Royston RUFC
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Our Aims Royston is an ambitious club that is looking to increase its membership, develop rugby skills within a team context, and ensure its members enjoy the unique camaraderie the game brings. |
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Formative Years
Royston Rugby Union Football Club (RRUFC) was formed in 1961. Its founder President was former England prop, Geoff Kelly. Rowley Taylor, one of the founders who was an army officer arranged for initial home games to be played at Bassingbourn Barracks and the first clubhouse adopted by the team was the Chequers. Michael Phizacklea who recently corrected some of our historical detail remembers playing in the very first match for the club, which was played away to Hitchin.
As the club established itself, home matches were moved to the Newmarket Road Recreational Ground with the teams celebrating success and failure at the Black Boy pub, now named The Jockey.
RRUFC was active in the formation of the Royston Sporting Club, which was opened in 1968 by the MP Shirley Williams. Rugby then began to grace The Heath and joined with the cricket, tennis and hockey sections. Initially the various sports sections ran the Sporting Club until the club was taken over in 1992 and managed as a commercial venture such as it is now.
Rapid Growth
RRUFC developed rapidly. In the late 1970's the 1stXV was particularly successful and was one of the top sides in Hertfordshire. Several Royston players represented the County at this time. Numerically, with regards to senior players, the club was at its strongest in the early 1980's, on some occasions putting out six teams.
In 1981, after a section of The Heath was levelled, a second rugby pitch was added. The Heath is a conservation area and currently the club does not own the land used for rugby but does benefit from the good will of the Conservators who manage The Heath. In addition to The Heath's two pitches, local school pitches were also needed to accommodate the number of teams active at the club.
About this time a Veterans' team was formed which has been very successful at retaining 'old' rugby playing friends with a good standard of rugby played against old friends and adversaries from clubs in the area. In 1994 the Vet's won the County competition - the Sabbath Cup.
One United Club Across All Age Groups
The number of playing members of the club fell considerably through the '90s, as was the case nationally with many rugby clubs and other sporting organisations.
However, 1992 saw a big push for mini-rugby on The Heath. At first this section was called The Rabbits and the Junior section of the club has grown from strength to strength. On Sunday mornings hundreds of children of all ages now enjoy the joys of rugby football at Royston. The mini, midi and youth sections are now fully integrated with the senior section and RRUFC benefits from playing members from U7 to Veterans in one united club. As a result of this development and the changes The Heath Sports Club has undergone the rugby club now plays a vital role within the Royston area, both as an active family sports club with a growing social character as well as increasingly becoming a prominent feature of the Royston community.
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Recent Success 2006-2007 was a significant season for the club with the First XV winning the Herts and Middlesex 3 North League, significant wins for the Junior and Mini Teams at regional tournaments, junior players being selected at county trials and the club achieving Seal of Approval accreditation from the RFU. 2007-2008 season has already demonstrated the massive strides being achieved by the club at lower levels with silverware being won in most Min Rugby categories in the start of season North Hertfordshire mini rugby tournament at Letchworth and a clean sweep in Under 7, Under 8 and Under 9 age groups in the Cambridgeshire Cup mini rugby tournament. |
Ambition
Though a relatively small club surrounded by bigger clubs Royston RUFC is driven by ambition – ambition to grow, ambition to improve and ambition to become more successful year on year. The club continues to invest money and time to improve the club facilities and resources, the quality and capability of coaches and coaching and is driving to grow its membership across all sections of the club – whether playing or non-playing members. Come be a part of our future success.
