By Rob Cole

The first steps in creating a sustainable financial future for one of the world’s greatest rugby clubs, Newport RFC, were taken his week when the Principality Premiership club signed a significant sponsorship deal with Carpeo Estate Planning.

The deal will provide one of Wales’ oldest clubs with a financial lifeline at a time when they are trying to find a way to move forward after losing their home of the past 140 years at Rodney Parade as a result of the takeover of the Dragons and Rodney Parade by the Welsh Rugby Union.

The deal left the Black & Ambers with around £600,000 in the bank and an agreement to continue to play at their spiritual home for as long as professional rugby is played at Rodney Parade. Running a Premiership club costs around £350,000 a year and they receive less than a third of that from the WRU.

Carpeo recently moved into offices at Cleppa Park, in Newport, with help from the Wales Assembly Government. They are an award winning company working in the Estate Planning sector.

“We are looking forward to working closely with Carpeo and together we will be launching an exclusive membership scheme to give our loyal supporters a chance of great savings on everyday expenses of up to £2,000 a year,” said Newport team manager Mark Workman.

“Our exclusive membership scheme provides a fantastic range of discounts and offers on leading brands to our members, including Asda, Tesco, Sainsburys, M&S, EE, SKY, Amazon, Thomas Cook and many more, making it one of the best supporter membership schemes in the UK.

To encourage membership to this scheme there is an introductory offer for Christmas for all new members on Laithwaite wines with a saving of over £60 on a 12 bottle case of wine.

“This is a very easy way for supporters to generate money for Newport RFC, whilst making significant savings on everyday expenses for them and their family.

“We are proud of Newport and the part we play within the community and are therefore delighted to have the chance to give something back to our supporters.”

Workman is one of many loyal Black & Amber supporters doing his best in the background to forge a successful future for the club. A former player at the club, Workman was introduced to Carpeo by a former Newport team mate and sports sponsorship guru, Adam Palfrey.

“As a lifelong Newport supporter, it was an honour when I got the chance to join the club in 1993. As I ran out on the famous Rodney Parade for the first time it was like a dream come true,” admits Workman.

“From the moment I arrived at the club I got a sense of the history of the place, hearing all the former players reminisce about famous victories over Australia, the Springboks and the All Blacks made me proud to represent this World-famous institution.

“During my 24-year association with Newport, firstly as a player and now as the team manager, I have seen many changes. I played in the amateur era, when the game turned professional I played alongside world famous names like Teichmann, Howarth and Snow.

“I returned to the club following the introduction of Regions in the new semi-pro Welsh Premiership. However, without doubt the biggest and most traumatic change I have experienced was the recent takeover by the WRU.

“As a non-shareholder standing outside the room that night, the feeling of loss was tangible as the result of the vote was revealed. Tragically, Rodney Parade, our beloved home for the past 140 years, no longer belonged to the club.

“For Newport it meant we had to start again right from the beginning with no clubhouse to generate any income. We had our name, our badge, our history, our famous Black & Amber jersey and, just as importantly, many willing volunteers and loyal supporters who refused to let the club die.

“After months of hard work and uncertainty we are slowly coming out the other side. There are some green shoots of recovery and we can start to look forward to the future with some optimism.

“Performances on the field have been encouraging whilst off the field we have some exciting new developments. Going forward we are planning to invest in new training facilities to help us continue to be competitive on the field, build on our links with local schools and rugby clubs and establish partnerships with local businesses.

“One such business is our newest sponsor Carpeo Estate Planning.”