Rugby Journal

A quarterly magazine dedicated to the sport of rugby.

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Articles

Brixham - Rugby Journal

2 months ago | therugbyjournal.com | Eleanor Bradley |Alex Mead

Whether earned or not, Brixham’s reputation has occasionally gone before them. “I took a bunch of lads up to Twickenham once,” explains Len Harvey, a club stalwart who’s arrived to add his book of clippings to the piles being sifted through, “and one of them got into an argument in the stands, and somebody shouted, ‘typical bloody Brixham’ – that was from some bloke in London!”Whichever rugby clubhouse you’re in, at whatever level, wherever in the world, tall tales get taller as time passes.
Chinnor RFC - Rugby Journal

2 months ago | therugbyjournal.com | Simon Campbell |James While

Chinnor RFC are a young club. Established in 1963 at the local Bird in Hand pub, the club grew quickly, winning the Oxfordshire Cup in 1977. With the inception of the English league system Chinnor were placed in Bucks and Oxon Division 1, but by 2006 they had achieved promotion to the National Leagues, the youngest club to do so. Progress continued over the next decade, ascending to National 1 in 2018.
Castres - Rugby Journal

Jan 6, 2025 | therugbyjournal.com | Eleanor Bradley |Alex Mead

Born in Montevideo, his mum was a diplomat, which meant he moved to Chile – where he first played rugby, aged four – then back to Uruguay, to Argentina, then back to Uruguay, playing for Carrasco Polo Club, the most successful club side in the country, with 28 championships. He started playing for the national side when he was eighteen, and it was during a tour with Uruguay to Wales that he first had an opportunity in France.
Our Rugby Towns #3 Gwenllian Pyrs

Dec 6, 2024 | therugbyjournal.com | Eleanor Bradley |Alex Mead

Despite being happy with the call-up, it wasn’t without drawbacks. “The first time [I got called up], I actually didn’t really want to go, I was so scared,” she admits. “I had been watching the girls play for Wales, and the thought that I was about to go into the Wales squad and actually train with them, was a bit overwhelming.
Hannah Botterman

Dec 4, 2024 | therugbyjournal.com | Eleanor Bradley |James Price

Hannah is only 25 years old, but she has been part of the furniture of this England side for what feels like forever. First capped in 2017 against Canada when she was only eighteen, she was one of the original players offered a full-time RFU contract just over a year later, so she’s been an ever-present figure in the modern, fully professionalised Red Roses.
Newport RFC - Rugby Journal

Oct 30, 2024 | therugbyjournal.com | Eleanor Bradley |James Price

Three years later, in 1963, Newport had their greatest day. The All Blacks were coming back to Rodney Parade, eleven years on from Brian’s first meeting with them. “I got a call from a Western Mail reporter a few days before the game and he said, ‘do you realise if you win on Wednesday, you will be only the second Welsh player to beat New Zealand, Australia and South Africa in Wales?’ I said, ‘no pressure then’.
Mike Tadjer - Rugby Journal

Oct 23, 2024 | therugbyjournal.com | Eleanor Bradley |James While

One of the features of the Portugal World Cup campaign was how the rugby-watching public embraced the colourful and impressive personalities of their team. The likes of Nicholas Martins, Jeronimo Portela and Raffaele Storti became rugby household names, as did Mike. “For sure, we had players that attracted the attention of the media and became quite relatable as people,” he says.
Matt Kvesic - Rugby Journal

Oct 9, 2024 | therugbyjournal.com | Eleanor Bradley |James Price

When Worcester Warriors went into administration in late September 2022, Matt Kvesic was lost. He’d played over 260 professional club games, he’d been capped by England, but now he was facing redundancy at thirty years old. He didn’t have the safety net of youth. The likes of Ted Hill and Ollie Lawrence were rich with suitors when the Worcester party came to an end; still in their early twenties and with England potential, they were the tastiest morsels for the vulture clubs circling.
Rob Baxter - Rugby Journal

Oct 1, 2024 | therugbyjournal.com | Simon Campbell |Alex Mead

“There’s not many success stories there,” he continues. “We ended up being a success story because we didn’t chase it straightaway. We had loads of opportunities to sell the County Ground before and move into facilities that would never have supported Premiership rugby.” Instead, timing proved impeccable. “Professional rugby happened when we were in the third division, and we built a good team and got promoted,” explains Rob.
Ikey Tigers - Rugby Journal

Sep 23, 2024 | therugbyjournal.com | Eleanor Bradley |Ryan Herman

But in any major sporting event there is usually a standout rivalry, and in Varsity Cup there is one that goes beyond rugby. The University of Cape Town v Stellenbosch (aka Ikeys v Maties) has a history that takes in apartheid, antisemitism, Britain’s most infamous imperialist, as well as some of the best players and coaches in the history of the game.