Meadow Lane stay confirmed

Ambitious Nottingham Rugby have agreed a new rolling one-year deal with Notts County to continue playing their matches at Meadow Lane.

And delighted Chairman Geoff Huckstep believes it will be the start of an exciting new partnership which will benefit not only both clubs but also Nottingham sport in general.

He explained: "It is key to our ambitions that we have a base capable of staging top flight rugby and our players have consistently shown with this season's performances what they think about playing at Meadow Lane.

"Since we've been there our average crowds have increased by 500 and all our marketing and community activities this summer will be geared towards attracting even bigger crowds next season.

"My negotiations with County Chairman John Armstrong-Holmes have been straight-talking but cordial and a key component of the talks has been how the two clubs can work together for our mutual benefit.

"I'm confident that the new deal will form the basis of arrangements long after the 2008-09 season."

Nottingham turned Meadow Lane into something of a fortress last season and although they eventually had to settle for third place in National League 1, they are determined to mount an even stronger promotion challenge next time.

Added Huckstep: "I'm sure that our players, supporters and sponsors will be delighted to know that we will be playing at such a great venue again next season."

The effects of dual-purpose use on the Meadow Lane pitch has been a major topic of discussion for County but Armstrong-Holmes said: "We are about to carry out major works on the pitch and I'm sure it won't be such a big issue next season.

"We were very unlucky last year because we renovated the pitch during the wettest summer on record. The roots didn't settle, due to the surface water, and that set back the whole growth programme.

"In the long-term we need to look at laying a completely new pitch which is especially designed for high usage, but that requires significant investment and will need to be planned months in advance.

"It's something to think about for 12 months time, but there are other systems that can be introduced straight away that will improve the pitch, and our ground manager Greg Smith is currently investigating them.

"The new deal with the rugby club, which will be continually reviewed in the interests of both parties, is on much more favourable terms from our point of view. It was important to achieve that but we do think it will genuinely benefit both sides.

"We have a 20,000-seater stadium which sits doing nothing most of the time and it needs to be used.
"We are determined that we will move our club forward, so are the rugby club and it's exciting to think that we might work closely together in certain areas to help each other achieve our ambitions."