Member Article

Rugby Juniors have the advantage with new sponsorship deal

More than 250 rugby-playing youngsters are now sporting new match shirts, courtesy of an Ilkley headquartered estate agency firm, whose roots in Wharfedale date back almost 200 years. Dacre, Son & Hartley has sponsored all of the junior team shirts at Ilkley Rugby Club, which currently has eleven different age categories. The mini rugby teams play non-competitive matches in the Wharfe Valley, Leeds and York, and the junior teams play in the Yorkshire Cup, meeting every Sunday to train and compete, from September to April. The thriving junior teams are supported by a dedicated group of coaches and volunteers, taking their inspiration from the senior squads whose first team was promoted to the Northern Premier League last season, finishing mid-table. The first team has had a strong start to the season with three wins from their first six games. Tim Marlow, Junior Chairman at Ilkley Rugby Club said: “Dacres have supported our club over a number of years in many different ways, and it’s great to have the firm on board again this season. “Our club is an inclusive environment where girls and boys can learn the joys of the game from a very young age. Children and their parents come from Ilkley, Addingham, Ben Rydding, Menston, Burley In Wharfedale, Harrogate and Apperley Bridge to be part of the club and it has a great community feel. “When firms like Dacres, which have an equally long-standing involvement with the town and our club, support what we are doing through sponsoring the shirts or stands, it’s a great incentive for us all to do our best for the club, for Ilkley and the game as a whole.”
Patrick McCutcheon, head of residential sales at Dacre, Son & Hartley, said: “Ilkley Rugby Club is a cracking club with strong local support and a huge junior membership that keeps the children engaged and healthy, whilst also giving them a great sense of both competition and enjoyment. The coaches and volunteers all work tirelessly to build a great level of teamwork which is reflected in the superb levels of commitment on and off the pitch and we are looking forward to watching the youngsters in action in their smart new kit.”

Dacre, Son & Hartley is a big supporter of grassroots sports, the firm is currently lending support to Ben Rhydding’s Hockey Club, Guiseley Juniors Football Club and Otley Rugby Club. With 21 offices and 167 members of staff across West and North Yorkshire, Dacre, Son & Hartley is Yorkshire’s largest independent estate agent

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Mortimer .