| Rugby union in Jersey | |
|---|---|
 Les Quennevais Rugby Club | |
| Country | Jersey |
| Governing body | Rugby Football Union |
| National team(s) | Jersey |
| First played | late 19th century |
| Clubs | 8 |
Rugby union is a popular sport in Jersey.
| Rugby union in Jersey | |
|---|---|
| Les Quennevais Rugby Club | |
| Country | Jersey |
| Governing body | Rugby Football Union |
| National team(s) | Jersey |
| First played | late 19th century |
| Clubs | 8 |
Rugby union is a popular sport in Jersey.
Rugby union is played in Jersey under the auspices of the Jersey Rugby Association (JRA), which is affiliated to the Hampshire Rugby Football Union but is not a member of the Rugby Football Union of England. As such, it has no national team of its own, and is not affiliated to World Rugby in its own right. For this reason, it has no WR ranking.
Due to its proximity to England and the major rugby nation of France, Jersey rugby is amongst the oldest in the world, dating back to the mid 19th century. Most schools play the sport, especially the private ones.
There are several rugby union clubs in the island including a rugby academy for under-18s that includes more than 600 players as of April 2012 [1] and Les Quennevais Rugby Club.
Jersey Reds [2] are a Jersey rugby club that enjoyed a meteoric rise through the English pyramid from 2005, when they were playing in London South West Division 3 (now known as London 2 South West), to 2012. They earned promotion at the end of that season, and then starting in 2007–08 earned four more in five seasons. The most recent promotion, at the end of the 2011–12 season, placed them in the second-tier RFU Championship, [1] where they have played ever since.
The Siam Cup is an annual Rugby Union competition held between Jersey Reds and Guernsey RFC. It was first contested in 1920. [3] The trophy awarded its winner is the second oldest rugby honour contested after the Calcutta Cup. [4]
Like many small islands, Jersey has a population problem. The main sport is football, and the national population is just over 90,000.
As yet, Jersey has not fielded a national team.
The Jersey Rugby Association (JRA) League [5] features the following teams:
Jersey has no television of its own but does have its own radio station. However, British and French television can both be received on the island, and often include extensive rugby coverage - such as the Rugby World Cup and Six Nations Championship. The ITV variant Channel Television sometimes includes rugby news.
BBC Radio Jersey has live commentary of every Jersey Rugby Club home game as well as live inserts from every away game.
London Welsh Rugby Football Club was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, after gaining promotion from the RFU Championship in the 2012 and 2014 play-off final. The club returned to Old Deer Park in 2015 after three seasons at the Kassam Stadium, Oxford.
Les Quennevais R.F.C. was a rugby union club based in Jersey in the Channel Islands.
Hampshire Rugby Football Union is the governing body for rugby union in the county of Hampshire, England. It represent clubs sides not just from Hampshire but also from the Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands, who take part in many of the competitions organized by the Hampshire RFU.
In its own right Jersey participates in the Commonwealth Games and in the bi-annual Island Games, which it last hosted in 2015. Jersey is a founder member of the Island Games Association and has participated in every Games since the first in 1985. Jersey first competed in 1958 in the British Empire and Commonwealth Games and has since participated in every staging of what became the Commonwealth Games. Youth sports participation includes the Commonwealth Youth Games and Jeux des Isles.
Guernsey participates in its own right in the Commonwealth Games.
Rugby union in the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a popular sport. Outside the island of Guernsey itself, it is occasionally played in Alderney and Sark. Sark has its own rugby team, although it regularly has to pick up "guest" players to make up its numbers.
Tunbridge Wells RFC is an English Rugby union club that plays in Regional 1 South Central from Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England.
Jersey Reds is a rugby union club based in Jersey, Channel Islands. As of 6 October 2023, the club has ceased trading and is in liquidation following the withdrawal of financial support from a key investor.
Footes Lane is a multi-use sports stadium in Saint Peter Port, Guernsey and is the main sports venue on the island. It has a capacity of 5,000 with 720 seated. The stadium is the national stadium of the Bailiwick of Guernsey.
The Siam Cup is an annual rugby union competition held between the Channel Islands clubs of Jersey Reds and Guernsey. It was first contested in 1920. The trophy is the second oldest rugby trophy in the world to be contested after the Calcutta Cup.
St. Peter is a Rugby ground in Saint Peter, Jersey and is home to Jersey Reds, who have played in the RFU Championship, the second level of the Rugby Football Union's league pyramid, since 2012–13. The ground is located within walking distance of Jersey Airport. The ground also hosts Jersey's Siam Cup games against Guernsey every 2 years.
Jon Brennan was a Jersey rugby player who played at prop for Jersey Reds for 12 seasons, with 200 appearances. As of 2013, he was the club's longest-serving player, playing in his tenth season, while also teaching at De La Salle College.
The 2012–13 RFU Championship is the fourth season of the professionalised format of the RFU Championship, the second tier of English domestic rugby union competitions, played between August 2012 and May 2013.
Michael Le Bourgeois is a Jerseyman professional rugby union player who plays for Championship side, Bedford Blues as a centre and can also play as a fullback or as a fly-half.
Guernsey Rugby Football Club is an amateur rugby union team who play at Footes Lane in St Peter Port on the Channel Island of Guernsey. The club was formed in 1928. The club runs two senior teams, a veterans side and a colts side.
Talite Vaioleti is a Tongan rugby union player, born in Haveluloto, Tonga, who plays for National League 1 side, Darlington Mowden Park R.F.C. He is a utility player able to play as a Lock or in the Back Row.
Patrick Ross Broadfoot is an English rugby union player from Lewisham, London, England who currently plays for National League 2 South side Old Elthamians as a Fly-half. He has experience in English rugby union from the fourth tier right up to the Premiership.
Latu Makaafi, also spelt as Latu Maka'afi, is a Tongan rugby union flanker and Number 8 who plays for Hull having previously been at Coventry.
Myles Landick is a rugby union player from Jersey. He plays as a prop for RFU Championship team, Jersey, and is also employed as the groundsman of St. Peter, the ground on which Jersey plays.
The Hampshire Bowl is an annual rugby union knock-out club competition organised by the Hampshire Rugby Football Union. It was first introduced during the 1999–99 season, with the inaugural winners being Romsey. It is the second important rugby union cup competition in Hampshire, behind the Hampshire Cup but ahead of the Hampshire Plate. When it was introduced in 1999 the Bowl initially replaced the Plate competition, which was itself re-instated several years later for the 2003–04 season.