Today 14th August 2020 was a very sad day for many a true Ringmer Football & Social Club supporter, It certainly was for me. As I watched the demolition of the clubhouse from the spot where I stood as a young teenager watching a band of volunteers gradually erect the original structure 50 years ago. I"t finally struck me that the era of the RFC was over at the Caburn. As I watched it reminded me of a scene from the film "war of the worlds" with the hidden JCB's head repeatedly reappearing over the clubhouse roof line "ooooh laaah".

It is true what they say, in that when you lose something that you have known and enjoyed most of your life and realise in that moment that it has gone, you can hear the echoes of the past flood through your head, the great characters that had emerged over the years, the different noises on and off of the pitch seem to play endless sound bites that stream through your mind, the high and the low times the comradery and the squables, the pleasures and the frustrations this was a place like countless other sports clubs all over the world have this unique ability to throw up every conceivable emotion in one place.

On the social side, so many friendships were made, many ending in a partnership and life friendships. It was a great place to socialise do businss and be entertained by the various events that would be organised, it was the scene of many a village fete (going back to the 70's) a while with our volunteers setting up the various games and stalls, we still had the old tombola ticket drum in one of the cupboars! I with one of my mates had our own mobile disco in that era and used to share gigs at the clubhouse with Dennis Soan & Mark Tester, who also had their own set up, we had all honed our skills (or lack of them as some would comment) at the youth club and local parties.

Moving on to the 80's/90's it was becoming very obvious that Ringmer was changing from those heady days when Ringmer reached the 1st round proper in the FA Cup (yes I had to mention it) The villagers changed as it's housing had changed, somehow changing the ways and make up of a community, some say "that is progression and no bad thing", I agree, but were they building houses for the existing community NO!

Out of the people of my age still in the village in the 80's/90's that I knew at school, there were only a handful left that had managed to get them selves some form of social housing or paying through the nose privately renting. Most like myself had to move out of Ringmer to be able to afford a property, rented or bought. As it happened a week after I had moved out of Ringmer I was the first one offered one of the newly renovated Jubilee Cottages on the Broyle which I had to let go and a friend of mine benefited from that. They are still building houses on developments that are priced way above an average youngster of this village these are built for whom?

The one thing that we sacrificed in the end was our bit of open green space soon to be built on with another development of housing. I appologies to those in Ringmer that opposed this development but to survive and keep a football club for the community for future generations we had no choice but to sell, it would have been built on anyway if we had failed.

The clubs membership over the last few years have seen a natural decline as our original membership pass on and with no new memberships coming through it was impossible to carry on. Those left will still remember them strutting their stuff on the dance floor or enjoying a tipple in the bar. Memories are all that is left of the Ringmer Football Club at the Caburn, it served us well.

BUT NOW IT IS NOT ALL DOOM & GLOOM.
The exciting rebirth and a new era in Ringmer Football begins the new clubhouse and ground a new name, "Ringmer AFC" a new club management team which is ready for the modern game with fresh ideas and community driven. Just the finishing touches inside the clubhouse to do and it is all set.. We hope to see the village support this comeing season and beyond. Details on our new website found at www.ringmerafc.co.uk this is also a new venture so please be patient. other info on facebook.com/RingmerAFC.

This website will still be live for historicle purposes as long as it can and is still being updated.

The 2nd part of this post will be added soon "A new Start and a new dream 2008 onwards"