Full name | Gala Rugby Football Club | |
---|---|---|
Union | SRU | |
Nickname(s) | The Maroons | |
Founded | 1875 | |
Ground(s) | Netherdale (Capacity: 4,000) | |
President | Sinclair Paterson | |
Coach(es) | Ewen Robbie Dean Keddie Lewis Bertram | |
Captain(s) | Angus Dun | |
League(s) | Scottish National League Division One | |
2021–22 | Scottish National League Division One, 2nd of 12 | |
| ||
Official website | ||
www |
Gala Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team based in Galashiels in the Scottish Borders. Founded in 1875, it plays its home games at Netherdale. The team currently competes in Scottish National League Division One, the second tier of Scottish club rugby, and the Border League (the oldest established rugby union league in the world).
The club was formed at a time of change in Galashiels, and the Borders in general, with the increasingly industrial textile industry. Cricket was played by the new influx of workers (particularly Yorkshire) and a winter alternate was needed, so a 'Football club' was formed in 1876. Although named a 'football' club they only ever played rugby union football and never association football. Rugby Union Football is now generally referred to as rugby, but at the time it was still commonly regarded as a code of football, as it technically still is. [1]
In 1883, the club took part in the first ever Sevens tournament in Melrose and competed in the final with the hosts. Within a year they (and many other Border clubs) had started their own Sevens, also known as 'Sports'. In 1994, these separate tournaments were organized into the Borders Sevens Circuit league structure, the winners are crowned as the "Kings of the Sevens". Gala has been 'the Kings' on two occasions, in 2004 and the first ever winners in 1994. [1]
In 1912 the club moved from Mossilee to a new ground at Netherdale, the new pavilion and grandstand built at a cost of 1150. 1931–32 saw Gala's first and only success in the Scottish Unofficial Championship under the Captaincy of Jimmy Ferguson.
From 1979, with Scottish internationalists Derek White and Peter Dods in the team, Gala won the Division 1 title three consecutive seasons.
In 1995, Gala was one of eight teams to play in the new Scottish Premier League. In 1999, inspired by a young Chris Patterson at Stand-off, Gala won a treble of medals, the Division 2 title, the Scottish Cup, and Melrose Sevens. The lowest point in modern history came in 2007, when Gala was relegated to Division 3 for the first time in its history. Worse was that it was only points difference of 2 over the whole season. This gave the club the chance to clear out the dead wood and the team bounced back into Division 2 at the first time of asking.
The 2010–11 season saw promotion back into the top flight, its first full season back. 2011–12, saw a 3rd-place finish and the Scottish cup for the second time. Gala finished 2012–13 as both Premier Division and Scottish cup runners-up. 2013–14 saw Gala finish runners-up in the Premiership again. This was a painful result as they were leading for much of the season only to lose out on the final match of the season to local rivals Melrose. They also reached the semi-finals of the Scottish cup and won the Border League. [2]
In February 2017 the club launched a rugby academy, despite the realisation that they would be relegated from the premiership at the end of the season. [3]
|
The following former Gala players have represented Scotland at full international level.
The following is a list of notable non-Scottish international representative former Gala players:
The following former Gala players have represented South at provincial level.
Gary Isaac |
The following is a list of notable former Gala players who have achieved notability in fields outwith rugby union:
Galashiels is a town in the Scottish Borders with a population of around 12,600. Its name is often colloquially shortened to "Gala". The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensive history in the textile industry. Galashiels is the location of Heriot-Watt University's School of Textiles and Design.
Netherdale is a sports complex in Galashiels, Scottish Borders, consisting of two adjacent stadiums used for rugby union and football. The rugby ground is the home of Gala RFC and was formerly used by the professional Border Reivers team. It hosted one match of the 1999 Rugby World Cup. It has also occasionally been used for rugby league matches. The football ground is home to Gala Fairydean Rovers and has a Category A listed grandstand.
Melrose Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club located in the town of Melrose in the Scottish Borders. The professional men's side competes in the Super 6 as the "Southern Knights". The club plays at the Greenyards.
Gala Fairydean Rovers Football Club are a Scottish association football club based in the town of Galashiels in the Scottish Borders. The club competes in the Lowland League, after joining from the East of Scotland Football League in 2013. At the same time the club changed its name to Gala Fairydean Rovers, following a merger between Gala Fairydean and Gala Rovers. The club plays its home matches at Netherdale in Galashiels.
Selkirk Football Club was a Scottish football club based in the town of Selkirk. Founded in 1880, they were the oldest established football club in the Scottish Borders. The club was selected as a founder member of the Lowland Football League, which was formed in 2013 by the Scottish Football Association (SFA) as part of a proposed pyramid system. Their home ground was Yarrow Park. Following financial problems, they resigned from the Lowland League during the 2018–19 season and later went out of business due to insurmountable debts and failure to keep their SFA membership.
Hawick Rugby Football Club is an semi-pro rugby union side, currently playing in the Scottish Premiership and Border League. The club was founded in 1885 and are based at Mansfield Park at Hawick in the Scottish Borders.
Currie Rugby Football Club are an Edinburgh-based rugby union club in the Scottish Rugby Union, they currently play in the Scottish Premiership. Despite the name, "Currie" RFC is actually based in the neighbouring suburb of Balerno, and they play at Malleny Park.
Boroughmuir RFC is a rugby union club in the Scottish Rugby Union. The club's home ground is Meggetland, in southwest Edinburgh and the club plays in the Super 6, where they are known as the Boroughmuir Bears.
Kelso Rugby Football Club are a Scottish rugby union team founded in 1876. They play their home games at Poynder Park, Kelso in the Scottish Borders.
Rugby union in Scotland is a popular team sport. Scotland's national side today competes in the annual Six Nations Championship and the Rugby World Cup. The first ever international rugby match was played on 27 March 1871, at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh, when Scotland defeated England in front of 4,000 people. Professional clubs compete in the United Rugby Championship, European Rugby Champions Cup and European Rugby Challenge Cup, while the Scottish League Championship exists for over 200 amateur and semi-professional clubs, as does a knock-out competition, the Scottish Cup. The governing body, the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU), is one of the ten first-tier member nations of World Rugby.
Preston Lodge Former Pupil Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Prestonpans in East Lothian, Scotland. Formed in 1929, they currently play in Scottish National League Division Two.
Kilmarnock Rugby Football Club is a Scottish rugby union club which was founded in 1868, and is based in Kilmarnock, Ayrshire in west central Scotland. They play in West Division One. Often simply referred to as "Killie", their ground is at Bellsland in Kilmarnock, and they were formerly based at Rugby Park.
Penicuik Rugby Club is a rugby football club in the Scottish Rugby Union, playing their home games at Montgomery Park, Penicuik, Midlothian. Season 2015–16 saw the club become league champions of East Regional League Division Two, under the coaching duo of Mark Blair and Malcolm Clapperton. In season 2015-16 the Second XV under the coaching guidance of Richard Mann also gained promotion, to East Reserve league 2 having been runners up to Currie RFC on points.
The Scottish Premiership is the highest level of amateur league competition for Scottish rugby union clubs. First held in 1973, it is the top division of the Scottish League Championship. The most recent (2024) champions are the Currie Chieftains, who are also the youngest club to win the competition. The most successful club is Hawick, who have won the competition thirteen times.
Rugby union in the Scottish Borders has a long, and significant history.
Langholm Sevens is an annual rugby sevens event held by Langholm RFC, in Langholm, Scotland. The Langholm Sevens was the last of the Border Sevens tournaments to be instated in 1908.
Hawick Sevens is an annual rugby sevens event held by Hawick RFC, in Hawick, Scotland. The Hawick Sevens tournament started in 1886 and is the third extant oldest Sevens tournament in the world; behind Melrose Sevens (1883) and Gala Sevens (1884).
Gala Sevens is an annual rugby sevens event held by Gala RFC, in Galashiels, Scotland. The Gala Sevens was the second of the Border Sevens tournaments to be instated in 1884, just behind the Melrose Sevens in 1883.
Walkerburn Sevens is an annual rugby sevens event held by Walkerburn RFC, in Walkerburn, Scotland. The Walkerburn Sevens was the sixth of the Border Sevens tournaments to be instated, in 1911, after the bigger events of the Border Sevens spring circuit.
Gala Y.M. RFC is a rugby union club based in Galashiels, Scotland. The Men's team currently plays in East Division 3.