Broke Great North rugby club forced out
Calistus Kolantsho | Saturday May 27, 2023 06:00
The club joined the rugby elite league at the beginning of the current season. The side was expected to redeem rugby in the northern part of the country after the disappearance of Eastern Military Garrison (EMG) Gunners, Sharks, Maun Dogs and Gantsi Hungry Lions.
However, that joy has been cut short due to lack of funds. One of the club founders, Bucks Keopetswe said they decided to pull out after financial challenges took their toll.
“We decided to pull out of the race because we can no longer afford funds needed to honour matches. We are not getting any financial assistance from BRU.
We only played one game in Maun, which was against BDF Cheetahs. That was after I had pleaded with the BDF to bring the match to Maun. Ryders and Gaborone Hogs did not travel here,” he said.
Keopetswe said they did not have funds to travel to Gaborone for the UB Rhinos match. He said it costs up to P25,000 for the team to travel to Gaborone while traveling to Palapye needs P18,000.
He said they also missed their match against BUIST due to the same challenge. When asked about BRU’s view regarding the decision to pull out, Keopetswe said he informed the association only to be told to submit a letter with a club logo.
“The next step is going back to rugby development programme in Maun. I have realised that the league comes with a huge cost. Sponsorship is a challenge especially when you deal with an association like the BRU that only wants rugby in Gaborone,” he said.
Great North was meant to give selected players from the north a chance to play against counterparts from across the border and they have already played against Highlanders Club from Zimbabwe on several occasions.
He said the club launched a plan for the spirited revival of rugby in the north with a project aimed at getting players from all the areas that have individuals who want to play but cannot do that for lack of clubs in their areas.
BRU president, Sean Irish said it is sad to see the club dropping off.
“Unfortunately travel is expensive and they cannot afford it any more.
I personally would like us to set up a northern league and build this up and then have a North and South play off,” Irish said.