Penryn RFC
| Full name | Penryn Rugby Football Club |
|---|---|
| Union | RFU |
| Nickname(s) | The Borough |
| Founded | 1872 |
| Region | Cornwall Rugby Football Union |
| Ground(s) | Memorial Ground, Penryn, Cornwall (Capacity: 4,000) |
| Chairman | Alan Mitchell |
| President | Keith Hosen |
| Coach(es) | Dave Levick / Graham Dawe |
| League(s) | Tribute Cornwall/Devon |
| 2015-16 | 13th (relegated from Tribute Western Counties West) |
| Official website | |
| www |
|
Penyrn RFC is a Cornish rugby union club based in the town of Penryn, and is the oldest club side in the county having been formed in 1872. The club currently has 2 senior men's teams (the seconds are known as the Saracens) as well as a ladies team, colts, and multiple mini/youth sides (male and female). Nicknamed "The Borough" the clubs colours are black and red. The men's first team currently plays in Tribute Cornwall/Devon having been relegated from Tribute Western Counties West at the end of 2015-16.
Formed in 1872, Penryn are the oldest club side in Cornwall. The 1960s and 1970s were the glory days for the club as they dominated domestic rugby. This period of dominance began during the 1964-65 season when the club claimed a hat-trick of titles including the South West Merit Table, the Cornwall Knock-out Cup and the Cornwall Sevens Cup. In 1968 they claimed the inaugural Cornwall Cup when they defeated Redruth 5-0 at the Recreation Ground in nearby Falmouth. Between 1968 and 1975, Penryn would appear in six finals, winning the cup five times which included sharing the 1970 cup after a 7-7 draw with St Ives (who also enjoyed great success during the early years of the cup). At the time Penryn were so good that they were picked to face the British and Irish Lions in 1973 (and are still the only English club side to do so), losing 10-38 to the Lions at the Memorial Ground. The glory days would not last forever and the 1975 final victory over Penzance & Newlyn would be the clubs fifth and last Cornwall Cup title, as they began to be overtaken by other clubs in the region such as Redruth and Camborne.
The advent of the Courage leagues in 1987-88 saw Penryn placed in Courage Cornwall/Devon, a regional league ranked at tier 8 of the new league system. Penryn started league rugby well, winning successive league titles in 1989 and 1990 and gaining promotion to South West 2. In 1992 the club gained a third promotion in five seasons when they went up to South West Division 1 - which at tier 5 is the highest league ranking the club have achieved in its history. Early success in the league was counteracted with relegation in 1993 after just one season in South West Division 1. The club would stabilize in South West 2 for the rest of the 1990s but as they moved into the millennium they were relegated to Western Counties West in 2001. Two years later Penryn had one of their best seasons of recent memory as they won all 22 league games in Western Counties West on the way to claiming the title and promotion, scoring over 1,000 points in the process. The club retained momentum the following season as they finished runners up in South West 2 West, qualifying for a promotion playoff which they won 23-19, away to South West 2 East runners up Swanage and Wareham.
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