SOCIAL EVENTS Last weekend Eccles RFC held its 10th Beer & Gin Festival and many of us still have the hangovers to prove it! This annual event didn't happen last year due to the Covid restrictions in place at that time, so this year's festival was celebrated in style by all with more beer sold than ever before. The organisers owe a huge vote of thanks to the event's main sponsor, First Chop, a local brewery, growing its business and its reputation just a few hundred yards from our Gorton St Ground. First Chop have also agreed to sponsor a number of First XV fixtures during the forthcoming season, so please, when visiting the bar, sample some of their very excellent products and drink to our sponsor's good health! If you are in need of a laugh, I would also urge you to check out the 'Beer Run’ promotional video, which was produced by our own director extraordinaire Chris Gaffey. Our appreciation should be expressed to the event organiser 'Sergeant Major' Martin Parkinson, who ran the event with military precision, barking out his orders to his troops, who totally ignored him and instead ensured that everything ran smoothly, like a well oiled machine! Talking of well oiled, Festival goers over the 3 days were able to enjoy a huge selection of local ales, with every Salford brewery represented. We began the festival with 21 firkins of real ale and cider in the cellar, plus kegs of lager and we were left with the equivalent of 1 firkin, just 5% in reserve. Well done Martin! During the afternoon, our boys performed well in the inaugural Eccles Cup '100 Years of Hoops' competition, winning the Eccles Bowl, after loosing narrowly 5-7 to the tournament winners Leigh RUFC in the previous round. Well done all and thanks to all who organised and participated in entertaining us during the day. This pre-season competition featuring local clubs, looks set to grow and we hope will become a traditional part of club's warm ups in the coming years. Continuing the homegrown theme, our very own Moonlight Rumours provided the musical entertainment on the Saturday afternoon and evening. With two of our ex players amongst their ranks, they received a great Eccles welcome, from a crowd numbering almost 300 who enjoyed the band's polished renditions of numerous modern classics. Well done Dan, Ant and the boys! Again, many thanks to our sponsors and a huge tribute to our volunteers, without whom these events simply couldn't happen, you deserve a medal. Finally, our thanks to all who attended and helped make this event such a memorable success. We look forward to keeping you in touch with news of future Club events and plans, as we go forward into the forthcoming season. Dave Nicholls // Eccles RFC Hon. Secretary
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