King's College London Rugby Football Club
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| Full name | King's College London Rugby Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Union | RFU | ||
| Founded | 1869 | ||
| Region | London, England | ||
| Ground(s) | New Malden Sports Ground (Berrylands) | ||
| President |  Oscar Stuart | ||
| Captain(s) |  Benjamin Navabi | ||
| |||
The King's College London Rugby Football Club (also referred to as KCLRFC and King's Rugby) is an English rugby union club based in London.
The club represents King's College London in competitions organised by the British Universities and Colleges Sport. The team plays its home games at the New Malden Sports Ground in Berrylands.
Background
[edit]KCLRFC runs two competitive sides each entered into the BUCS leagues. The 1st XV compete in the second tier of the South East Region. The 2nd XV upholds a competitive nature in the fourth tier of the South East region. [citation needed] Both teams used to enter the University of London Union (ULU) cup competitions before the ULU was dissolved: the 1st XV competed for the Gutteridge Cup which was open to all University of London 1st XVs (including Imperial College who affiliated to ULU despite the college leaving the federal university in 2007); the 2nd XV competed in the Reserves Plate – open to all 2nd and lower XVs.[citation needed]
The London Varsity is an annual match against their closest rivals UCL played in March, and has recently[when?] been played at the Barnet Copthall stadium, the home of Premiership Rugby side Saracens F.C.. It is considered[by whom?] one of the highlights of the University of London's sporting calendar and takes place in front of a crowd of several thousand supporters from both colleges. The winner takes home the George-Bentham Cup, named after King George IV and Jeremy Bentham, associated with the founding of King's College and University College respectively.[citation needed] The club caters for all standards of players, with players new to the game especially welcome.[citation needed]
At the end of each season an annual general meeting is held where club members vote for a new committee who will be responsible for the club the following season.[citation needed] Former head coach John Graves (previously Backs coach for Esher RFC) started coaching at the club from midseason 2007/08. He coached the 1st XV team to progress up two leagues, won the Gutteridge Cup and won the varsity match three times.[citation needed]
Club colours
[edit]The 1st XV play in red and navy shirts, navy shorts and red and blue socks. The emblem on the shirts is the university crest and features Reggie the Lion. Below the crest is the club motto which reads 'Sancte et Sapienter' (With Holiness and Wisdom).
Representative honors
[edit]| Position | Name | Current Club | Former club(s) | International | Caps |
| Centre | Ayoola Erinle | retired | Biarritz Olympique, Leicester Tigers, London Wasps, Henley Hawks |  |
2 (2009) |
Statistics
[edit]
| Year | BUCS League | Gutteridge Cup | Varsity |
| 2006/07 | 6th 2B | Runner-up | Lost |
| 2007/08 | 6th 2B | Q/Final | Lost |
| 2008/09 | Winner 3B | Winner | Won |
| 2009/10 | 6th 2B | Runner-up | Lost |
| 2010/11 | Winner 2B | S/Final | Won |
| 2011/12 | 8th 1A | S/Final | Lost |
| 2012/13 | 3rd 2B | – | Won |
| 2013/14 | 4th 2B | – | Lost |
| 2014/15 | Winner 1A | – | Won |
| 2015/16 | 4th Prem B | – | Won |
| 2016/17 | 8th South A | – | Won |
| 2017/18 | 6th South B | – | Lost |
| 2018/19 | 6th 1A | – | Lost |
| 2019/20 | 3rd 2B | – | Won |
| 2020/21 | - | – | Lost |
| 2021/22 | 2nd 2B | – | Lost |
| 2022/23 | 2nd 2B | – | Lost |
| 2023/24 | 5th 2B | - | Lost |
President/Captain/Treasurer
[edit]| Year | President | Captain | Treasurer |
| 2006/07 | Dane Alexander | Tim Hutt | Ali Macgregor |
| 2007/08 | Ali Macgregor | Will Northover | Ben Evans |
| 2008/09 | Mark Hodson | Nicholas Horsthuis | Tom Wein |
| 2009/10 | Ian Adams | Jake Janes | Ali Goodbrand |
| 2010/11 | Tom Wall | James Duffus | Dave Lyons |
| 2011/12 | Duncan Castle | Simon Edwards | Joe Calnan |
| 2012/13 | Jake Seeds | Stefan Cook | Joe Calnan |
| 2013/14 | Robin Cumming | Tim Fawcett | Alex Currie |
| 2014/15 | Dave Green | Barney Lynock | Graham Harding |
| 2015/16 | William Brown | George Taylor | Kieran Brocken |
| 2016/17 | Blaise Salle | Matthew Radley | Finbar Tilford |
| 2017/18 | Josh Jones | Sam Ridgway | Luqman Swift |
| 2018/19 | Aidan Freedman | Harry Robb | Yazad Sethna |
| 2019/20 | Henry Thomas | Sam Grasby | Jih Shenn Foo |
| 2020/21 | Tom Smaldon | Jono Slee | James Houghton |
| 2021/22 | Yazan Issa | Joshua Hall | Henry Woodfine |
| 2022/23 | Raphael Azria | Jack Costello | Alexander Jonsson |
| 2023/24 | Felix Petersen | George Peprah | Tom Simms |
| 2024/25 | Oscar Stuart | Benjamin Navabi | Shannon Liew |
