Southport Rugby Football Club

Southport Football Club was founded on 29 November 1872 and is one of the oldest rugby clubs in the world. The first president of the club was Samuel Swire, the Mayor of Southport.[1]

The 'List of Matches' for 1879 records the club's colours as being blue, white and red, and the ground as Roe Lane, Southport. In 1881, after some heavy defeats, Southport Football Club switched to association football. Most of the rugby players made the switch to the round ball game, and with a lack of new recruits, the original club faded out. There was a merger with Southport Olympic and Southport Wasps, and games were played at a ground at the corner of Scarisbrick New Road and Ash Street, backing onto Southbank Road. Records show that Southport Olympic drew one game with Liverpool Old Boys. The Lancashire County Rugby Football Union was formed in Manchester in the same year, but Southport was not represented.[2]

The club's familiar red, black and amber colours were first mentioned in a game with New Brighton in February 1888. After a number of years of little or no rugby due to inter-club conflicts over professional versus amateur status (which led to a number of clubs breaking away to form the Northern Rugby Football Union (the Rugby Football League), Southport Olympic completely reformed at Victoria Park, Southport and rejoined the Lancashire County Rugby Football Union in 1906. In April 1913, a proposal to drop the Olympic name in favour of Southport Rugby Union Football Club was carried at a general meeting.

When Britain joined the First World War in September 1914, an extraordinary meeting of the club cancelled all fixtures and recommended that all members 'join some military organisation'. Fourteen club members lost their lives in the war, including the 1914 club captain J.E. Grimshaw, who was killed in the Gallipoli Campaign while serving with the Lancashire Fusiliers.

The club returned to playing fixtures in 1919, and by 1922 it had 75 players and 176 patrons. The year 1926 saw the start of the last season at Victoria Park, and on 26 March 1927 the club celebrated the opening of the new ground at Waterloo Road with a victory over Preston Grasshoppers.[3]

Southport RFC's first XV currently plays in North Two West in the Rugby Football Union Northern Division, and the club fields many sides at all age levels.

• Senior: First XV, Second XV, Third XV, Ladies, U18 Colts
• Junior: U13s to U17 Colts
• Mini: U6s to U12s

2007 squad: League champions

Senior: First XV

• South Lancs/Cheshire 2 champions: 1996–97
• North West 3 champions: 1997–98
• South Lancs/Cheshire 3 champions: 2006–07
• Merseyside (West) champions: 2015–16

Senior: Second XV

• North West League 4 (North) champions: 2011-12

Junior:

• U18: Lancashire Colts Cup champions (2): 1972–73, 2018–19, North West Conference C champions: 2019-20
• U17: RFU U17 National Plate champions: 2016–17, North West Conference C champions: 2011–12, North West Conference B champions: 2016–17, North West Conference D champions: 2019-20
• U16: Lancashire Cup champions: 2016–17
• U15: Lancashire Bowl champions: 2009-10
• U14: Lancashire Plate champions: 2013-14
• U13: Lancashire Plate champions: 2012-13

The Southport senior first xv men squad for the 2021–22 season:[4]

Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under WR eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-WR nationality.

Player Position Union Colin Leech Hooker England Rei Chambers Hooker New Zealand Calum Monaghan Hooker England Callum Tootle Prop England Niall Cooney Prop England Daniel Lovett Prop England David Lim Prop Australia Rob White Prop England Uate Caqeua Prop Fiji Matthew Croughan Prop England Mike Tobin Prop England Craig Pacey Prop England Cameron Williams Lock England Ewan Thompson (C) Lock England Aodhan Blackburn Lock England Colin Toohey Lock England Colin Fearns Lock England Luke Fusco Lock England Joe Mawsdley Back row England Jordan Caldwell Back row England Sam Lawrenson Back row England Gareth Lang Back row England Kristian Griffiths Back row England Jake McMullen Back row England Adam Atkinson Back row England

Player Position Union Joe Parkinson Scrum-half England James Tomkinson Scrum-half Wales Andy Boland Scrum-half England Charlie Attis Fly-half England Dan Whalen Fly-half England Tom Crompton Fly-half Wales Jack Parker Centre England James Bailey Centre England James Cook Centre England Adam Wood Centre England Billy Nichol Centre England Dan Creswell Centre England Tom Peacock Wing England Conor Rylands Wing Ireland Jamie Rodd Wing England James O'Keefe Wing England Tom Rowe Wing England Dylan Norbury Wing England Tom Hill Wing England Callum Lea Wing England Jake Mann Fullback England Ben Henderson Fullback England Chris Tees Fullback Ireland Ryan Bailey Fullback England

• Southport Rugby Football Club website