Streatham-Croydon RFC
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Streatham Rugby | |||
| Full name | Streatham-Croydon Rugby Football Club | ||
| Founded | 1871 | ||
| Location | Thornton Heath, South London, Surrey, England | ||
| Ground(s) | Frant Road | ||
| Capacity | 500 | ||
| League | RFU Surrey 3 | ||
| Official website | |||
| www.scrfc.co.uk | |||
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The Streatham-Croydon Rugby Football Club, is an historic Rugby Union club based at Frant Road, Thornton Heath, in the London Borough of Croydon, currently playing in the RFU Surrey 3 league.
Founded in 1871, Streatham is one of the oldest rugby club in the world. The Club was recently featured in a book titled "London's Oldest Rugby Clubs" by Dick Tyson, published in May 2008.
The Club's heyday was arguably during the late 1960s and 70s, when 9 senior teams and 4 Colts teams were active, combined with an extensive fixture list against top clubs such as Richmond, Bath, Sale, Saracens, London Welsh, London Irish and others.
Former England prop, and later RFU committee man, Jeff Probyn played at Streatham for a number of seasons in the late 1970s before moving to Wasps and gaining his first England cap.
The professional era and the impact of the new RFU league structure through the 1980s and 90s led to a decline in the size of the Club as greater attention was paid to the 1st XV, and the Club's membership struggle coincided with its drop down the National and then London leagues.
However, Streatham currently runs 3 senior men's teams during the season, and owns a private ground in Thornton Heath (close to its original pitches on Streatham Common), comprising 2 pitches (1 floodlit) as well as a large clubhouse and grandstand, along with several squash courts, which are all in the process of extensive refurbishment and renovation as the Club looks to future growth and movement up the league system. Streatham's facilities also host the South London Storm Rugby League Club during the rugby union off-season from April to August.
The Streatham club was featured in a book titled "London's Oldest Rugby Clubs" by Dick Tyson, published in May 2008.
This collaboration between both codes provides Croydon and South London with a thriving rugby centre, offering sporting facilities and coaching to many young players and seniors alike.
