Team Photos 'Through The Years' AGM & Action Photos

It all began on an Autumn day in 1947.....

Jeff Peet, a local reporter with the 'Rugeley Times' placed an advert in the newspaper requesting that anyone with an interest in forming a rugby club should meet on a stated date at the 'Shrewsbury Arms'.

Five men met up that evening, all strangers to one another but with a common interest in mind. In the conference room of the Shrewsbury Arms that night the 'tiny acorn' was planted that was to grow into Rugeley Rugby Club. These men were Eric Shultz (elected captain), Ernest Nunn ( a teacher at the Rugeley Grammar School), Phil Oakley (of Oakleys Garage) and Jack Williams (aged 15 and a pupil of the Grammar School). They proceeded to scout the town for more recruits and by December were playing their first match against Ashbourne.

Money was tight everywhere in Britain in those early years and there were few funds available to the club... along with strict petrol rationing it was a sheer miracle that they managed to attend their first away game but by means of scrounging petrol from here and there and stretching its mileage by adding paraffin the entire club of eleven men made it to Ashbourne!

Half of the team had never had a proper game of rugby and with the help of the two worst players from the opposition (kindly loaned to RRC for the match) Rugeley were defeated 9 - 3.

As there was no schools in the Rugeley area that played Rugby at the time , the club depended on interested newcomers to increase their members.

Rugeley Rugby Club 1947-1948

The team eventually attained use of a coach for transport to their matches, courtesy of Mr.Whieldon, owner of a local bus company who became vice-president of the club , under the Club President, the Earl Of Shrewsbury.

The early days saw Rugeley playing with no formal strip, in mining boots or gardening boots for footwear and self-renovated unheated bathing facilities (an old outbuilding donated by Mr.Oakley next to the old Chancel !)

The Club finally obtained a playing field in the form of Hagley Park, which was then used as farm land and had to be cleared of cow-droppings by the club members prior to a home game! Six conifer poles were collected from the Forestry Commission, dug in and strapped together to complete the scenario!

RRC briefly vacated their Hagley Park in the early years and spent a couple of seasons on a field in Etching Hill, By the time they had moved back to their Hagley Park home, they had devised a scheme whereby players paid 3/6 to play a game, the funds to assist with transport costs and the remainder to go into club funds.

As time went on, the membership of the club grew and its respectability grew with it.

Teams, presidents and casual players in 1976.

Rugeley Rugby Club has had many homes during its time, but none more closer to its heart is that of Hagley Hall, where it made its home and fought a brave battle for permanent residence. Despite constant vandalism at the Hall, the rugby club tried to renovate the ground floor, even using steel shutters. In 1983, when the building was to be taken over by the Manpower Services Commission, the Rugby club, along with the local football and hockey club who also used the building at that time, launched an appeal to the MSC to only take over the upper floors of the building so that the sports clubs could remain in residence. Around £30,000 was needed to salvage the building but in 1984 they were forced to leave when the council decided on demolition of the Hall in favour of building a small housing estate on the site.

Rugeley also had its share of ups and downs on the field, enjoying success in the Owen Cup, but fairing less well in the league structures. Despite its highs and lows, its players and supporters maintained a loyal devotion to the club, which was rewarded with many triumphs and successes throughout the years.

Many of the better players from the club moved on to further their careers with more Senior clubs and have gone on to represent Staffordshire and even national teams, such as Terry Cobner,and Scottish national Jim Greenwood, whilst others stayed, such as the well-respected Micheal Davies, likely to be the clubs most long serving player.

In 1998 the Rugby Club held a 50th Anniversary Reunion which was a huge success with ex-members of the club coming together once again to celebrate not only the history but also the future of the club.

And from a tiny acorn the great oak tree had grown....

Many thanks to Mr.Nial Evans, Mr. Roy Greatrix and the associates of Rugeley Rugby Club for their assistance with this feature.

Rugeley Rubgy Club has two senior teams playing in Staffs Division One. The senior teams meet on Saturdays at 12:00 at Lea Hall Sports & Social Club.  It also has 3 junior teams (under 17s,under 26s and under 12's) who play on Sunday mornings at 10.AM at St Augustine 's field.   For more information contact Sue Sargent on 07879036659 or email sue_sargent@rugeleyrugby.com

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