Get quizzical with Swim Torbay and Torquay United

Torquay United’s partnership with Plainmoor Community Pool will see teams going head-to-head in pursuit of glory later this month – as Boots and Laces hosts a quiz night in aid of Swim Torquay.
Quiz teams will compete and also raise funds with a prize raffle.
Lucy Clark, general manager of Plainmoor Community Pool, said fundraising events are vital to keep the facility up and running.
“For people that don’t know about Swim Torquay, we’re a charity-run pool, so we don’t survive off any money off the council, it’s all off grants and donations. We’re doing the quiz night to try and raise money for the pool to keep us open,” said Lucy.
“As everyone is aware, we have a cost-of-living crisis, and the electricity and heating bills are going up and up and up, so we’re just trying to compete, trying to keep paying those bills off and keep our pool open. That’s the reason why doing this.

“We’ve got a raffle, and we’ve also got some prizes for the winning teams, and we’re doing it to just get the community together, because obviously it’s a community swimming pool. At these sorts of events it’s nice to get everybody together to say thank you to the regular customers that come along. To see them all turn up is nice, to show that we’ve got such a big support behind us.”
With Plainmoor Community Pool ideally placed for United’s players to benefit from the facilities, Lucy also told of how the partnership with TUAFC continues to go from strength to strength.
“We’re really enjoying the new relationship with Torquay United, and we love having the players in.
“It’s also nice that you’ve got the school next door, and when they come in to use the vending machine, they see the players and say ‘wow, they do swimming’, so we’ve actually had a large increase in boys coming in to learn how to swim since they’ve been coming over.
“That has been quite good, and we’ve enjoyed having them over. We also appreciate the club letting us use rooms and advertising our events, and we were also invited to a match, which we all thoroughly enjoyed, so it’s working really well.”
TUAFC physio Regan Miles, who often oversees the player’s activities in the pool, echoed those thoughts.
He said: “We’re not at the higher-ends of English football, where we have access to all sorts of facilities, we’re a very community-based club. We really need the local community, and working with the pool, with Lucy and all the staff, is a massive help for us, and it’s a massive help for the lad’s recovery throughout the season.
“The pool provides everything that we need, the lads are able to go in on a weekday and have a relaxing time and do a bit of their own recovery, but they also allow us to put on team sessions for the lads to be able to come in, in preparation for the next game.
“We feel like we’re able to help them with exposure, and they definitely provide massive help for us.”
The quiz night is being held at 7pm on Saturday, June 24, with entry at £5 per person. Swim Torquay is planning to hold another fundraising event, pig racing, on November 25.