Full name | Aberystwyth Rugby Football Club | ||
---|---|---|---|
Union | Welsh Rugby Union | ||
Nickname(s) | Blue Bears | ||
Founded | 1947 | ||
Location | Aberystwyth, Wales | ||
Ground(s) | Plascrug | ||
Chairman | Nerys Hywel | ||
President | Raymond Evans | ||
Coach(es) | Iestyn Thomas and Ifan Thomas | ||
Captain(s) | Charles Thomas | ||
League(s) | WRU Division One West | ||
2023-24 | 5th [1] | ||
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Official website | |||
www |
Aberystwyth Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the town of Aberystwyth, West Wales. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and a feeder club for the Scarlets regional side. [2]
Rugby had been played in Aberystwyth since the late 19th century [3] when the local college founded a rugby team. Aberystwyth Rugby Club was founded in 1947 [4] and the first game was against an Aberystwyth College second team. The club gained membership of the Welsh Rugby Union in May, 1954 which allowed future competitive matches. The team's clubhouse was founded with help of a ten-year interest-free loan from the WRU in 1960. This original clubhouse burned down and was reconstructed in the 1970s.
The Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in the country of Wales, recognised by the sport's international governing body, World Rugby.
Rugby union in Wales is considered a large part of Welsh national culture. Rugby union is thought to have reached Wales in the 1850s, with the national body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) being formed in 1881. Wales are considered to be one of the most successful national sides in Rugby Union, having won the most Six Nations Championships after England, as well as having reached 3 World Cup semi finals in 1987, 2011 and 2019, having finished 3rd in the inaugural competition and having finished 4th in 2011 in a repeat of the first third place play-off. The Welsh team of the 1970s is considered to be arguably the greatest national team of all time, prompting many experts in the game to suggest that had the Rugby World Cup existed during this period, Wales would be amongst the list of World Cup winners. As of November 2021, they are ranked 8th in the world.
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