Last orders at the sports club A home away from home

The clubrooms where generations of Kiwis have gathered are under threat. Heather Simpson reports.

The traditional rugby clubrooms, a community oasis where victors and vanquished come together to toast wins and drown sorrows, could soon be a thing of the past.

Rugby, football, cricket and netball clubs are being forced to join forces to cope with skyrocketing costs and dwindling player and volunteer numbers.

To cope with rising maintenance and insurance costs for buildings that are not used year-round, many are creating sports ‘‘hubs’’.

In the new age of ‘‘sportsvilles’’, clubs and codes share changing rooms, office space and sometimes even staff.

Some clubs, steeped in history, fear losing their identity in a shared space, but proponents of change say well-run sports hubs will boost participation and cut costs.

Sport NZ’s Geoff Barry said the concept had been around for a decade, but amalgamations had ramped up as funding got tighter and costs rose.

‘‘It’s probably going to be pushed harder simply because people can’t afford to sustain all the assets that were built in the 1950s and 60s,’’ he said.

While some choose to form one big hub – as many as 20 codes under one roof – others are a simple affair, such as two clubs on a park sharing one building.

‘‘You get a better use of people and the facility, as people join together and collaborate more. The experiences we’ve seen – doesn’t matter if it’s urban or rural, the hub concepts are effective’’.

Sport NZ offers help in managing a move, which can prove difficult for many clubs.

‘‘You suddenly start to talk about how the trophy cabinet gets put on the wall, and what does the club get called, and how do you join balance sheets and that sort of thing’’ he said.

The Hawke’s Bay Regional Sports Park Trust was an early adopter of the concept. Its $22 million sports park between Napier and Hastings unites athletics, netball, cycling and hockey.

Chief executive Jock Macintosh said the park added vibrancy to the area, drawing in 5000 people for Saturday sport.

But Macintosh cautioned clubs won’t suddenly be flush with money if they merge.

‘‘The clubs don’t save money in a sports hub but they end up with a better facility,’’ he said.

‘‘It’s completely normal for there to be controversy, and fears [that] clubs will lose their identity.’’

That’s exactly the issue the Renwick Rugby Club in Marlborough has had to grapple with.

The 100-yearold club joined cricket and football in the Giesen Sports Centre a decade ago.

President Chris Hammond said the facilities were ‘‘top notch’’ but Renwick was worse off in some ways.

‘‘We didn’t want to lose our identity. As it turned out we probably have to some degree.’’

Their former ‘‘rustic’’ clubroom, built by locals, was small, with a bar and a large fire and had a ‘‘community feel’’, Hammond said.

‘‘It was more than a rugby club, it was about community.’’

The bar income had been Renwick’s biggest earner, but now it received just a percentage.

‘‘We have to pay for use of the facility which eats into our bottom line and we still rely heavily on volunteers. Financially we are not any better off.’’

But he’s resigned to the fact that hubs are the future.

‘‘Clubrooms are probably a thing of the past, which is a shame.’’ Clubrooms are probably a thing of the past, which is a shame.

My first experience of club rugby was aged 10, and all about getting a taste of team sport.

You become aware of all the volunteers who give their time, and all the parents who take kids along to games.

I became aware of the history of my particular club.

Lots of All Blacks and lots of champions, it inspires you to try to emulate that.

It’s been a constant in my life, I was joking about the fact that I call it my home away from home. My wife says it’s my real home, and I just come to her house for visits.

You grow up with lots of your clubmates, and they become your lifelong friends.

It’s always a haven to go back to. I was able to rise to the ranks of All Black-dom, but you always knew once that was over, you could always return to your club.

Clubs are about community, they’re about participation, they’re about volunteer effort, people putting up their hands and doing things for the common good, and I think that’s pretty special.

Bryan ‘‘Beegee’’ Williams, 65, has been a player, a coach, president and still serves on the committee of Ponsonby Rugby Football Club.