Cardiff Rugby Football Club is a rugby union football club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876[2] and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, but soon relocated to Cardiff Arms Park where they have been based ever since. They built a reputation as one of the great clubs in world rugby largely through a series of wins against international touring sides. Both South Africa[3] and New Zealand[4] have been beaten by Cardiff; and Australia have failed to beat the club in six attempts. Through its history Cardiff RFC have provided more players to the Welsh national side and British and Irish Lions than any other Welsh club.
History
Early history
The first recognised team to begin playing rugby in Cardiff was Glamorgan Football Club, formed as a club team while Cardiff was still a town.[5] The team was formed by a group of young men during the 1873/74 season, after a circular letter was sent to interested parties by S. Campell Cory.[5] Playing under the Cheltenham College rules,[5] Glamorgan FC had increased its membership to sixty six by November 1874.[6] 1874 saw Glamorgan's first away game, against Cowbridge Grammar School,[6] and by 1875 the team played its first encounter with Newport.[7] Around 1875, two further clubs came into existence in Cardiff, they were Tredegarville Football Club, whose ranks included Jas. Bush, father of future Cardiff rugby hero Percy Bush;[6] and the Wanderers Football Club whose captain and founder was William David Phillips.[6] Of the three teams, Glamorgan and Wanderers became the most notable, but both teams rarely travelled, and both had difficulty beating the now established clubs of Newport and Swansea.[8] The supporters of both clubs started an agitation in the summer of 1876[8] for the two clubs to amalgamate, to give Cardiff town a better chance of beating the neighbouring teams. On Friday 22 September 1876 members of the Glamorgan and Wanderers clubs met at the Swiss Hall in Queen Street, Cardiff and decided to make a single club, to be called Cardiff Football Club.[8] The first team captain was Donaldson Selby of Glamorgan and the vice-captain W.D. Phillips of Wanderers. Initially the club strip was black with a white skull and crossbones,[9] but after pressure from the players parents to change what they saw as an inappropriate strip,[9] the team adopted the black and blue of Cambridge University; after club player Thomas William Rees[10] of Caius College brought his university strip to the club.[9]
Cardiff FC played their first fixture on 2 December 1876,[11] versus Newport at Wentloog Marshes. In 1881, Cardiff beat Llanelli to win the South Wales Challenge Cup, though the tournament was scrapped soon after due to persistent crowd trouble.
In 1881, Newport based sports administrator, Richard Mullock, formed the first Welsh international rugby team. Despite the team losing heavily to England, Mullock had chosen four players from Cardiff to represent the team; club captain William David Phillips, vice-captain B. B. Mann, Barry Girling and Leonard Watkins[12], a reflection on the clubs importance at the time. A month later, on 12 March 1881, Cardiff RFC was one of the eleven clubs present at the formation of the Welsh Rugby Union in Neath.[12]
A notable early player was Frank Hancock. A skilful centre, Hancock first played for Cardiff due to an injury to a first regular. At this time, rugby was played with six backs and nine forwards but Hancock's performance so impressed the selectors that for the next game they selected him as a seventh back and selected only eight forwards. The system was soon adopted by the Welsh national team and the seven backs and eight forwards system exists in rugby to this day.[13]
Today
Today, Cardiff RFC Ltd runs two sides. The Cardiff Blues now play at the Cardiff City Stadium. The professional regional side, Cardiff Blues take part in the Magners League, EDF Energy Cup and Heineken Cup. The Cardiff RFC club side take part in the Welsh Premiership.
Current Squad
- Ian George
- Garry Horrigan
- Kieran Crawford
- Rhys James
- Matthew Veater
- Daniel Franks
- Rhys Shellard
- Jake Thomas
- Andy Williams
- Garyn Lewis
- Owen Rutley
- Gareth Davies
- Nathan Rees
- Gareth Chapman
- Roger Davies
- Richard Jones
The Arms Park
Club Rugby games were moved to what was the cricket ground and a new stadium was built in 1969 as a result of an agreement between the Cardiff Athletic Club and the Welsh Rugby Union. On the site of the old Arms Park stadium, a new stadium was built, Welsh National Rugby Ground (also known as The National Stadium). In 1999, a brand new stadium was built in place of the National Stadium, which was named the Millennium Stadium. Cardiff Blues moved from the Arms Park for the 2009/10 season, and it is expected that Cardiff RFC will relocate at some time in the future.
Club honours
- Heineken Cup runners-up: 1996
- Middlesex 7s winners: 1939
- Snelling Sevens winners: 1955, 1966, 1969, 1972, 1976, 1977, 1981, 1983 and 1984.
- Welsh Cup: 1981, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1994 and 1997
- Welsh League: 1995
- Welsh/Scottish League: 2000
- Welsh Premiership: 2009
- EDF Energy Cup: 2009 (Cardiff Blues)
British and Irish Lions
The following former players were selected for the British and Irish Lions touring squads whilst playing for Cardiff RFC. Gareth Thomas was selected for the 2005 Lions tour whilst playing for Toulouse
Wales International Captains
The following former players captained the Wales national rugby union team whilst playing for Cardiff RFC.
See also Wales rugby union captains
Other notable former players
- See also Category:Cardiff RFC players
Games played against international opposition
See also
References
- Davies, D.E. (1975). Cardiff Rugby Club, History and Statistics 1876-1975. Risca: The Starling Press. ISBN 0950442100.
- Parry-Jones, David (1989). The Rugby Clubs of Wales. Hutchinson. ISBN 978-0091738501.
- Smith, David; Williams, Gareth (1980). Fields of Praise: The Official History of The Welsh Rugby Union. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. ISBN 0708307663.
- ^ wru.co.uk
- ^ Parry-Jones (1989), pg 59
- ^ Parry-Jones (1989), pg 63
- ^ Parry-Jones (1989), pg 64
- ^ a b c Davies (1975), pg 10
- ^ a b c d Davies (1975), pg 11
- ^ The 1874-75 Season historyofnewport.co.uk
- ^ a b c Davies (1975), pg 12
- ^ a b c Davies (1975), pg 13
- ^ Rees, Thomas William John in Venn, J. & J. A., Alumni Cantabrigienses, Cambridge University Press, 10 vols, 1922–1958.
- ^ Davies (1975), pg 19
- ^ a b Smith (1980), pg 41
- ^ Smith (1980), pg 61
- ^ Vivian Jenkins, ed (1976). Rothmans Rugby Yearbook 1976-77. Queen Anne Press. pp. 20. ISBN 0362002819.
- ^ Jenkins, Vivian (1977). Rothmans Rugby Yearbook 1977-78. Macdonald and Jane's. pp. 52–53. ISBN 0354090208.
- ^ Jenkins, Vivian (1979). Rothmans Rugby Yearbook 1979-80. Macdonald and Jane's. p. 24. ISBN 0354090879.
- ^ Jenkins, Vivian (1980). Rothmans Rugby Yearbook 1980-81. Queen Anne Press. pp. 54–55. ISBN 0362020183.
- ^ Fiji Rugby.com
- ^ Robert Cole (10 October 1995). "Wales brace themselves for the giants of Fiji". The Independent. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19951017/ai_n14012604. Retrieved 20 June 2008.
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