Hugh Vyvyan

Last updated

Hugh Vyvyan
Birth nameHugh Donnithorne Vyvyan
Date of birth (1976-09-08) 8 September 1976 (age 48)
Place of birth Guildford, Surrey, England
Height1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)
Weight114 kg (17 st 13 lb) [1]
School Downside School
University Newcastle University
Notable relative(s) Charlie Vyvyan
Rugby union career
Position(s) Lock, Number 8
Current team Saracens
Amateur team(s)
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1995–1996 Villagers ()
1996–1997 Penryn ()
Senior career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1997–2004 Newcastle Falcons 156 ()
2004-2012 Saracens 191 (73)
International career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2003 - England A
2004 England 1 (5)

Hugh Donnithorne Vyvyan (born 8 September 1976 in Guildford) is a former rugby union player who played at lock for Newcastle Falcons, Saracens and England. He stands at 6'6" and weighs around 18 stone.

The former England fullback Jon Callard heavily influenced Vyvyan's early career while at Downside School, moving him from fly-half to number 8. Brother Charlie, was a number 8 for Sale Sharks, and was another big influence on his career. He also plays lock.

Vyvyan is youngest of seven brothers. In 1993 the brothers created rugby history by making up an entire team in the Penryn Invitation Sevens tournament, (played on Easter day each year in Penryn, Cornwall). The Seven Vyvyan brothers (Richard, Jonathan, Charles, Simon, Paul, James and Hugh) went on to win the tournament, defeating the host club 19 – 17 in the final. They returned the following year and defended the title, with Hugh flying back from South Africa to make up the numbers. In all the brothers reached the final five times, winning three times and twice being runners up.

He opted to take a year out after Downside School and played in South Africa for the Villagers club in Cape Town. Back in England he played briefly for Penryn before starting a successful theology degree at University of Newcastle, where he caught the eye of the Newcastle Falcons and eventually made his debut against Moseley, when the club were in National Division Two.

In 2001 he was an important member of Falcons' Powergen Cup winning side at Twickenham (though he was a replacement for the final), [2] a feat he repeated in 2004 but this time starting as captain and scoring a try in the final. [3]

In 2002 he toured with the full England side and was an unused bench replacement against Argentina. [4] Being deemed not good enough for England, in that same 2002–2003 season he played for England A against Scotland A and Ireland A and, in December 2003, also helped an England XV beat the New Zealand Barbarians. [5]

As well as leading both Newcastle Falcons and now Saracens, he has captained the England A squad on two Churchill Cup tours. The first in 2003 saw England A take the cup and the second, in 2004, saw England A losing to the New Zealand Māori in extra time.

He won a deserved first England cap against Canada in the Investec Challenge match in 2004 and scored a try. [6]

In 2004, he joined Saracens where he was made captain before even having played a game. [7]

In May 2009, Vyvyan signed a new two-year deal with Saracens. [8]

In May 2011, during the Aviva Premiership Final, Vyvyan became the most capped player in the Premiership as he came off the bench to make his 238th appearance as Saracens lifted their first Premiership title. [9]

On retirement in 2012, Vyvyan received the Special Merit award from his peers at the Rugby Players Association Awards Dinner. [10]

Vyvyan was the Commercial Director at Saracens from 2012 to 2016. [11]

Vyvyan formed The Leadership Academy in 2016. [12]

Vyvyan became a member of the English Premiership Rugby Hall of Fame in 2016. [13]

Related Research Articles

Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition, consisting of 10 clubs, and is the top division of the English rugby union system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saracens F.C.</span> English rugby union club, based in North London

Saracens Rugby Club are an English professional rugby union club based in North London, England, currently playing in Premiership Rugby, which is the highest level of competition in English rugby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Goode</span> England international rugby union player

Andrew James Goode is a sports pundit and retired rugby union player. Goode had an 18-year professional career playing over 400 games and scoring over 4,000 points. He played professionally in England, France and South Africa featuring for Leicester Tigers, Saracens, Worcester Warriors, Wasps and Newcastle Falcons in England's Premiership Rugby, CA Brive in France's Top 14 and for Super Rugby's Sharks in South Africa. Goode represented England 17 times between 2005 and 2009 scoring 107 points.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Stringer</span> Irish rugby player

Peter Alexander Stringer is an Irish former rugby union player who played at scrum-half. He played 13 seasons with Irish province Munster from 1998 to 2011; he then played seven seasons from 2011 to 2018 in England with various teams — Saracens, Newcastle Falcons, Bath, Sale Sharks and Worcester Warriors. Internationally, Stringer represented Ireland and the Barbarians. He announced his retirement from rugby in June 2018.

Craig Alan Newby is a former New Zealand rugby union player and coach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alesana Tuilagi</span> Rugby player

Alesana "Alex" Tuilagi is a former Samoan rugby player. He is a retired rugby player, currently residing in Fogapoa Savaii and has appeared numerous times for his national team Samoa. He previously played for Parma in Italy and for Leicester Tigers in the Aviva Premiership and more recently Newcastle Falcons. As an incredibly strong player, Tuilagi uses his blend of pace and power to good effect, proving a nightmare for many defences. Such a combination of speed and strength makes him very difficult for defences to handle.

James Grindal is an English former rugby union rugby player who played scrum-half for Bristol Rugby. He made over 275 first class appearances, and was capped by England at Under-18, Under-21 and England Saxons level, as well as representing the Barbarians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Dickson</span> England international rugby union player

Lee Dickson is an English professional rugby union player who plays at scrum-half for Bedford Blues in the RFU Championship. Dickson played 49 times for Newcastle Falcons between 2004–2008 and 256 games for Northampton Saints between 2008–17. He played for the England national side 18 times between 2012–14.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phil Dowson</span> England international rugby union player

Phil Dowson is director of rugby at Northampton Saints. He is a former English rugby union player. He played for Worcester Warriors, Northampton Saints and Newcastle Falcons in the Aviva Premiership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noah Cato</span> Rugby player

Noah Cato is an English rugby union player who plays as a wing and fullback for Wimbledon RFC in the National League 2 South.

Adam Powell is a rugby union footballer who plays at inside centre for Newcastle Falcons in the Aviva Premiership after transferring from Saracens in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geoff Parling</span> British Lions & England international rugby union player & coach

Geoff Parling is an English rugby union coach and former player. His usual playing position was lock.

Benjamin Woods is a retired rugby union player who played for Newcastle Falcons and Leicester Tigers as an openside flanker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stuart Hooper</span> English rugby union player

Stuart Hooper is a former rugby union player and then director of rugby at Bath Rugby. He last played for Bath Rugby in the Aviva Premiership in April 2016.

Calum Daniel Green is an English rugby union player. He plays lock. He has previously played for Leicester Tigers in two spells between 2007–2012 and 2019–2023, as well as for Nottingham and Yorkshire Carnegie in the RFU Championship and featured in over 100 games for Newcastle Falcons between 2014 and 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mouritz Botha</span> Rugby player

Mouritz Botha is a former rugby union player who played for the Saracens and Newcastle Falcons in the Aviva Premiership. He joined English club Bedford Blues in 2006 and made 73 appearances before moving to Saracens in 2009. Botha was named in the 2011 England Saxons squad for the Churchill Cup after qualifying for England on residency grounds. He was forced to retire on 30 September 2017, on medical advice related to concussion.

The 2013–14 Aviva Premiership was the 27th season of the top flight English domestic rugby union competition and the fourth one to be sponsored by Aviva. The reigning champions entering the season were Leicester Tigers, who had claimed their tenth title after defeating Northampton Saints in the 2013 final. Newcastle Falcons had been promoted as champions from the 2012–13 RFU Championship at the first attempt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fraser Balmain</span> Rugby player

Fraser John Balmain is an English professional rugby union player who plays prop forward for Saracens in Premiership Rugby. He previously played for Gloucester and Leicester Tigers.

The 2015–16 Aviva Premiership was the 29th season of the top flight English domestic rugby union competition and the sixth one to be sponsored by Aviva. The reigning champions entering the season were Saracens, who had claimed their second title after defeating Bath in the 2015 final. Worcester Warriors had been promoted as champions from the 2014–15 RFU Championship at the first attempt.

The 2017–18 Aviva Premiership was the 31st season of the top flight English domestic rugby union competition and the eighth and final one to be sponsored by Aviva. The reigning champions entering the season were Exeter Chiefs, who had claimed their first title after defeating Wasps in the 2017 final. London Irish had been promoted as champions from the 2016–17 RFU Championship at the first attempt.

References

  1. ↑ "Aviva Premiership Rugby – Saracens". web page. Premier Rugby. Archived from the original on 3 February 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  2. ↑ "Newcastle snatch Cup glory". BBC. 24 February 2001. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
  3. ↑ "Newcastle 37–33 Sale". BBC. 17 April 2004. Retrieved 23 June 2009.
  4. ↑ "Argentina beaten by England youngsters". BBC. 22 June 2002. Retrieved 23 June 2009.
  5. ↑ Hewett, Chris (22 December 2003). "England youngsters rise above rough treatment". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 21 November 2009. Retrieved 23 June 2009.
  6. ↑ "England 70–0 Canada". BBC. 13 November 2004. Retrieved 23 June 2009.
  7. ↑ "Vyvyan named as Sarries captain". Watford Observer. 5 August 2004. Retrieved 23 June 2009.
  8. ↑ "Vyvyan signs new deal at Saracens". BBC. 16 May 2009. Retrieved 23 June 2009.
  9. ↑ "First Team Squad / Saracens". Archived from the original on 24 November 2009. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
  10. ↑ "News".
  11. ↑ "Rugby Legend Hugh Vyvyan joins the Sportingclass Team!". 11 October 2016.
  12. ↑ "The Leadership Academy". Archived from the original on 22 October 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  13. ↑ "Premiership Rugby |".
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.