The continuing resurgence of a village pub – mirrored by a successful season on the pitch for a neighbouring rugby club – will be celebrated this weekend with a festival of beer, music, rugby and art.
Following the initial stages of refurbishment and reopening under new management in September 2023, the Plough Inn, Hollym, has offered a warm welcome to the players, supporters, friends and family of Withernsea RUFC – a club that has been synonymous with the venue for more than 30 years.
This weekend will see the long-standing association celebrated with the wider community during a two-day event that will comprise a programme of live music alongside a beer festival being held in the pub’s beer garden from midday on Saturday, May 4, and Sunday, May 5.
Donations from the weekend’s event will be given to Withernsea RUFC, the Blue Light Weekend and Care After Combat.
Saturday’s live entertainment will come courtesy of leading covers bands Midnight Special and Lockwood.
On Sunday, Bad Guys Don’t Knock will kick- start the live music, followed by tribute bands to Status Quo, The Darkness and AC/DC.
Throughout the weekend, DJ Tony Dunn will provide music in-between the live performances, with each day’s programme of events set to conclude at about 10pm. Timings of all live acts may vary and are offered as a guide.
With the support of Greene King, the country’s leading pub retailer and brewer, the festival will feature 16 hand-pulled real ales available alongside lagers and ciders and Wold Top guest ales.
A spokesman for the Plough Inn said: “Although we are a free house, Greene King has been a great supporter of the pub from day one – helping us to refurbish the cellar and providing valuable technical services. We currently stock four of their products as part of our standard offering and we are proud to have become one of their top-performing account holders in the Yorkshire and Humber area.”
This successful pairing has also led to the sponsorship of a new kit for Withernsea RUFC which will be presented to the team by Greene King sales development manager, Alastair Drew, ahead of a friendly between the home side and Thornensians’ 3rds which will take place on Sunday afternoon from 2pm at the neighbouring Fouracre Park.
Alastair said: “I’m delighted to supply beer and the like at the Plough Inn and support them to grow the business with events like this weekend’s beer festival.
“I’m also proud to say we will be sponsoring Withernsea RUFC next season, with the players wearing shirts with the Belhaven Black logo on the front. The Plough’s management team are doing an unbelievable job and it’s well worth popping down for a bite to eat and a pint or two!”
Withernsea RUFC club coach, Dan Wardman, said: “Our thanks go to Greene King and the Plough Inn for their generous sponsorship and support of the club. This weekend will be a great way to get ready for next season by providing a platform for us to showcase our new kit.”
The kit presentation comes at the end of a successful season for the club which has seen a reversal of fortunes take them from the brink of collapse last year, to a re-energised team of new and returning players who narrowly lost the semi- final play-off after a golden point in extra time was scored by Scunthorpe 3rds.
Fellow club member Bob Wardman added: “There was a real concern in the 2022-23 season that the lack of players could have sounded the death knell for the club. This would have been
a massive loss to the local area and to the many players, both past and present, who have garnered a real sense of belonging from the club.
“Since its reopening, the Plough Inn has once again become a place where our local rugby community can come together to socialise. The pub’s new owners are right behind the club
and are doing everything they can to look after players and spectators.
“Thanks to their hospitality and generosity, the rugby club is once again thriving both on and off the pitch.”
The spokesman for the Plough Inn said: “We want the pub to be a real focus for the community and the rugby club is very much part of that. The pub has long been associated with Withernsea RUFC and we have seen the benefits that it can bring to those who play. We will support them as much as we can.”
This weekend’s festival is open to community members and visitors alike, with an art exhibition at the pub’s neighbouring St Nicholas’ Church also forming part of the two-day celebration.
The Plough Inn spokesman added: “We look forward to welcoming both regulars and first-time visitors to our events this weekend and would like to thank the residents of Hollym, and the surrounding area, for their continuing support.”
