Barnes
Full nameBarnes Rugby Football Club
UnionMiddlesex RFU, Surrey RFU
Foundedc. 1920 (as Harrodians RFC)[1]
LocationBarnes, Richmond upon Thames, London, England
Ground(s)Barn Elms (Capacity: 1,000)
ChairmanMichael Whitfield
League(s)National League 2 East
2022–232nd
1st kit
2nd kit
Official website
www.barnesrfc.org

Barnes Rugby Football Club (formerly Harrodians Rugby Football Club) is a rugby union club based in Barnes, London. The club currently play in the fourth tier of the English league system, National League 2 East, following an increase of fourth tier leagues from two to three.

History

The club's website states that it was established in Barnes in the 1920s.[1] For many years the club played at the Harrodian Club before moving to its Barn Elms location in 1987 when the grounds were sold to form a school.[1] Barnes RFC first XV has been promoted eight times since being positioned in Surrey Division Three in 1987. The club changed its name from Harrodians to Barnes at the beginning of the 1992–93 season.

Claim of continuity with Barnes Football Club

In 2002, the club's website claimed continuity with Barnes Football Club, stating that "[o]ur earliest recorded match was November 1862 versus Richmond, played at Barn Elms. We won that match and the replay that followed. For many years we played as Harrodians RFC before moving to our Barn Elms location in 1987."[2] In 2005, this claim was amplified in The Daily Telegraph by BBC sports presenter John Inverdale. Inverdale, who stated that he was "[f]or reasons that I'm not altogether clear about, ... one of a number of vice-presidents" of Barnes RFC, wrote that "in 1839, according to the club records, Barnes RFC were born, playing fixtures against a whole mish-mash of teams of which no match results have been kept."[3]

In 2008, the rugby club's website weakened this claim, stating only that "Barnes Rugby Club is a club with a rich history and was established in Barnes in the 1920s. Although there are indeed possibilities that our earliest recorded match was in November 1862 versus Richmond and played at Barn Elms, it is from the 1920s that our true history is clear."[4] As of 2018, similar wording remains on the current version of the rugby club's website.[1]

Honours

Current standings

2023–24 National League 2 East Table
Played Won Drawn Lost Points for Points against Points diff Try bonus Losing bonus Points
1Esher14120254732022711261
2Dorking14111253232221011158
3Bury St Edmunds1411124772831948054
4Henley Hawks141013434352829152
5Barnes1410044733301438452
6Tonbridge Juddians14716425378479342
7Canterbury14707435382538339
8Old Albanian13607387364237334
9Sevenoaks14617343397-544333
10Westcombe Park14419414454-4010533
11Guernsey Raiders13409286391-1056224
12Worthing Raiders143011372509-1377322
13Wimbledon132011322488-1668319
14North Walsham130013130607-477000
  • If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order:
  1. Number of matches won
  2. Difference between points for and against
  3. Total number of points for
  4. Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams
  5. Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled
Green background is the promotion place. Pink background are relegation places.
Updated: 6 January 2024

Source: National League 2 East RFU [5]

Notes

  1. Won when club was known as Harrodians RFC.
  2. Both titles won when club was known as Harrodians RFC – 1988–89 title was for Surrey 2A.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Barnes RFC History".
  2. "About BRFC". Archived from the original on 10 August 2002. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  3. Inverdale, John (2 November 2005). "My assumptions about 'oldest' were confounded by Barnes". The Daily Telegraph.
  4. "Barnes RFC - a club going places!". Archived from the original on 15 February 2008. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  5. "National League 2 East". England Rugby.

51°28′30″N 0°14′13″W / 51.47500°N 0.23694°W / 51.47500; -0.23694

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