Swansea University Rugby Football Club is a Welsh amateur

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

club based at

Swansea University Swansea University () is a public university, public research university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. It was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. In 1996, it chang ...

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

. It competes in the

BUCS British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS; ) is the governing body for higher education sport in the United Kingdom. Founded in 2008, BUCS is responsible for organising 54 inter-university sports in the United Kingdom, as well as represe ...

Rugby Union Super Rugby League as of the 2021/2022 season. The club has experienced major success, winning the UAU Championship six times and the BUSA Championship twice. Swansea are also the current champions of Wales having won the 2022 Welsh Varsity in the Freshers, Women's and Men's varsity match. The club was formed in 1920. They currently train at the Sketty Lane 3G rugby pitches, in

History

Formation and early history

University College Swansea was formed in 1920 and the rugby playing students soon organised themselves into an active club. Although other Welsh University Colleges at

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth (; ) is a University town, university and seaside town and a community (Wales), community in Ceredigion, Wales. It is the largest town in Ceredigion and from Aberaeron, the county's other administrative centre. In 2021, the popula ...

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

and Bangor had been well established for many years previous,

soon proved, during the first twenty years of its existence, that it was one of the most successful and leading rugby playing universities in

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

and England. By 1930 the relatively small and tight knit campus of approximately 400 students was benefiting from the influx of players produced by local rugby playing schools. Young student players came from such areas as

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, ; , 'Merlin's fort' or possibly 'Sea-town fort') is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community (Wales), community in Wales, lying on the River Towy north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. At the 2021 United Kingdom cen ...

Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...

, Gwendraeth Valley,

Amman Valley Amman Valley may refer to: *The valley that hosts Downtown Amman *The valley of the River Amman * Amman Valley Hospital *Amman Valley Railway * Amman Valley Railway Society *Amman Valley School Ysgol Dyffryn Aman ( Amman Valley School) is a bilin ...

Gowerton Gowerton ( ) is a large village and community, about northwest of Swansea city centre, Wales. Gowerton is often known as the gateway to the Gower Peninsula. Gowerton's original name was Ffosfelin. The village falls within the Gowerton electora ...

Neath Neath (; ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,2 ...

and

Port Talbot Port Talbot (, ) is a town and community (Wales), community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, situated on the east side of Swansea Bay, approximately from Swansea. The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which d ...

as well as

. Rugby fixtures were played against neighbouring "second class" clubs but the 'bread and butter' competitions were provided by the University of Wales Championship. This progressed through to the University Athletic Association (U.A.U.) competition which included the best of the English Universities. Until the establishment of the Sketty Lane playing fields around 1936, facilities were provided on the Singleton Campus and at St. Helens, the home of Swansea RFC.

1930s

The 1930s proved to be a "golden era" with a number of student players and university teams gaining unprecedented success. In 1929 the College XV include three players who would later achieve great distinction by captaining

at senior level – Watcyn Thomas, Claude Davy and Idwal Rees. Later, student Haydn Tanner (1936–1939) also captained his country in the post World War II period. He became a

British Lion British Lion or British Lions may refer to: * British Lion, a national symbol of Great Britain Sport * British & Irish Lions, a touring side playing rugby union, known until 2001 as the British Lions * Great Britain national rugby league team, fo ...

(1938) and one of the few players to represent his country before and after the war. When

Swansea RFC Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Super Rygbi Cymru. The club play at St Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea and are also known as ''The Whites,'' in reference to their home kit colours. History ...

(the "All Whites") defeated

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in 1935, six

students (past and present) played in the "All Whites" three-quarter line – Granville Davies, Ronnie Williams, Gwyn Griffiths, Clause Davey, W TH Davies and Haydn Tanner. Not surprisingly, with such playing talent available,

proved to be an exceptionally successful team in the U.A.U. Championship. They were winners in 1933, 34, 35, 36, 37 – losing finalists in 1938 and champions again in 1939 after defeating

Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood (borough), Charnwood Borough of Leicestershire, England; it is the administrative centre of Charnwood Borough Council. At the United Kingdom 2021 census, the town's built-up area had a popula ...

by six points to three at Cheltenham, under the captaincy of Sid Harris. By the outbreak of World War II Swansea had deservedly gained a reputation for being one of the foremost colleges in England and

– a reputation achieved in a short period of time and with comparatively few students. The U.A.U. Championship was cancelled at the outbreak of hostilities but the College still continued to field a XV with students who were allowed to continue their studies and supplemented by those evacuated to Swansea from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

Post-war

In the immediate post-war period returning service men soon helped to re-establish the College's reputation on the rugby field whilst also creating a strong social ethos. The University of Wales Championship was again won in 1946/47 and 1947/48. Viv Davies captained the side in 1948/49 and later went on to give stalwart service to

as a player and administrator. However, in the 1940s and 50s the U.A.U. Championship trophy eluded Swansea until 1965 when, captained by Glyn Morgan, they shared the title with

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

. During this period three former students, Alun Thomas (Wales and British Lions), Ken Richards and Brian Davies were "capped" for their country.

1970s

By the 1970s the venue of the U.A.U. Final had been established at

Twickenham Twickenham ( ) is a suburban district of London, England, on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historic counties of England, Historically in Middlesex, since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, who ...

, the headquarters of the

RFU The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby (WR) in 1886. It prom ...

. This helped the Championship gain extra kudos and it was not long before Swansea made its first appearance there in 1973, losing to a strong

side. In 1976 the 1st XV again reached the Final, along with 2nd and 3rd XV, indicating the strength in depth that was developing in Swansea.

1980s and 1990s

During the 1980s and 90s there was a hint of another "golden era" when Swansea University 1st XV appeared in four consecutive Finals from 1988 to 1991, but with no victory. In 1995 Swansea again reached the Final of the now newly named

British Universities Sports Association British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS; ) is the sports governing body, governing body for higher education sport in the United Kingdom. Founded in 2008, BUCS is responsible for organising 54 inter-university sports in the United King ...

(BUSA) championship, which included an increased number of "newer" universities. In a magnificent game against West London Institute (now

Brunel University Brunel University of London (BUL) is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It is named after Isambard Kingdom Brunel, a Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution. It became a university ...

), and in spite of scoring four tries to one against the opposition, Swansea were pipped by 31 points to 30. As if not to be deterred, there were successful returns to the BUSA Twickenham finals in 1998 and 1999 when Swansea carried off the trophy in two successive years under the captaincy of Ben Williams (1998) and Ben Martin (1999). The 2nds XV also won their BUSA Final in 1999. It is not surprising that during the successful times of the 1980s and 90s, when Swansea was again regarded as one of the best university teams in England and Wales, some outstanding players were attracted to study at Swansea. There were excellent opportunities for development. Mark Wyatt progressed from 3rd XV Captain to 1st XV Captain and on to play full back for

and

. Over twenty students went on to represent

and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. Also, Mark Schieffler and English born Mark Williams played for

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whilst Ed Macedo played for

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. Paul Throrburn and Robert Howley both captained

, whilst in addition to Robert Howley, Gwyn Evans,

Dafydd James Dafydd Rhys James (born 24 July 1975) is a Welsh former rugby union footballer who played on the wing or in the centre. He toured with the British & Irish Lions in 2001. James was born in Mufulira, Zambia, but earned 48 caps for Wales and three ...

Dwayne Peel Dwayne John Peel (born 31 August 1981) is a Welsh rugby union coach and former player. He was the most capped scrum-half for the Wales national rugby union team with 76 caps, until his record was surpassed by Mike Phillips on 16 March 2013. Yo ...

, Stephen Jones and

Alun Wyn Jones Alun Wyn Jones (born 19 September 1985) is a Welsh former rugby union player who played as a lock. He played most of his career for Ospreys and for the Wales national team. He is the world's most-capped rugby union player, with 158 caps f ...

became

British and Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England national rugby union team, England, Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland, Scotland national rugby union team, Scotland, and ...

. At a lower, but no means insignificant level, Swansea students regularly gained selection for leading Welsh clubs, Wales U21, Wales Students and Wales Universities., while a considerable number continued their studies at

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

and won "blues". Regular fixtures were played against "

Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of the University of Oxford, Universities of Oxford and University of Cambridge, Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most prestigious universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collect ...

" teams. In the early days of the WRU Challenge Cup competition the University side played

and

Glamorgan Wanderers Glamorgan Wanderers are a Welsh rugby union club based in Ely, west Cardiff in Wales. The club is located just to the north of Western Cemetery. They currently play in the WRU Admiral Championship. Glamorgan Wanderers began as the Old Monkt ...

at Sketty Lane and Newport at Rodney Parade. These games added colour to the fixture list. In 2002 the University reached the final of the Heineken Students European Championship, and played against French side, University of Pau at St. Helen's.

2000s

Since the turn of the new millennium Swansea has again laid down markers indicating its strength and depth as a rugby playing university. With the 1st XV competing at the highest level of

rugby and the ever growing Welsh Varsity being the highlight of the season against local neighbours

the Club is striving to develop to the highest levels in the post professionalisation era. With internationals

(2006), Jonathan Spratt (2009) and U20s Ciaran Ruddock (2009) all hailing from

, great successes in the Welsh Varsity and the continuing high levels of play found throughout all teams at the university, it seems that new life has been breathed into the Club and a new era in Swansea proud history is beginning. It is not only on the playing side of Swansea students have excelled for many have reached the top echelons of rugby officiating and administration. Chris White is a former international referee who officiated at three Rugby World Cups and has been in charge of three Heineken Cup Finals. Former 1930s and 40s students Gwyn Roblin, Hermas Evans and Alun Thomas became presidents of the

Welsh Rugby Union The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU; ) is the governing body of rugby union in the country of Wales, recognised by the sport's international governing body, World Rugby. The WRU is responsible for the running of rugby in Wales, overseeing 320 member clu ...

. Hermas and Raynor Jones also both chaired the

International Rugby Football Board World Rugby is the governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international competit ...

(IRB). Ex-Wales international Mark Bennet also went on to become the fitness coach of the Wales national team. Richard Lancaster, Head coach of the team during one of its most successful periods in recent times has gone on to coach the Ospreys Under 20s and is currently Head Coach at

Over the years the University Rugby Football Club has been well served and supported by students and staff. Amongst the latter, the contributions of Vernon Jones, I G Evans, Professor Bryn Gravenor, Professor David Herbert, Dr David Treharne, Roger Elias, Gei Lewis, Richard Lancaster, Stan Addicott and Professor Steve Mellalieu have made valuable contributions to the Club, alongside those committee member David Matthews has also been a bastion of great support. The constant interest of the Athletic Union is very much appreciated. Nowadays, with excellent sporting facilities at Sketty Lane, a growing student population of over 10,000 and with four teams regularly representing the University in university championships, the Rugby Club continues to thrive and provide both competitive and social opportunities for students.

Coaching staff

1st XV

Director of Rugby and Forwards Coach: Hugh Gustafson Head Coach and Backs Coach: Joe Thomas (rugby union) Strength and Conditioning Coach: Tom Jones Defensive Coach Joe Grabham Team Manager: Steff Jones

2nd XV

Head Coach and Forwards Coach: Huw Sutton Backs Coach: Max Naggy Team Manager: Steff Jones

3rd XV

Forwards Coach: Chris Paddison Team Manager and Head Coach: Hamish Minton Backs Coach: Garin "Meathead" Lloyd

4th XV

Head Coach and Forwards Coach: Max Harris Team Manager and Backs Coach: Jocko Dowdall

Club Captains

1st XV : William Joseph Rees 1st XV Peoples Captain: Tom Furtado Mills 2nd XV : Finn Thomas 3rd XV : Will Field 4th XV : Max Harris 5th XV : James Price Barbarian Captain : SGC

Club Officials

Club Captain : Dafydd Evans Junior Club Captain : George Buckle Treasurer : Joe Charlesworth Secretary : Fin Yallop Social Secretary : Ruari Jones & Ruari Barton Charity Officers : Dan Greenway & Ethan Ranson

Welsh Varsity Match

Each year

and

Cardiff University Cardiff University () is a public research university in Cardiff, Wales. It was established in 1883 as the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire and became a founding college of the University of Wales in 1893. It was renamed Unive ...

clash in the Welsh Varsity Match. The inaugural match was played in 1997 at the

Cardiff Arms Park Cardiff Arms Park (), also known as The Arms Park, is primarily a rugby union stadium, and also has a bowling green. It is situated in Cardiff, Wales, next to the Millennium Stadium. The Arms Park was host to the 1958 British Empire and Common ...

, the home of

Cardiff RFC Cardiff Rugby Football Club () is a rugby union club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876Parry-Jones (1989), pg 59 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, shortly after which relocating to Ca ...

. In its early years of the Varsity, the match was held alternately between St Helen's Rugby Ground and the

, until 2003, where the match was moved to the neutral venue

Brewery Field Dunraven Brewery Field () is an 8,000 (1,100 seated) capacity sports stadium in Bridgend, Wales. It is the home ground of the rugby union team Bridgend Ravens. Bridgend Athletic RFC often use the ground for their home matches, as well as the ...

, the home of

Bridgend RFC Bridgend Ravens () (formerly Bridgend RFC) are a semi-professional rugby union club based in Bridgend, South Wales. They currently play in Super Rygbi Cymru and are a feeder club to the Ospreys (rugby union), Ospreys regional team. Origin B ...

. The match was then held at the home of

for 3 seasons between 2007 and 2009. After outgrowing the Arms Park, the match was moved to Swansea's

Liberty Stadium The Swansea.com Stadium (; formerly Liberty Stadium) is an all-seated multi-use sports stadium and conferencing venue located in the Landore area of Swansea, Wales, hosting both rugby union and football. The stadium opened in 2005 and was name ...

. Swansea have dominated the event, winning 9 out of the 14 previous matches, drawing only once in 2001. The Rugby Club can boast to have had some of Wales' most talented young players donning the Green and White of Swansea, ranging from the British & Irish Lion

who helped Swansea gain victory in the 2005, to Welsh International Jonathan Spratt helping Swansea to victory in the 2007 match as well as Professional players such as the Ospreys' Ben Lewis, the

Scarlets The Scarlets () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby c ...

' Rhys Lawrence and Wales 7s player David Evans. The Varsity match has become the highlight to the University sporting calendar year, with the match regularly attracting over 10,000 supporters, that include students, university staff, parents and officials. Due to its popularity among students and rugby fans alike, the latest Varsity, the 15th annual match, took place at the home of Welsh Rugby, the

Millennium Stadium The Millennium Stadium (), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium () for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it has a retractable roof and is the home of the Wales national rugby union team; it has ...

. The 2011 Match was also broadcast live on

S4C S4C (, ''Sianel Pedwar Cymru'', meaning ''Channel Four Wales'') is a Welsh language free-to-air public broadcast television channel. Launched on 1 November 1982, it was the first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speakin ...

, while also featuring on

BBC Wales BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcasting, public broadcaster in Wales. It is one of the four BBC national regions, alongside the BBC English Regions, BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Scotland. Established in 1964, ...

Scrum V ''Scrum V'' (pronounced ''Scrum Five'') is the brand used by BBC Cymru Wales for its rugby union programming. The brand extends to BBC Wales' live coverage, ''Scrum V Live'', highlights and discussion programmes, radio discussion and website. T ...

programme.

Honours

UAU Champions

1932–1933 1933–1934 1935–1936 1936–1937 1938–1939 1964–1965

BUSA Champions

1997–1998 1998–1999

International honours

Haydn Tanner – Wales and British & Irish Lions Gwyn Evans – Wales and British & Irish Lions Alun Thomas – Wales and British & Irish Lion Rob Howley – Wales and British & Irish Lions Dafydd James – Wales and British & Irish Lions Alun Wyn Jones – Wales and British & Irish Lions Dwayne Peel – Wales and British & Irish Lions Watcyn Thomas Claude Davy Idwal Rees Ken Richards Brian Davies Mark Wyatt Paul Thorburn Mark Bennett David Weatherley Andy Williams Ian Buckett Richie Pugh Tal Selley Jonathan Spratt Adedayo Adebayo Mark Williams Mark Schieffler Ed Macedo William De Robillard Saman Rezapour Anton Agassi Steve Howorth Theo Skagias Daniel Apsee Rhodri Apsee Joseph Greaves Tom Kaijaks Zac Cinnamond Jonny Rees Will Veys David Evans

Age Grade International honours

Colin Langley –Wales u15 Wales u18 Wales u21 Mark Langley – Wales u21 Daniel George – Wales u21 Andrew Grabham – Wales u21 Neil Hennessy – Wales u21 Gareth Thomas – Wales u21 Joel Galley – Wales u20 Rhys Lawrence – Wales u20 Reuben Tucker – Wales u20 Steff Hughes – Wales u20 Connor Lloyd – Wales u20 Nicky Thomas – Wales u20 Ciaran Ruddock – Ireland u20 Morgan Jones – Wales u20 Lewis Jones – Wales u20 Garin Lloyd – Wales u20 Louis Fletcher – Wales u20 Wills Austin – Wales u20 Will Plessis – Wales u20 Fraser Jones – Wales u19 David Francis – Wales u19 Tom Bogemann – Netherlands u20 Theo Currie – Scotland u20 Freddie Drake Lee - Scotland u19

References

{{Rugby union in Wales Rugby union teams in Wales Sport at Swansea University University and college rugby union in the United Kingdom