Tuam Rugby Football Club is to receive €5,000 funding under the Texaco Support for Sport initiative launched last September by Valero Energy (Ireland) Limited, the company that markets fuel in Ireland under the Texaco brand.
Open to sports clubs across the 26-counties, irrespective of sporting discipline, size, membership, age, cultural appeal or gender, the initiative saw a fund of €130,000 being made available by Valero for distribution in equal amounts of €5,000 to successful applicants chosen on a county-by-county basis.
Congratulating the club on its success, James Twohig, Director of Ireland Operations, Valero Energy (Ireland) Limited said, “A feature evident in almost all applications was the pressure felt by clubs in the current circumstances to expand their role within their local communities with increased membership demands and the need for extra equipment and improved facilities.”
“The purpose of our initiative is to help clubs to overcome these obstacles so that they can continue to remain active and at the very heart of their local communities. This is why we believe our initiative has been so warmly welcomed by sports clubs nationwide in its launch year,” he added.
Tuam RFC is a community-based club with some 200 adult members and just over 150 playing members. Ranging in age from under-8s to adult, the club fields male and female teams in most age categories.
With its own grounds and clubhouse, purchased and developed with the support of members and the community, the club will allocate the €5,000 award made to it under the Texaco Support for Sport initiative to fund the further development of its facilities.
Overseeing the adjudication process was well-known rugby figure, Texaco Support for Sport ambassador, broadcaster and former Irish international, Donnacha O’Callaghan.
Viewing it as ‘a very worthy winner’, the club – which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year - is “a proud member of the local community whose support mirrors the purpose for which the Texaco Support for Sport initiative was designed” he said.
