Rugby Club will turn farm land into field of dreams

A RUGBY club is celebrating 50 years in operation with An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar TD officially cutting the ribbon on the first phase of its state-of-the-art development – which will be the biggest in the country.

Leo Varadkar TD cut the ribbon to mark the official opening of Clondalkin Rugby Football Club’s new grounds in Baldonnell, starting a new phase of development to support the continued expansion of the club.

Since the beginning of 2021, Clondalkin RFC has been engaged in a process of selling its former home Gordon Park and the purchasing a larger premises.

In 1977, members raised £27,000 for the purchase of a 5.5-acre patch of land known as Gordon Park which they then sold in July 2021 for an estimated €4m to private developer Greenwalk Development Ltd.

With upwards of 600 members registered with the club, around 400 of which are playing, the club had outgrown Gordon Park – the place they have called home for over 40 years.

The sale opened the doors for the purchase of a much larger site, at 25-acres, on the opposite side of the Naas Road to where the club was based, in Baldonnell.

In January of this year, Clondallkin RFC received planning permission for the site, which is known as Kingswood Farm, from South Dublin County Council which will turn it into a home equipped for the future.

The sport club’s new lands comprise four new rugby playing pitches, including a high-quality main competition pitch and a high-quality junior pitch both laid approximately level.

Provision of two back pitches as well as various grassed rugby training areas was also included in the application.

Plans for a new two-storey clubhouse pavilion with supporting facilities including dressing rooms, physio rooms, coffee dock, committee rooms, members bar and lounge, plantroom and toilets are included.

At 25-acres set across five fields, Kingswood Farm is the largest footprint of any rugby grounds in Leinster and Ireland.

“Projects of this size can’t get off the ground without visionaries and we are extremely lucky to have a development group of such high calibre, led by the leadership team of Eamon Stapleton, Pat Cagney, Frank Lynam, Tom Duffy, Úna Maguire and Gerry Gilligan,” the club said.

“We have had exceptional buy in from the parents of the kids of CRFC, and also our membership, who have put thousands of hours into the project thus far, all on a volunteer basis.

“We are delighted that the Taoiseach has recognised the project and the efforts of our countless volunteers in developing what will be the largest independent sport infrastructure project in West Dublin and his mere attendance today spurs us on to delivering for the many thousands of future Clondalkin rugby players.”

There are six phases to the proposed development, with additional funding from the sports capital programme and leader funding required to see it through.

The first phase, which was launched by An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar last Sunday, sees the “setting out of pitches and pitch locations” and engaging with professionals.

The second phase is for the development of existing buildings on site to house four dressing rooms, a referee’s room and alternative uses which will enable the club to host more games simultaneously.

This second phase is set to be built in tandem with South Dublin County Sports Partnership and Leinster Rugby to allow local schools to use the facility independently.

By September 2024, pitch one, which the club claims will be of international standard, and the training pitch will be prepared for lights.

A new two-storey clubhouse will be developed in phase four subject to funding while the new pitch will be lit in phase five and the training pitch will be converted to a 4G artificial surface in phase six.

Next season, Clondalkin RFC celebrates 50-years in operation and having sold Gordon Park, the club is hoping to increasing participation in the sport with the ambitious plan at Kingswood Farm.