SPECIAL FEATURE: Grassroots sport coping with a pandemic... Old Northamptonians Sports Association

It has been a tough 10 weeks or so for grassroots sporting clubs across the area, with all activities suspended as part of the battle to get on top of Covid-19.

Thousands of people, young and old, have been denied the chance to play cricket, football, tennis, rugby, bowls and many other sports, but there does seem to be light at the end of the tunnel as restrictions are carefully eased.

The main focus has unsurprisingly been on the major and professional sports getting back into action, behind closed doors, and in the UK the Premier League is set to resume in a couple of weeks, the Cobblers are on course to get back playing by the end of the month and Silverstone will stage two Formula One GPs in August.

But what about those grassroot sports clubs?

How has the pandemic and suspension of sport affected them over the past three months? How are they coping financially?

Today, the Chron publishes a series of online articles touching on how a selection of the area’s sporting clubs have dealt with the crisis, and their hopes, and fears, for the future.

Number three...

Old Northamptonians Sports Association...

Most clubs in Northampton have had to try to cope with the loss of one sport during the Covid-19 lockdown - but for the Old Northamptonians Sports Association it was a triple whammy!

And then some.

Since March, there has been no football, rugby or cricket played at the club’s Billing Road base, and it has been a tough one to take.

There are 1,000s of participants in the three main sports across all age ranges at the ONs.

The place is usually a hive of sporting activity through the week as well as the weekend, with training, coaching and matches, but since the middle of March it has been all quiet.

Financially, with the busy and bustling clubhouse - which recently saw a new balcony extension completed - also having been shut for the past 10 weeks, the ONs has obviously taken a big hit.

Association chief executive Eddie Slinn admits the club is facing a time of ‘uncertainty’ but says he believes the ONs is in good shape to come out of the other side of this pandemic in rude health.

“Like virtually every other sports club and hospitality establishment, Covid-19 has had a dramatic impact on the Old Northamptonians Association,” admitted Slinn.

“This time last year we were looking forward to celebrating our centenary year and this year we are now facing a great deal of uncertainty.

“In the corresponding three months last year we would have taken somewhere in the region of £80,000, with March and April bringing the culmination of the winter sports sections of rugby and football, with numerous end-of-season dinners and tours all due to have occurred in these periods.

“May would then see a complete transformation of the playing area for the enjoyment of cricket.

“Rugby effectively finished their season on March 14 and all of the teams, including the thriving mini and juniors section and ladies teams have missed out on the climax of their seasons, which included many Sunday morning training sessions and matches and forthcoming tours.

“The rugby section have kept in touch with their members via Whatsapp groups and Zoom training sessions and have also been fundraising for NHS Staff and even loaned one of their gazebos to the Northampton General Hospital for the testing area.

“The end of season is now being used to plan for next year, with a new first-team coach and other new coaches and all hoping to start the next winter season whenever that may start.”

Slinn is also the chairman of the club’s football section, ON Chenecks, and said: “The football section’s season finished on March 7, with the last ball being kicked against Deeping Rangers and the following week’s scheduled match at Leicester Nirvana being called off due to the hosts’ ground still being waterlogged.

“The first team’s remaining fixtures would have had a great bearing on who was to finish in the top two of the United Counties League Premier Division with scheduled home games against Quorn, Rugby Town and Holbeach United and then a local Easter Monday derby against Cogenhoe United.

“A number of our youth teams were scheduled to play in semi-finals and our Under-12 team had already qualified for the final of the MK Youth League and the Vets team in the final of the Vets County Cup.

“A two-day youth tournament was arranged for the weekend of July 10 and 11, and unfortunately all the planning of this event has been to no avail.

“Like the rugby section, fundraising has been held to raise funds for the NHS, with one of the youth team players shaving off his hair to raise more than £1,600.

“All the football teams have been keeping in touch with Zoom training sessions .

“The senior sides have also been given training schedules by fitness coach Nathan Thompson, which is now getting very competitive.

“Zoom meetings have also been held with all youth teams planning for next season and first-team manager Ben Foster and his coaches have been busy keeping in touch with this season’s squad and to retain them for next season.

“Next season we still aim to run two senior sides, a vets team and 11 youth teams, with the ages ranging from under 8 to under 18.”

We are of course in the middle of what has been a scorching summer so far, which only adds to the frustration of every cricketer in the land - and the ONs players are no different.

“The cricket section have been dealt the hardest blow with pre-season nets and training all being wiped out,” said Slinn. “However, with the ECB providing guidelines for a safe return to controlled and limited net practice there is some light at the end of the tunnel.

“A fully compliant set of procedures in a safe environment and managed by chairman Tom Webb and his committee has seen a return to nets on a limited basis and strictly complying with Government guidelines and social distancing rules.

“The first few days have proved very successful and the time allocated is being increased to evenings and weekends to allow the maximum number of members to use the facilities.”

It has obviously been a time of huge frustration, but Slinn, who added that contractors Thompson Groundcare have been keeping the playing areas at Billing Road in tip-top shape, is hopeful the cogs of the sporting world will soon start turning again.

“Hundreds and hundreds of our members are chomping at the bit to return to their sport and we are closely monitoring the Government advice and those of the sporting governing bodies to enable us to progress further,” he said.

“We are hopeful of being able to open our clubhouse at the beginning of July, and the Executive are currently working hard with risk assessments and social distancing rules to ensure we are fully compliant.

“Already the clubhouse is having a deep clean with signage and sanitisation being fitted to ensure our members can once again enjoy our facilities and comradeship in a safe and compliant way.”