Southend Rugby Club (also known as Southend Saxons) is an English
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the Comparison of rugby league and rugby union, two codes of ru ...
football club based in
Southend-on-Sea
Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north ...
,
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
. The club currently plays in the
sixth tier of English club rugby, participating in
London 1 North
London 1 North is an English level 6, rugby union league for clubs in London and the south-east of England including sides from Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, north Greater London, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk. When t ...
following their relegation from
London & South East Premier
Regional 1 South East (up until 2022-23 known as London & South East Premier and up until 2016-17 known as National League 3 London & South East) is a level five league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level ...
at the end of the 2017-18 season. The club runs six senior sides, including a women's team (the Saints) and a full range of age grade teams.
History
Southend RFC was formed in 1870 and was originally called Southend Foot Ball Club.
The club moved to its current location in 1978 and this heralded a golden period for the club, including three county cup victories in the decade before club rugby was introduced. The club was placed in Area 4 South but relegations saw the club relegated to London North East 3 by the turn of the millennium. However, a major turnaround saw the club back in the national leagues by 2003 and the club has remained at that level ever since, having returned to the level in which the club when the leagues were founded in 1987.
[ In 2014, the first team name was changed to Southend Saxons.
]
Honours
* London Division 3 North East champions: 2000–01
* London 2 (north v south) promotion playoff winners: 2001–02
* London Division 1 champions: 2002–03
* National League Division 3 South champions: 2006–07
* Essex Senior Cup winners: 2003–04
See also
* Essex RFU
* English rugby union system
Men's Rugby union in England consists of 106 leagues, which includes professional leagues at the highest level, down to amateur regional leagues. Promotion and relegation are in place throughout the system.
Women's Rugby union in England cons ...
References
External links
Official website
{{Rugby union in England
English rugby union teams
Rugby clubs established in 1870
Rugby union clubs in Essex
Sports clubs in Southend-on-Sea