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BRSTLDRGN

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Rugby isnt all about Aviva, Pro 12, 6N and Super Rugby. All players started playing for their local club, most do. Lets use this thread to talk about our clubs at a local level.

On a personal level Im proud to say that Hornets RFC, the club I first played for in the Under 7's, will play in the National League setup for the first time as they enter National League 3 South West. A season that will include a very tasty Weston-Super-Mare derby.

The Club where my family now live, Nailsea and Backwell play in Somerset Premier. Hopefully a good season for both.
 
I think I'm giving up playing for my club. I really can't be majorly arsed and I'm not big enough for under 20's, especially as I weigh 68KG and play hooker. Might reconsider though, but I'm not going near pre-season. Here's our Wikipedia Page if anyone is interested.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_La_Salle_Palmerston
The most bizarre thing you'll find there is that while he was at Leinster, CJ Van der Linde played for the club. Well he was assigned but I doubt he ever played.
 
good Thread:

My old club Barking got a win in their first outing this year: beating Ruislip 41-36 in London 1 North.

They've had a few tough years dropping from National Two, which was when i was playing with them, so i'm hoping this is them consolidating. Quite interesting as my youth club Romford & Gidea Park is now in the same league as them. Blimey we had some ding dongs - they disliked the fact i went to Barking from Romford, used to get some serious treatment when we played in the cup etc.... :)
 
Thought I'd bump this to see how everyone's teams are doing.

The Club I help coach played their first game in a totally new league system (we left the old one too much politics and entered a corpo associated competition)

We played a hastily arranged fixture against a team from our division as out cup game was forfeited by the opposition.

We won 55-20

How have you all been going?
 
This is a bit of a difficult topic for Saffas, because in SA the system is different.

kids start playing rugby at age 6. They play 10-aside on a shortened field (basically the square area between the 22 and the goal line).
At age 8 they play fifteen's rugby. From age 8 to 13 (primary school) 15's rugby is played barefoot, and you are only allowed to kick in your own half of the field.
From age 14-18 (Highschool) kids play 15's rugby and the same rules as the senior levels, and also with boots.
18+ play for local clubs. If a kid younger than 18 wants to play for a club, he has to undergo a few tests beforehand to ensure that his body is able to take on the older and bigger guys.

In my city we have 3 local rugby clubs. Their names are Noordelikes (who also competes in the National club championship), Dorp, and Police. Noordelikes and Dorp has always had a fierce rivalry, and in the past Dorp was the stronger club, during my playing days everyone wanted to play for Dorp, and didn't want to play for Noordelikes as they were seen as low-class thugs who always wanted to fight instead of play. Mr. Boet Fick, who is the Blue Bulls Rugby Union President was previously the president of Dorp rugby club.

Things have changed al though. And Noordelikes are now miles ahead of the other clubs. They have sponsorship deals, they give incentives for their players, have their own medical team etc.
 
heineken said:
This is a bit of a difficult topic for Saffas, because in SA the system is different.

kids start playing rugby at age 6. They play 10-aside on a shortened field (basically the square area between the 22 and the goal line).
At age 8 they play fifteen's rugby. From age 8 to 13 (primary school) 15's rugby is played barefoot, and you are only allowed to kick in your own half of the field.
From age 14-18 (Highschool) kids play 15's rugby and the same rules as the senior levels, and also with boots.
18+ play for local clubs. If a kid younger than 18 wants to play for a club, he has to undergo a few tests beforehand to ensure that his body is able to take on the older and bigger guys.

In my city we have 3 local rugby clubs. Their names are Noordelikes (who also competes in the National club championship), Dorp, and Police. Noordelikes and Dorp has always had a fierce rivalry, and in the past Dorp was the stronger club, during my playing days everyone wanted to play for Dorp, and didn't want to play for Noordelikes as they were seen as low-class thugs who always wanted to fight instead of play. Mr. Boet Fick, who is the Blue Bulls Rugby Union President was previously the president of Dorp rugby club.

Things have changed al though. And Noordelikes are now miles ahead of the other clubs. They have sponsorship deals, they give incentives for their players, have their own medical team etc.
Click to expand...

If you want to make a carreer from rugby then joining a club is professional suicide though. The trend has very much become school -> Varsity/Union academy or straight to the Union ala Handre Pollard, Etzebeth etc more recently. Willie le Roux coming up through a small union like Boland is the exception. That said, the percentage of rugby players in SA that take it seriously is probably miniscule. Even then many varsity players only do it for kicks (apart from 1st team).

I myself though playing for varsity didn't take it seriously at all either though that was a good numbr of years back before the Varsity cup so I suppose I wouldn't recognize the scene as it's quite professional now even not at 1st team. Trying to rejoin my local club after 5 years out of rugby it was not for me; too damn physical to get back into once you've been out for a while and the opposition generally target you if they know your new. My first few games back was damn tough and after the third where I picked up a dead arm, dead leg and fractured foot i decided that was that. That said the stupid coach did try to make a lock of me who played winger all my life; I was the tallest at that stage and there was a bit of an injury crisis at lock. Imagine trying to squeez a poor man's JPP/Rokocoko/GvdH type player in at lock with zero experience in the position.. not pretty especially at the set pieces though I managed to win back a ton of restart kicks or at least hold up the catcher since I was there with the ball LOL; so at least not a total failure.

...damn, now I am considering getting back into it..
 
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TRF_stormer2010 said:
If you want to make a carreer from rugby then joining a club is professional suicide though. The trend has very much become school -> Varsity/Union academy or straight to the Union ala Handre Pollard, Etzebeth etc more recently. Willie le Roux coming up through a small union like Boland is the exception. That said, the percentage of rugby players in SA that take it seriously is probably miniscule. Even then many varsity players only do it for kicks (apart from 1st team).

I myself though playing for varsity didn't take it seriously at all either though that was a good numbr of years back before varsity cup so I suppose it's quite professional now. Trying to rejoin my local club after 5 years out of rugby it was not for me; too damn physical to get back into once you've been out for a while and the opposition generally target you if they know your new. My first few games back was damn tough and after the third where I picked up a dead arm, dead leg and fractured foot i decided that was that.
Click to expand...

Yes I agree. And the big 5 unions (Bulls, Sharks, WP, Cheetahs, Lions) all have their own academies. Most boys go to these academies after school, sign up at a University of Technology and go through the ranks if they aren't lured by the universities.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
heineken said:
Yes I agree. And the big 5 unions (Bulls, Sharks, WP, Cheetahs, Lions) all have their own academies. Most boys go to these academies after school, sign up at a University of Technology and go through the ranks if they aren't lured by the universities.
Click to expand...

Yes, I think the reason this works is because the 'big rugby schools' get these boys close to being professional players even at 16/17 and there are quite a number of them now whoare insanely professional in their set-ups and scouting and the fact that SA schools rugby is so big makes this feasable. I mean the yearly Paarl Gym vs Paarl Boy's High draws a 40 000 crowd now and is broadcast though i suppose this is the biggest schools derby in SA but that isn't even Cravenweek. i know my school's rugby talent was syphoned up with Andries Bekker and Josh Strauss all being poached by our nearest 'big rugby school' Paul Roos. A few also went to Paarl but didn't make it to pro.

As for club rugby in Pretoria, @heineken, my dad- who is a Bulls supporter (we moved to the Cape when I was just out of diapers)- said someting the other day and I was wanting to hear your thoughts on it; he said Blue Bulls rugby as is either needs to embrace black players and draw black fans more or become ever more dependant on imports from other unions (specifically WP, Free State and Transvaal) as their traditional fans are middle to low class whites (I don't mean this offensively) as the region was held up (rugby-wise ITO both fans and players) 90% by army/civil service/police rugby clubs which is now 99% black. Quite a blunt statement but interesting to consider I thought?

Though the rise of Varsity cup/academies largely curtails this and in a contemporary professional setup importing is commonplace as you look for filling in specific positions and have specific requirements in any case so I guess his point is moot.
 
TRF_stormer2010 said:
Yes, I think the reason this works is because the 'big rugby schools' get these boys close to being professional players even at 16/17 and there are quite a number of them now whoare insanely professional in their set-ups and scouting and the fact that SA schools rugby is so big makes this feasable. I mean the yearly Paarl Gym vs Paarl Boy's High draws a 40 000 crowd now and is broadcast though i suppose this is the biggest schools derby in SA but that isn't even Cravenweek. i know my school's rugby talent was syphoned up with Andries Bekker and Josh Strauss all being poached by our nearest 'big rugby school' Paul Roos. A few also went to Paarl but didn't make it to pro.

As for club rugby in Pretoria, @heineken, my dad- who is a Bulls supporter (we moved to the Cape when I was just out of diapers)- said someting the other day and I was wanting to hear your thoughts on it; he said Blue Bulls rugby as is either needs to embrace black players and draw black fans more or become ever more dependant on imports from other unions (specifically WP, Free State and Transvaal) as their traditional fans are middle to low class whites (I don't mean this offensively) as the region was held up (rugby-wise ITO both fans and players) 90% by army/civil service/police rugby clubs which is now 99% black. Quite a blunt statement but interesting to consider I thought?

Though the rise of Varsity cup/academies largely curtails this and in a contemporary professional setup importing is commonplace as you look for filling in specific positions and have specific requirements in any case so I guess his point is moot.
Click to expand...

When was the last time your dad visited a club game in the Pretoria region??

Sure the traditional clubs are as he says that type of classed people. But there are a lot of clubs who makes space for black players. I think the Blue Bulls are going to be in future one of the unions who has the most amount of black players in their ranks. The use of Loftus for Soccer events has had a positive effect for rugby, how strange it may sound. Kaizer Chiefs now even has it's own 7's team.

TUKS and TUT are however the biggest contributors. And both of them are in the Varsity Cup. I think the inclusion of the Limpopo Blue Bulls in the Vodacom Cup will also help in future.

There might have been a period where the Bulls behind the other clubs, but I think they have caught up now.
 
Good thread I just found.

I play fro a club called Quintin in Herts / Middlesex 2 (it covers the West / North West London area, basically). We're having a ***** of a season, to put it bluntly, our firsts simply aren't good enough for the division we are in and we're getting smashed by large scorelines every time we step out (83-0 last time we played...). Although we have a second team in the Merit Table (second teams / lower level league system in England, separate from the main league pyramid structure), we can't get two teams out on a Saturday because we can't get the numbers. The only success we've had this season has been on two occasions when we've had a 2s fixture and no 1s fixture, and have been able to put out a really strong second team full of first team players. Some would consider that cheating, but there you go.

Having said that, this weekend was a good one - one of those second team games, we won 45-5 and, since you ask, I scored a hat-trick. No biggie.
 
The first ever Weston league derby was a bit one sided, my team Hornets won 34-3. Had a crowd of 2500 estimated, a streaker (not a pretty sight) and some great play. I imagine there would have been a bit of a party last night.
 
Good thread containing a couple of blasts from the past. As my name suggests, I'm a life long supporter and former bit part player for Redruth RFC. I've watched Redruth play against Barking at levels 3 and 4 from the late nineties up until recently and ventured up to WSM to watch Redruth lose by virtue of a last minute missed kick around 2001/2. Glad to hear Barking have found a level that they are competitive at, supporters must still wonder what could have been but for one interception a few seasons back. Sounds like the balance of power has changed in WSM, but good to see WSM (and Hornets, who I'm sure Reds have played in the past) at level 5.
 
RedruthRFC said:
Good thread containing a couple of blasts from the past. As my name suggests, I'm a life long supporter and former bit part player for Redruth RFC. I've watched Redruth play against Barking at levels 3 and 4 from the late nineties up until recently and ventured up to WSM to watch Redruth lose by virtue of a last minute missed kick around 2001/2. Glad to hear Barking have found a level that they are competitive at, supporters must still wonder what could have been but for one interception a few seasons back. Sounds like the balance of power has changed in WSM, but good to see WSM (and Hornets, who I'm sure Reds have played in the past) at level 5.
Click to expand...

Im sure there has been. Hornets is one of the fastest growing clubs in the Bristol combnination - coached by a former Bristol player who had to retire early, some of the young players have been scouted by Bristol, a couple have played for the 1st team in the B&I Cup games.

If things go well come season 2020-2021 Hornets could be playing in Europe.....
 
Looking at N3SW and N2, our clubs aren't a million miles apart SelimNiai. I'll have to take a look on the clubhouse walls next time I'm there and look out for a plaque. This season has been a bit of a struggle with a new coach trying to get a (mostly) young side playing a different brand of rugby in a league that might well be at its strongest ever. Half way through the season, we're ninth out of sixteen, but just ten points away from the relegation zone.

It sounds like Hornets are similarly looking to build from within and are enjoying success with the approach.

I did mean to mention a few of Redruth's claims to fame in my previous posts:

- Club of Bert Solomon who won one cap in the 1900s and is credited by some with inventing the dummy.
- Club of England great RAW Sharp.
- Host club for most of Cornwall's big County Championship matches back when it meant something.
- Club that gave Phil Vickery his first senior rugby before he departed for Gloucester.
- National Colts Cup finalists.
- First club to give Jack Nowell league exposure (in N1 at the tender age of 17)
- Club who brought Mark Bright (England sevens, former Tasman Makos, Championship player of the season nominee)

What's anyone else's clubs claims to fame?
 
Not sure what reminded me of this thread (boredom I suspect), but time for a belated end of season bump!

How did everyone else's sides finish up? Having started the season with ambitions of at least a top half finish, Redruth's season quite quickly became about survival - a task with was achieved with a fair bit to spare finishing in 9th place, so will be playing in National 2 South (level 4) next season. The icing on the season was a Cornwall side based largely on Launceston and Redruth players winning the County Championship (now known as the Bill Beaumont trophy) at Trophy at Twickenham.

Once again the league looks like it will be highly competitive with the addition of Bury St Edmunds, Barnes and Redingensians. Thanks to the loss of Lydney and Dings Crusaders last season, Redruth will once again be the furthest travelling side in the National Leagues (despite playing in a supposedly regionalised league) and will be travelling further on average than last season. Only one player has been confirmed as having left the club and seven new signings from junior local clubs have been made, but I will reserve judgement for the new season until the squad is confirmed (and last season's captain has put pen to paper).
 
RedruthRFC said:
Not sure what reminded me of this thread (boredom I suspect), but time for a belated end of season bump!

How did everyone else's sides finish up? Having started the season with ambitions of at least a top half finish, Redruth's season quite quickly became about survival - a task with was achieved with a fair bit to spare finishing in 9th place, so will be playing in National 2 South (level 4) next season. The icing on the season was a Cornwall side based largely on Launceston and Redruth players winning the County Championship (now known as the Bill Beaumont trophy) at Trophy at Twickenham.

Once again the league looks like it will be highly competitive with the addition of Bury St Edmunds, Barnes and Redingensians. Thanks to the loss of Lydney and Dings Crusaders last season, Redruth will once again be the furthest travelling side in the National Leagues (despite playing in a supposedly regionalised league) and will be travelling further on average than last season. Only one player has been confirmed as having left the club and seven new signings from junior local clubs have been made, but I will reserve judgement for the new season until the squad is confirmed (and last season's captain has put pen to paper).
Click to expand...

Not having to go to Dings is a good thing. That pleasure falls to us next season I see

Hornets finished 6th. Faltered a bit after the new year, lost the home Weston Derby, WSM had brought in some players in including Glenn Dickson, a fly half on Northamptons books but for our first season in the National Leagues it was a very good year. No derby next year as WSM were relegated and we won the Somerset Cup again.

The 2nds walked Somerset 1 and now play in Somerset Premier, only losing 1 game and ending with a PD of +962
 

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