What Crawley RFC actually is (it might not be what you think)

People sometimes say to me: oh, the rugby club. I do not really know much about rugby.

As if knowing about rugby is the price of entry. It is not.

Crawley RFC is a community club that happens to have a pitch and some teams. We have members across all ages. Some of them are brilliant rugby players. Some played once, did not much love it, and stayed anyway because of the people. Some have never and will never put on a gumshield and have no intention of changing that, but they are here every week because the bar is warm and their friends are here.

We run junior sessions for children from U6 upwards. We run senior training twice a week. We host comedy nights, darts nights, end-of-season awards, and quiz nights. We are home to Crawley Comedy Club, which has been running out of this clubhouse for years. There are members who have been here since the 1970s and members who joined last month. They coexist perfectly, because rugby clubs are good at that.

The thing we want people to understand — especially people who have recently moved to Crawley, or who feel like they have not yet found their people here — is that you do not need a reason other than curiosity.

Come to a home game on a Saturday afternoon and watch the rugby, or do not watch it and just have a drink. Come on a Tuesday evening and watch training from the edge of the pitch. Bring your kids to a Minis session and see what they make of it. There is no obligation. The door is open.

Willoughby Fields, Ifield Avenue, Crawley, RH11 7LX. That is where we are.