Skipton RFC, the oldest rugby union club in the Yorkshire Dales, is to launch an intensive fundraising drive in a bid to win a £500,000 grant for its 125th birthday next year.

The appeal follows the decision by the National Sports Lottery to reject a more ambitious £705,000 scheme for clubhouse and ground improvements.

But the lottery has waived its normal 12 month delay demanded for re-thought proposals.

Club president Harry Crabtree said: "Obviously the rejection of our first scheme is a setback but nothing in rugby, whether on or off the field, comes easily. The lottery has left the door open for a new bid and we are confident our new scheme will help us celebrate our big birthday in real style."

If successful the half a million pound bid will lead to improvements to the clubhouse, changing rooms and ground development work.

Lottery chiefs rejected the original application mainly on technical grounds.

To be succesful, the club must raise 35 per cent of the cost of the project - £170,000 - itself.

Skipton is surrounded by both rural and urban development status areas in Bradford, Leeds, along the Lancashire border and the upland areas of the Dales. Such areas benefit from Government and European development grants and are given special treatment by the Sports Lottery, enabling them to receive up to 90 per cent of the costs of any new project.

But as Skipton is outside a development area, the Lottery has ruled it must pay 35 per cent of the costs itself.

Says Harry: "This might seem a formidable target but it is not so bad as it seems. Some £30,000 of that sum can be accounted for by voluntary labour by members and the club has assets we have built up over the years.

"We have been at the centre of sporting and social life in Skipton for almost 125 years and in the year 2,000 we shall be playing into our third century. With such a record, we are confident that the people of the town will rally round to mark this major milestone."

The club plans to arrange a number of fundraisers and hopes Craven businesses will also back the project.

Skipton, whose first XV have reached the final of this year's Yorkshire Silver Trophy Competition against Leeds Corinthians on March 22, has more than 100 senior playing members and almost 200 youngsters in the colts and mini-sections.

The Skipton Ladies XV is at present leading the North East Three League.

Harry adds: "This is very much a family club, dedicated to bringing on young players of both sexes. We feel these are the sort of criteria the Sports Lottery and the people of Skipton are looking for."

The club hopes to hear if its bid has been successful by the autumn.

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