Alliance Rugby Club seeks regular use of Keller Sports Park fields, raises safety concerns about new goalposts

Members of the Alliance Rugby Club met with the Keller Parks and Recreation Board on June 12 to ask for regular access to the newly remodeled Keller Sports Park for youth programming, college and adult tournaments and camps, and to raise safety concerns about recently ordered “combo” goalposts for the multipurpose fields.

The club’s Brad DeLong, an organizer who said, “I’ve been with the rugby club for 22 years,” described plans to restart youth programs now that new fields are coming online and to pursue hosting youth, college and adult regional tournaments. He told the board the club had about 75 young players across age groups before play stopped when the park was under construction.

The request matters because Keller’s new sports fields, park maintenance rules and scheduling will determine whether multi-sport events can be accommodated without harming turf or conflicting with priority users. “Youth recreational sports. Youth sports,” a Parks and Recreation official said during the meeting when explaining the park’s primary priority.

Club leaders described several near-term asks: permission to hold a 7-on-7 adult tournament on Sept. 13 if the field is available; clearer scheduling and usage rules; access to multipurpose fields in out-of-season periods on a rental basis; and storage or handling arrangements for goalposts and other equipment.

They said the club already uses Bear Creek Park for training with temporary lights and wants to transfer youth practices back to the sports park once the north multipurpose field opens in September and the second field later in the year. DeLong and other club representatives said they have coaches lined up, interest from parents, and outside groups (college and adult organizers) interested in bringing championships to Keller.

Club speakers described past flexibility at the site — moving posts, cooperating with football, and bringing temporary bleachers — but emphasized that hosting sanctioned youth and college events requires compliance with national safety and competition rules. They noted that organized rugby programs require annual background checks and SafeSport training for coaches and administrators; the club also maintains USA Rugby registration and secondary insurance for players.

A central point of disagreement concerned new goalposts the city reported ordering for the multipurpose fields. Club members said the “combo” posts include a frame near the ground that could create a hazard for players who dive or slide to ground a try, and that traditional rugby posts allow players to ground the ball beneath the uprights. City staff said the posts were ordered to provide a multipurpose solution and pointed to concerns the task force and council had raised about heavy, hard-to-move traditional posts and liability if stored or moved improperly.

City staff and the board confirmed the posts had been ordered but said they would refer the safety concerns to staff, council and the Keller Development Corporation for further deliberation. Staff also reported looking at lighter materials and alternatives and said they had researched available post types and did not find a single combination product that meets all needs without trade-offs.

Other operational items discussed included field lining (club members asked the city to consider purchasing or renting a striping robot used by other local sports groups; the club reported a quoted rental price of about $7,000 for a three-year arrangement), storage options for heavier equipment on the park’s west side, and the schedule-submission and enforcement process for popular fields. The board emphasized that the park’s first priority is youth recreational sports and said rental or additional event access would be considered around that priority and existing season dates.

No formal board action was taken during the conversation. Board members asked club leaders to provide research and vendor options for goalposts and lighter materials, and said staff would present the post/safety options to council and KDC. The club offered to support research and to have club leadership join any future council briefing.

What happens next: staff said they will refer the safety and equipment questions to council and KDC for further review and that the park board would continue to act as a sounding board on usage agreements and scheduling. Club leaders said they will follow up with documented research on alternatives and with a draft schedule if they seek the Sept. 13 rental.

Ending: The club invited board members to attend upcoming matches and said it would provide contact and schedule information once details are finalized. Board and staff thanked the club for the presentation and said they would relay the concerns to council and KDC for additional deliberation.