Chairman’s Update
- Duncan Souster - Chairman
- Mar 30
- 7 min read
March 2026
Getting Around the Club
Since stepping into the Acting Chairman role, I’ve spent the first few weeks getting around the club—seeing each section in action, speaking with volunteers, and building a clearer picture of what’s working well and where we can improve.
One thing is clear: there is a huge amount of good work happening across the club, driven by committed people in every section. I’ve seen a lot of effort going in across the club—plenty of laughs and people clearly enjoying being involved.
The opportunity now is how we bring more of that together—so it feels like one club, not separate parts. If we can better connect what’s already happening, we can strengthen that shared sense of belonging and build real pride in what we’re all part of. #prideinthebadge
Duncan Souster
Chairman
I’ve also started catching up with volunteers to understand how things are working from their perspective. There’s a strong level of commitment, an abundance of good intent, alongside an opportunity to better connect and support people in their roles.
Support to Volunteers
I’ve met with Mark Fryer who is our clubs Volunteer Manager to talk about how we better support and recognise our volunteers.
Areas we’re working on:
Clear role definitions
Clear points of contact
Regular check-ins and support
Volunteer recognition
We rely heavily on volunteers, and we need to make sure people feel supported, confident, and valued in their roles. Mark will be taking the time to check in with each of you, our volunteers, so please feedback to him anything you are not sure about, what can be improved and what gets in the way of you being able to do your role effectively.
Catering & Bar
I’ve been in discussion with Alan Peters, our Catering & Bar Manager, about how we better support this important provision in the club.
There is a huge amount of effort and enthusiasm already going in reflected in busy Sunday mornings around the bacon baps. The catering team have already generated £2k for the club this season but there is still more to be done to help:
Making sure we have the right setup, equipment, and processes in place to ensure we are not compromising on food hygiene standards
Improving collaboration so the catering team are better aware of each weekends catering needs across each section from Sat morning to Sunday afternoon
Encouraging a culture of responsibility across the sections for leaving the facility clean and tidy
Seek additional volunteer support across busy weekends to lighten the load (see Opportunities below and let us know if you can help).
Events & Social Calendar
I’ve started initial contact with Hayley our club Events Manager to:
Map out a clear annual events calendar
Start planning and budgeting well ahead of the events
Explore new ideas for cross club events
A key focus here is ensuring we create events that bring the whole club together, alongside those that serve specific sections.
Executive Committee Update
Exec Meeting - March
We recently held our first Exec meeting with the updated Exec structure to lead us through to the AGM.
Key topics covered:
Headline finances & membership challenges
Budget planning for next season
Rugby section updates
Player recruitment
Volunteer roles and support
Review of the Club Members App
Missed marketing opportunities
Age grade admin & co-ordination support
End of season events
Exec Role Succession
Two Exec members will be standing down at the end of the season and we will be looking to bring in two new suitably experienced members to the Exec:
Roles will be notified and opened up to members as part of the AGM process
Further details will follow
If you are interested in getting involved or want to understand more about what’s involved, please feel free to speak to me directly.
Next season, we’ll offer volunteers the opportunity to join a monthly Exec meeting from time to time—perhaps once during the season—if they’d like to share their perspective directly. It’s simply an open invitation to contribute, so we can hear from those closest to it and address things together.
Men’s Rugby – Immediate Priority.
Recruiting Players:
While we have a number of exciting ambitions across the club, maintaining a strong and sustainable Men’s XV is an immediate focus.
Recent weeks have been challenging at times, with player availability affected by injuries and some of our military players being posted. That said, there are solid foundations in place, and work is already underway to strengthen the squad.
You’ll see an increased focus on recruitment in the coming weeks as we continue to build towards next season.
Club Communications – Members App
The members app is now up and running, with around 50 members already on board.
Its purpose is to:
Provide a single place for club-wide information
Share updates, events, and key messages once, for everyone
Improve visibility across all sections
It is not designed to replace WhatsApp or section-specific communication tools, but to complement them. We recognise not every member is on the app yet and we are keen to get you on to it asap.
If you’d like to join:
Email amesburyrugby@gmail.com
Subject: Club App
Include your name and mobile number in the email body
Opportunities to Get Involved
Volunteers help urgently required:This club is built on volunteers giving their time to make a big difference. At the moment, we’re covering a very big pitch with limited numbers of volunteers. However hard they work, there are always going to be gaps. That’s where the frustrations come from. Until we have more people stepping in, those gaps won’t go away. I fully appreciate not everyone can offer up their time with hectic jobs or growing families but if we want a stronger, smoother-running club, we need more of us on the field, not just a few running harder. There are a few key areas where we urgently need support: Two Social Media Roles
Catering Support
Sponsorship Manager
Women’s Coach (to support squad rebuild)
If you might be interested in any of these roles or would like further information please get in touch with Mark, our Volunteer Mgr on amesburyrfc.volunteermanager@gmail.com There are also role descriptions details on the website here |
Reasons to be Proud
Age Grade attend CHIPFEST 2026
Amesbury RFC Age Grade travelled to Chippenham to take part in Chipfest 2026. A combined squad made up of players from Amesbury RFC and Pewsey RFC—proudly nicknamed “Pewsbury” by the children—took to the field across the U8, U9 and U10 age groups.
Quiz Night
The quiz night is always open to all club members to attend. Each year it is extremely well organised by the Walking Rugby squad and a well supported event with 50+ tickets sold and alongside a raffle that raises funds. Well done everyone involved or organising and running the event.
Men's XV valiant battles:
As I've already mentioned, the Men's XV are suffering with reduced player numbers but for those that remain available I am impressed by the pride they have for the badge in their determination, regardless of player shortages, to fulfil fixtures rather than throw the game and lose out on rugby time. Its that kind of attitude that will see the squad build its numbers up and attack next season.
Visit from Nailsea & Backwell RFC Silver Ravens
Amesbury RFC Walking Rugby were delighted to welcome the Silver Ravens, alongside Salisbury RFC, for an enjoyable afternoon of walking rugby on Saturday 21st March 2026.
The visitors commented on how welcome they were made to feel by Amesbury RFC and Im proud of that.
Walking Rugby Pitch Up & Try recruitment event
The Walkers ran their annual recruitment event attracting 4 new recruits. The new comers were given some quick guidance and then integrated in to the training matches. Each of the newcomers said it was great fun but how much more energetic the game is than they thought. Once again a well organised event and everyone having a great time.
Got some feedback?
One of the things I am keen to get is feedback from club members. From time to time I here a question or pick up a frustration and think that's the sort of the thing the club needs to hear and address and so I have put in place a feedback page on the Club Members App available for all members to use to provide anonymous feedback. If you have something to say, a question to ask, an idea to put forward, then please use the opportunity. I will ensure all feedback is shared with the clubs wider management team for consideration.
Link to Feedback form
Bringing It All Together
There’s a lot of really good stuff happening across the club, with great people making it all tick—and that gives us a strong base to build on.
Alongside that, there are a few areas I’d like us to keep nudging forward over the coming months:
Communicating a bit better with each other and with the wider community
Supporting our volunteers—and each other—where we can
Finding more ways to bring the club together
Setting some clear ambition and standards we can all get behind
Continuing to build that sense of identity and pride in the club
Nothing dramatic—just small, steady improvements that help move us forward together.
All of this contributes to one goal:
A club that runs smoothly, feels connected, and takes genuine pride in what it represents.
Rugby is what brings us together — but it’s the people, the environment, and the shared pride in the badge that will define what we become.
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