The Executive and Development Committees of Clondalkin RFC are delighted to inform our members and friends that we have finally received approval from South Dublin County Council for our planned development of our new pitches, training areas etc., and clubhouse in Baldonnel.

Getting to this stage has involved a lot of hard work by our volunteer committee members as well as the professional parties aiding us in this project. We now need to plan our strategy for taking our plan to the next level.

This will involve us determining the most beneficial route to bring our hopes and aspirations for the future of our club to fruition. Over the next few weeks, as we await final approval from SDCC planners, scheduled for the beginning of March, we will review the various options open to us and determine our pathway forward.

There may be a view among some members that we can just start our work immediately and spend the capital funds in our bank account. This project is an ambitious undertaking with finite funds so we have teams working on proposals and a roadmap to completion of the critical components of the project. Realistically, we do not have sufficient cash to cover the cost of all we wish to deliver. We will therefore need to consider short and long-term options on developments. We are constrained by some of the terms of our planning approval in some respects. There are also timing issues on commencing other aspects of our development.

We have come a long way in the past 18 months when we just had Gordon Park as our property. Therefore, we would request all of our members to bear with us as we review where we are at this juncture. This stage is the most important step that our club will undertake in our lifetime and we want to ensure that we do not rush into hasty decisions that we might regret later.

The committee are as anxious as each and every one of our members to progress this exciting stage of our club, looking towards the next 50 years of CRFC but we need to be prudent in our approach and ensure that we get best value, both structurally and financially, on the plan forward.

On the field, our underage teams are progressing well and will provide the backbone for our adult men’s and women’s teams over the coming years. We owe it to both them and our founding fathers to do the right thing now.

Once we have considered all of our options, we will inform all of our members on the strategy for our bright future, both on and off the field.