Old Timers Day - Thank you

With the dust settling on an incredible old timers weekend for the club we wanted to thank all of our members who came down to the Rec and the clubrooms and made it such a special day. Every pint over the bar helps, and we sold plenty! It was 4-5 people deep along the bar for a good chunk of the night, ‘like the old days’, many commented. A good boost for the coffers.

The weather turned it on at the Recreation ground and given the torrential rain on Friday, underfoot conditions were pretty good. Wasn't it great to have the grandstand back open! Thanks to Pritch & Gus for their tireless efforts to get it open, and we appreciate those at the Hutt City Council who made it happen.

The Rec looked a picture! Thanks to our ground staff Gus, Karl and Steve. Well done to all of our teams, going 5 from 5 on the day! More to come about those games in the Village Viewpoint later in the week.

Our President Brent must be commended on organising such a super Saturday. There were a fair few moving parts, liasing with the NZ armed forces, Remembrance Army NZ, local and national government, PR appearances as well as MC'ing proceedings back at the club. Thanks Pritch and his team of Gary and Geoff, as well as Tarn for the stunning photos of the formalities at the Club.

We also thank the Hardham family, Simon Strombom of the NZ Remembrance Army, and the members of the NZ armed forces and Police who assisted in making the day one to remember.

We thank Referee Ollie Michie and his team, fast becoming one of the best young referees in the region, a great appointment for such an occasion. It was also pleasing to see Premier Manager Scotty don the boots and Referee the Premier women's game. The Wellington Rugby Referees Association are spread pretty thin this season so we all need to get in behind them.

It was great to see so many juniors down at the game, taking part in the VC parade and the pre match build up, and Awesome to have a raft of parents back at the club for a drink while the kids raced around the green room during the aftermatch. We are working hard are to bridge the gap between the junior and senior sections, Mat and Cheryl have been the driving force in this space, thank you.

Special mention to two of our junior mothers Anna and Kristen for volunteering their time in the Kiosk. They have been doing a roaring trade the last couple of home games. Drop in when we take on OBU in two weeks time for hot chips, hot dogs, cold drinks and sweet treats, they also sell PRFC hats and merch!

Dads Army had been busy all week getting the club rooms in tip-top shape, cheers to Gus's crew, Robbie, Whitey, Selwyn, Lindsay, Graeme, Brent and Puddle to name a few. Jock too had been busy making sure the first round of the Legacy Fundraiser Bricks were in place for Old timers day. Thank you to our sponsors Horokiwi Paving, Baldwin Asphalts and Apex print for hitting the deadline. You can get your brick for the next round of installation here https://www.sporty.co.nz/viewform/338922

There were a few mouths to feed back at the club on Saturday and Karen stepped up again. With help from Rachelle they put on a delicious pasta bake for all. Tēnā koe ladies.

Our new Secretary Karen Arraj-Fisher was on hand to greet visitors at the new antique sign in desk, a lovely touch. Thank you to the Wainuiomata RFC life members and committee members from over the hill who attended, we also thank them for the loan of The Major William Hardham VC Memorial Trophy for the day. We also recognise WRFU delegates for taking the time to come down to our club with the Ranfurly shield in tow, especially WRFU Chair Florence Masoe who had some lovely feedback on the days proceedings.

As mentioned earlier the bar was absolutely humming. Thanks to Greg Ross who put in a huge afternoon shift, and Rachelle who was running to and from the kitchen. Then Rusty, James and Barry injected their experience when the hordes came back following the Premier fixture, they also had their hands full at one stage with a slight keg explosion. Our newly retired Black fern and Poua captain Jackie then teamed up with Ponies manager Eli and did a stellar job behind the bar. Jacob and Rick then combined for the late shift before Destiny arrived to take command. Thank you to everyone else who chipped in to help out, and we appreciate all of our patrons patience when the bar was gridlocked!

The 2005 Premiers made their presence felt at the club, it was great to see this group of Jubilee cup champions re-connecting over a few cold ones. We also had good numbers from the old boys who toured Hawai'i in 1985. Thanks Eugene and Gordy respectively who organised these reunions.

It was a busy weekend in the club shop, where Angela and Viv's smiles have become a real feature, thank you ladies! A massive shoutout to Annie our membership secretary, who as well as overseeing the shop, works so hard doing a multitude of tasks for the club each week behind the scenes.

Sunday cleanup after old timers day is always a tough one, but the Colts fronted in good numbers and got the job done. Bacon and hash browns all round. Cheers lads.

We now turn our sights toward OBU at home on the 24th May, then our 140th Celebration Friday 30th May. Tickets are selling out so be quick, it's shaping up to be another great night at the club. Murray who was busy selling jersey raffles and event tickets on Saturday heads up the 140th Celebration sub committee.

The much vaunted Limited Edition 140th Jerseys will be up for auction on the night and online in the coming weeks. Two were sold on Old timers night so only 28 remain. You don't want to miss out on these.

As well as featuring Major Hardham VC's portrait front and centre, the Jersey dons the names of all the fallen PRFC members in the great War and WW2. On the shoulders are the insignia of Hardham's Division the Wellington Mounted Rifles and on the other is the Famous Victoria cross, special permission to use the VC given to us by the NZ Remembrance army. On the Back is the Petone team at the outbreak of WW2, a few of these men did not return home, and below a silhouette of the Wellington Mounted Rifles on the march in North Africa.

By a ticket to the 140th Celebration

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