Neighbouring club in trouble: should we help them?

It has become apparent over the last few weeks that our nearest neighbours to the north - Ampthill (Fern's old club) - are having some problems. They were due to visit us on 25th March, but this was cancelled owing to the National Cup, and arranging an alternative has revealed that they have lost a number of players since our visit to them before Christmas. This presents us with a two options.

First. Do nothing. What happens at another club is not our concern and - hey - we might pick up some of their players! However while we might have some short term gains like that, longer term we lose another team off our fixture list.

Those of you who were here in year one will recall a fixture list that included Stevenage, Hemel, Bishops Stortford, and Cheshunt - all clubs in Hertfordshire and all only 20-40 minutes away. All now gone. Leaving aside the observation that this means at least 50 girls have been lost to the game (as most of them will not have joined other teams), the collapse of these teams is one reason why we travel at least an hour to almost every away game we play.

Can we let this continue? Should we stand by and let Ampthill - a team which we have generally got on pretty well with - go next?

Second. We offer to help. This season we have seen two successful partnerships like this - Saracens helping to revive Fullerians (so successfully that Fullers are now back on their own feet again) and Basildon working in the same way with Rochford (which has worked pretty well for them). What we are proposing to Ampthill is that we do the same with them.

Will it work? There are no guarantees that it will. If the problems lie deeper within the club than simply recruitment and retention of players then whatever we do will not help. Saracens last season tried to keep Cheshunt going, but in the end that partnership did not succeed.

But at least we will have tried and if, despite all our efforts Ampthill still go belly-up we will have shown their players a possible new home.

What do we get out of it? Apart from a warm glow and an opponent within easy travelling distance? Quite a bit actually...

• Our U14s (or U15s next season) would be the big winners as they'd be able to combine with Ampthill's small junior group to create a full team
• We get a bigger U17/U18 squad - which, bearing the loss of Nim and Randy next season, we will need
• We get a second "home" venue to use when Letchworth is too busy,
• We get access to Bedfordshire and Bedfordshire schools and Mid Beds council sports development which will help us get into schools in Biggleswade, Stotfold, Arelsley, etc,
• We get the positive image that comes with our showing that we put the wider game first, ahead of simply building up our own playing squad. Its not something that has any financial or playing benefit, but behind the scenes it can be very useful.
• Those with county or regional ambitions probably get a choice of counties!

And at what cost?

• Some weekend training or home games at Ampthill
• We might register with a slightly different name - but there again we were considering tacking "and Mid Beds" onto the team name anyway so as to enable us to get easier access to the schools etc. just over the border

When from? Up to Ampthill - and you, because (in the end) this is your club. If both sides are agreeable we could start tomorrow (or 4th March at least). Certainly it would - say - make entering an independent U14 team and a second U17 team in the Herts (and National?) Sevens viable.

What next? Ampthill are already discussing this at their end - I know because Fern has said so. So we need to discuss it this end too. In the end if most of you do not like the idea then we do not go ahead.

But if you do choose the "easy" course of doing nothing then no-one is allowed to make any complaints next time we we are faced with a two hour drive up the A1 to Market Harborough or Daventry or... wherever!