Old Saltleians Rugby Club,
located in Birmingham, has received a grant of £5,000 from the Rugby
Football Foundation (RFF), a Limited Company Charity set up by the
Rugby Football Union (RFU) in 2003.
The RFF Groundmatch Grant
Scheme aims to provide “easy-to-access grant funding for capital
projects which contribute to the recruitment and retention of
community rugby players.” Old Saltleians Rugby Club applied for
funding to purchase grounds maintenance equipment for its 12-acre
facility.
Club Chairman Peter Holmes
and Secretary Colin Gardner sought advice from Keith Kent, the RFU
head groundsman, about the best machinery options for the club.
Explaining the decision-making process, Peter said:
“Keith’s input towards
this project has been really helpful. We are a small local club with
very limited funds, and we have always used second-hand machinery. We
explained our situation to Keith and, without hesitation, he
recommended Iseki’s new premium economy tractor: the TLE3400. We
took his advice, and with the money we secured from the grant, we
purchased the tractor with a roller mower attachment to go with it.”
Old Saltleians Rugby Club is
one of the first in country to purchase the new tractor from Iseki.
The TLE3400 is part of the TLE Series of compact tractors and
features a 38hp engine, a three-speed hydrostatic transmission system
and a lift capacity of 1000kg, making it a powerful and versatile
piece of equipment ideal for sports fields, schools and other grounds
maintenance applications.
In addition to his club
secretary duties, Colin Gardner also operates the tractor. Commenting
on the new piece of equipment, Colin said:
“We are over the moon with
our new piece of kit. The tractor is extremely easy to use; we have a
groundsman, Steve Loveridge, and a part-time groundsman, Luke Turner,
and all of us were able to pick up the controls very quickly. It’s
a versatile tractor; in the future, we’ll look at buying more
attachments for it, but it’s great to know that it has the capacity
for us to be able to use it for a multitude of groundcare practices.
I can’t find any faults with it; I almost wish the grass would grow
quicker so I can use it more often!”
Peter and Colin both claim
that the purchase will mean significant savings being made in fuel
and servicing costs due to the efficient and reliable reputation of
Iseki machinery. The tractor was supplied by local Ransomes Jacobsen
dealer T.H. White. Commenting on the purchasing experience, Peter
said:
“I have been very
impressed with our local dealer. You hear about some smaller clubs
who get disregarded unless they’re placing a large order, but T.H.
White has been extremely professional and helpful throughout the
whole process. T.H. White carried out a BAGMA installation process
which ensured that all of our operators were fully trained and
competent whilst using the machinery, which was reassuring and
provided us with confidence moving forwards.”
Old Saltleians Rugby Club
was established in 1933, six years after Mr W.J. Lawrie was appointed
headmaster of Saltley Grammar School and introduced rugby football to
the school. Today, the club comprises of junior, senior, mini and
ladies’ teams.
To find out more information
about the RFF grant schemes, visit:
http://www.rugbyfootballfoundation.org/what-we-do/grants-loans
To find out more about
Iseki, visit: www.iseki.co.uk
