Lampeter Town RFC

Lampeter Town

Full name	Lampeter Town Rugby Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Maroons
Founded	1875
Location	Lampeter, Wales
Region	Llanelli Scarlets
Ground(s)	North Road
Coach(es)	Paul Jones, Mark Lewis (forwards)
Captain(s)	Aled Thomas
League(s)	WRU Division Three West
2011-12	10th [1]
Team kit
Official website
www.lampetertownrfc.co.uk

Lampeter Town Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the town of Lampeter, West Wales. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Llanelli Scarlets. ^[2]

Lampeter is believed to be the first town in Wales to field a rugby union team when in 1850 the Reverend Professor Rowland Williams brought the game with him from Cambridge to St. David's College, Lampeter. ^[3] Although no evidence exists of the origination of Lampeter RFC as a separate club team from Lampeter College there is written proof of a match in the Western Mail between the college team and a Lampeter club in 1879. In 1881 the Carmarthen Journal reported representatives from Lampeter were present at the formation of the Welsh Rugby Union. ^[4]

Lampeter have now spent a number of seasons in Division Three West of the WRU league structure, finishing 8th in 2009-2010.

2008/2009 season

Coach Huw Williams guided the club to the final of WRU Swalec Bowl which was played at the Millennium Stadium. The club narrowly lost the final to Morriston RFC.

2009/2010 season

The club experience a tough season following the previous years outing to Cardiff. They ended the season in 8th position after defeating Haverfordwest RFC on the last day of the season to ensure survival.

2010/2011 season

A number of changes took place during the summer. Jonathan Evans took over the head coach role with Huw Williams joining local side Aberaeron. The captaincy was also awarded to long-time player Huw Thomas, taking over from Gary Davies. A number of young players joined the senior squad along with one or two from outside the club.

Lampeter Ladies

Lampeter is home to the second longest running Women's side in Wales. The Ladies originally played from 1988-1992 where they played teams all over the UK travelling to Manchester and London to play opposition on a regular basis. There was a 16 year gap from 1992 through to 2008 when the team was resurrected by Shirley Jones and Nerys James, since 2008 the Ladies have won the WRU Division 2 on two occasions and the WRU National Plate, playing the final at the Principality Stadium in 2022. In 2021/2022 the Ladies played a perfect season, when they went unbeaten in both the League and Cup Competition. The team is currently coached by Gareth Davies and Ryan Powell with Nerys James Davies the Team Manager of the side.

Lampeter Saints

Lampeter Saints is the name of the club's senior 2nd XV. They play their rugby in West Wales Sport Division 1 West. They often compete against many local sides who also play their 1st XV rugby in Division Three West.

Committee

The club's current Chairman is Gary Davies with Gareth Davies and Huw Davies as the club's Secretary and Treasurer respectively.

Junior Section

The club have a junior section with players and teams ranging from Under 8's to Under 16's and Youth level. There are many of the current senior squad who have developed their rugby skills within the club's junior ranks.

Notable former player

• John Strand-Jones

References

1. "WRU official site". Archived from the original on 2014-08-08. Retrieved 2012-05-27.
2. BBC News (2004-07-08). "Wales' regional rugby map". BBC . Retrieved 2008-05-31.
3. Fields of Praise, The Official History of the Welsh Rugby Union 1881-1981, David Smith, Gareth Williams (1980) p.22 ISBN   0-7083-0766-3
4. Fields of Praise, The Official History of the Welsh Rugby Union 1881-1981, David Smith, Gareth Williams (1980) p.41 ISBN   0-7083-0766-3

External links

• Lampeter Town RFC Official club site.
• Lampeter Town RFC Official Club History.