Rugby Union South Australia

The South Australia Rugby Union (SARU) is the governing body for the sport of rugby union in the State of South Australia, Australia. It is a member of the Australian Rugby Union. The SARU is a 11 team Rugby Union amateur league operating in Adelaide, South Australia. The premier grade is the largest Rugby Union league in South Australia. The league consists of a single division with under 10, under 12, under 14, under 16, under 18, reserves and open (premier/div 1) levels of competition.

South Australian Rugby Union

Current season, competition or edition: 2011
Formerly	SA Rugby Union
Sport	Rugby Union
First season	1932, Adelaide, South Australia
No. of teams	11
Country	Australia
Most recent champion(s)	Brighton
Official website	[1]

History

The establishment of SA Rugby Union came about following a public meeting assembled in March 1932 by journalist Ian Sabey from The Advertiser. This meeting saw the arrangement of the Adelaide Rugby Club with two 7-aside teams ready to contest each other. Interest had grown and by the end of the year, the Royal Australian Navy, University and the Waratahs (an offshoot, developed from the Adelaide Rugby Club) had also been established and ready to field teams in a local, specific competition.

Adelaide rugby had quickly grown and within a year, South Australia had played its first interstate match against Victoria .

Rugby League benefitted in the 1940s, when the Port Adelaide Rugby Union team split in four, and defected to League.[2]

Over the following two decades, Rugby grew across the metropolitan region and by the 1950’s, South Australia possessed a total of eight clubs.

In 1951, after finances and management of competitions grew, it was decided that it was in the Union’s best interest to become an incorporated body.

Over the following years, SA Rugby continued to grow stronger and by 1971 clubs included Army, Adelaide University, Brighton, Burnside, Elizabeth, Flinders University, North Adelaide, Old Collegians, Onkaparinga, Port Adelaide, Barossa rams, Salisbury, Southern Suburbs, West Torrens and Woodville.

SA clubs that had come and gone include Railways, St Marks, Technical College Old Boys, Kingston, Aquinas, Navy, Waratahs and Gawler. And in 1978 Glenelg was renamed ‘Brighton’. And in 2005 Roseworthy college Rams was renamed 'Barossa Rams'

In 1999, SA Rugby again took on corporate change and release its Incorporated Association status and become a Company Limited by Guarantee, further underlining its commercial strength.

In 2006, SA Rugby Union Ltd combined with the SA Junior Rugby Union.

Currently there are eleven senior clubs, six of which have junior sides as well as two independent junior clubs and an Over-35’s club.

Current clubs

Club	Nickname	Home Ground	Entered competition
Adelaide University RUFC	Blacks	Waite Oval	1932
Barossa Rams RUFC	Rams	Lyndoch Oval	2006
Burnside RUFC	Burnside	Parkinson Oval	1946
Elizabeth RUFC	Elizabeth	Womma Reserve	1958
Old Collegians RUFC	Old Coles	Tregenza Oval	1937
Port Adelaide RUFC	Pirates	Riverside Oval	1933
Southern Suburbs RUFC	Bulls	Bailey Reserve	1946
Brighton RUFC	Tigers	Brighton Oval	1950
Onkaparinga RUFC	Red Devils	Wilfred Taylor Reserve	1968
Woodville RUFC	Wasps	Gleneagels Reserve	1933
North Torrens RUFC	Dragons	Dry Creek	1999
North East Dist RUFC	Bushranger	Dry Creek	?

Premiership Winners

Division 1

2010- Brighton

2009- Brighton

2008- Brighton

2007- Southern Suburbs

2006- Old Collegians

2005- Brighton

2004- Brighton

2003- Southern Suburbs

2002- Port Adelaide

2001- Old Collegians

2000- Brighton