What is the Club Mission?

Kyadondo Rugby Club is striving to see that

The game of rugby is fostered within Kyadondo Rugby Club and its surroundings.
The Club continues to nurture and develop top club teams within the country and player contribution to the National side.
The Club will develop top class sporting and social facilities that will act as the backbone for community sports development, both within the Kyadondo catchments and without setting an example for the country at large to follow.
Selected schools in the country are targeted for skills and leadership training to build capacity for the game of rugby.
All activities and development plans undertaken by the Club are sustainable, transparent, fully accountable, well managed and subsequently properly maintained.
That women and children shall be targeted for skills training in order to increase the player base thus increasing participating teams in women and mini-rugby events.

Where did We Start?

Before Development

Reclaiming Land for Pitch

Levelling Land for Pitch

First Club House

Current Club House

Spectator Stands

Lighting Tower

Starting with nothing on the ground and a very limited budget, Kyadondo is justifiably proud of what it has achieved. Situated on approximately 7 acres (2.8 hectares) of greenbelt-designated, sports-specific land, just 5 minutes drive from the centre of Kampala, the Club boasts the only internationally-approved size, double pitch ground in the country, and the whole region.

The green carpet...The first pitch, known throughout East Africa as "the carpet" due to its exceptional quality, was completed in 2000 by reclaiming land that had been long-abandoned and which had degenerated into a junglesque haven for criminals. With the issuing of the lease, after four long years of negotiation with the City Council, pitch number two was largely completed in mid-2004 and is now usable as a practice ground.

Waste ground on the east side of the plot is gradually being recovered and extended into a hard standing for parking cars and a unique, wooden "fort" style perimeter wall is well underway along the main roadside boundary. The clubhouse area is situated in the centre of the plot, bisecting the two pitches, and is constructed out of modified shipping containers to form the bar, changing and showers, toilets and a gymnasium/weights room. A wooden, thatched structure, used as an upstairs bar and function room, adds a little local flavor to soften the area.

Spectator stands...The first two stands (actually seating) were completed in 2003 and allow for comfortable viewing for some 300 people. It is hoped to double this by the end of 2004. A further lease application for the waste land at the western, town end of the plot has been lodged and, once granted, this will be transformed into a large car park, thus freeing up the existing one for development into volleyball courts. Pitch 1 has adequate floodlighting for training purposes, that will be augmented in time to allow for night matches. The general quality of the facilities is sufficiently good for Kyadondo to have been awarded IRB-sanctioned Internationals, the first of which was held at the ground in 2002.

Once the second pitch is "up to scratch" and the other, as-yet incomplete works are done, the final major expenditure will be the construction of a pucca clubhouse building, off to one side of the grounds, thus with the removal of the current temporary structures freeing up the whole centre of the plot and adding to the sensation of space and green-ness that we are striving for. An indigenous tree-planting exercise will begin before the end of the year in all empty areas where interference with the game or utilities will not occur.

Other Development Initiatives

Construction of lighting towers

Tony Saxty completed the first two foundations for the towers about a month ago and last week the final of six sections of the new steel towers was delivered. After some ""manufacturing tolerances"" were rapidly corrected on site, the towers have now been erected. Some final shimming up to get them straight and level will be done next week, and then the electrics and light units themselves will be installed. With four 400 watt mercury vapour floodlights on each tower facing the main pitch, evening and night time training will once again be possible and we are looking at possibly staging some night touch matches as well. The lighting will not be sufficient to play a full contact match under at present - that day will have to wait until we can afford to bring in three phase power, which bearing in mind current power shortages in Uganda may be some time away...

The new power house and tractor shed

A supporter of the Club, leading international transporters and freight forwarders Interfreight Panalpina, last week donated a retired 20ft shipping container to Kyadondo. It is no secret that the backbone of the Club infrastructure is built around modified, old containers and hugely successful, useful and affordable (particularly when you are given them!!) they have proven to be. The latest (and last to be used in the current club buildings arrangement while we wait for the new clubhouse construction to be approved and begin) has been tacked on the end of the changing room 40ft unit. Once modified by Jim Middleton and his team of spark generators, this will contain the new tractor-PTO-driven alternator (generator), the tractor itself and a store for our grounds maintenance tools and equipment. Power outages should then cease to be a problem as our faithful old ""Puffing Billy"" Massey Ferguson 240 tractor then works for its living by night as well as by day.

Thanks very much to Interfreight Panalpina for their generous donation.

The Upstairs Members Bar

Following a generous donation from Bell Breweries last year, work has finally got underway on the upgrade of the upstairs open area under the thatch into a proper bar. Whilst currently still being used as a general free-for-all facility (as can be seen from the photos with the National team using it as an Arial vantage point during last weeks 7's tournament), once complete this will be jealously guarded and reserved for members and their guests as the first purpose-built, post 1950's, rugby members bar in Uganda. The Club memorabilia is currently being worked into displayable order by Tony Saxty, and some of it will be displayed up in the roof area and on the new wooden trusses. The two buffalo skulls have even been painted up and varnished ready to go back on the walls.