Gundry's Grumbles with Simon Gundry

Big challenges ahead for sports clubs

I have grave fears for a lot of our sports clubs in this country. I fear that in the next twenty years a lot fewer sports clubs will exist for our children to be part of.

One of the main reasons for this is a lack of funds. Other countries pour money into sports and sporting institutions, but New Zealand is falling behind the rest of the world and it is essential we address this or by the time the next generation is ready to lace up their rugby boots or start swinging their cricket bats, there will be a lot fewer decent clubs left and no real support or future if they decide to go professional.

Another challenge facing the future of sports clubs in this country is that the people running them are getting older and older; young blood is not coming up through the ranks waiting to take over from the old guard. For a graphic example of this trend just look at bowling clubs, which keep shutting down because their members are all dying and no one is coming through to replace them - Devonport itself used to have four bowling clubs, where it now struggles to maintain just one.

Throughout New Zealand grass root rugby clubs are finding it harder and harder to field teams and to stay open and so it is for a vast amount of our sporting clubs. Right throughout New Zealand clubs are struggling to find the funds and the personnel to run them.

Traditionally most clubs in New Zealand have relied on money from pokie machines to stay afloat, along with donations in the form of sponsorship from the generous few people who are able to help. But with the slowing availability of gaming money (which so many clubs rely on) the extra burden will be placed on these benefactors, whose goodwill can only extend so far, I really do fear for the future of these clubs.

Now I know this is the first issue of Channel Magazine and I don’t want to put a negative spin on this but it’s a huge concern to me, and people have got to start talking about it so we can address this problem before it’s too late.

New Zealand is famous for its sports throughout the World; two of our countries strongest brands are sports teams – yachting’s Team New Zealand and the All Blacks. You speak to anyone overseas and they will identify New Zealand with these two brands before any other company or industry.

A great concern to me is that in twenty years’ time the youth of New Zealand will have fewer places to go and play and get involved in sport. We’re struggling at the grass roots level of our traditional game and this is reflected in the shop window of the sport i.e. the Super 14 and the All Blacks, which aren’t the power houses they were a decade ago. I don’t think there is an easy fix here. I believe we need Government to put more funding into sporting institutions. I’m sick of the ambulance being at the bottom of the cliff and not at the top. Judge Mick Brown’s great quotation was “Youth in sport stay out of court”.

We also need incentives to get people involved in club sports, and to rebuild these clubs. It can be done.

A classic example of this in action is the North Shore Rugby Club, where the iconic Wayne Shelford is virtually the director of rugby at the club, including under his coaching umbrella no fewer than four former All Blacks. A lot of clubs could learn from this. A lot of former sportsmen who have played at top level could actually get themselves off their couches and lend a hand, maybe on committees, coaching, managing or just plain being there. Getting good people on the same bus going in the same direction would kick start any club.

At the end of the day what we need is talent, fresh young blood coming through and money for our sports clubs to enable them to be run properly. A healthy society needs healthy youth coming through, and healthy society needs sport.

Simon Gundry is a Devonport and North Shore identity, and character, who is known for calling a spade a spade. He is a director of contracting company Gill & Gundry, is an enthusiastic and active sailor (past crew-member of Ceramo New Zealand and Lion New Zealand in Whitbread Round The World races and Shockwave in Admiral’s Cup) and is a life member North Shore Rugby Football Club. This is the first of his regular and lively contributions to CHANNEL.