different platforms. The IRFU platform is called Rugbyconnect.
The new Norm
A lot of the new normal is totally outside of all our control and Bandon Rugby is no different. It is a requirement to be able to track and trace all people on the grounds, hence the need for the Clubforce App. We will not be able to hold our normal registration days because of social distancing so that is why we will be using online platforms for registration purposes. Two things will not change. Firstly, it is important that members can enjoy rugby and playing games, so it is vital that we get back playing as normal. We must return to play. Secondly, the cost of running the club remains totally dependent on membership and voluntary fundraising. This also must be collected as normal. Your commitment to the second allows the first to happen.
Next steps
Clubforce is now live and you can download same and renew your membership. Rugbyconnect is also live and available for update. Further help instructions will follow over the next 10 days. The links are available on Club Facebook and twitter feeds.
Further information and instructions on return to play will also issue over next number of weeks. Thank you all for your co- operation and please all stay safe and we look forward to seeing you all back at Old Chapel grounds shortly.
#bebluebebandon
Dan Murphy President Bandon RFC.
