Gold Coast and District Rugby Union
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| Sport | Rugby Union |
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| Jurisdiction | Gold Coast, Australia |
| Abbreviation | GCDRU |
| Founded | 1964 |
| Affiliation | Queensland Rugby Union |
| Regional affiliation | Queensland Country (1978) |
| Headquarters | Albert Park, Broadbeach Waters |
| Official website | |
| www |
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The Gold Coast and District Rugby Union, or GCDRU, is the local governing body for the sport of rugby union on Australia's Gold Coast. The GCRU runs a club rugby competition for men's teams with three senior grades, as well as a junior club competition that caters for teams grouped by age from under 6 to under 17.
Gold Coast representative teams play under the name "Cyclones" in a range of rugby competitions for senior and junior players. The Bond University Rugby Club plays in the Queensland Premier Rugby competition.
The foundation club for rugby union on the Gold Coast was the Gold Coast Eagles. The club was registered with the Queensland Rugby Union (QRU) after a positive response at the initial foundation meeting in late 1964.
A meeting was called to be held at a downstairs room at the old Chevron Hotel. This meeting was attended by people such as Tom Perrin who had represented Australia both in Rugby Union and Rugby League, Nap Palmer, the brother of Brian Palmer the ex Australian Coach, Ken Hughes, Paul Perrin (son of Tom, who played for Australia against Japan and France)...
The Gold Coast team's first season of rugby was in the 1965 Queensland Subbies competition, playing out of Rudd Park in Burleigh Heads. Coached by Paul Perrin and Bob Sinclair, the team went on to win the competition in 1965 and 1966, and finished second in 1967. In 1968, the QRU directed the Gold Coast to play in the Brisbane first grade competition. The team managed to defeat the eventual premiers GPS on their home ground but did not win any other matches for the season. This bad run of results and the logistics of traveling to Brisbane resulted in the Gold Coast team dropping out of all rugby competition in 1969. The club was reformed and rejoined Subbies in 1970.
In 1973, Col Macdonald and Barry Moon proposed the establishment of a second club on the Gold Coast, and the Surfers Paradise Dolphins club was founded in 1974. Coached by ex-Wallaby Alan Ware, the Surfers Paradise club played their first home games on the grounds of The Southport School.
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