Hartpury University
Full nameHartpury University Rugby Football Club
UnionGloucestershire RFU
Founded2004 (2004)
LocationHartpury, Gloucestershire, England
Ground(s)ALPAS Arena (Capacity: 2,000)
Coach(es)Mark Cornwell
Captain(s)Jean-Baptiste Bruzulier
Will Crane
League(s)RFU Championship
2022–237th
Team kit
Official website
www.hartpury.ac.uk/rugby/

Hartpury University RFC is an English rugby union club. The men's first team play in the second tier of the English rugby union league system, the RFU Championship, having won promotion from National League 1 at the end of the 2016–17 season.

The club is based at Hartpury University in Gloucestershire, England, and is made up primarily of the college's students and staff.[1] Hartpury University share a close relationship with Premiership Rugby side Gloucester, who use Hartpury's facilities as their permanent training base and provide a small number of academy players, all of whom are current or recently departed students, to supplement the Hartpury University team. Several Hartpury University players have gone on to play for Gloucester and other professional teams.[2] They also jointly run the Gloucester-Hartpury Women team in Women's Super Rugby.

History

Hartpury College Rugby Academy was formed in September 2000 in partnership with Gloucester Rugby, consisting of a University side that competed in the BUCS league system and under-18 teams. In 2004, The college's vision of a Saturday side came to fruition, and became known as Hartpury College RFC.

Women's rugby: Hartpury v Royal Navy match, May 2017

Starting in the eleventh tier of the league pyramid, Hartpury lost their first ever match in the Gloucester Three North league. That was to be the last time that the club lost a league match until 2009, when they lost to Thornbury after four consecutive promotions, an EDF Junior Vase and an EDF Senior Vase. That setback did not prevent Hartpury from gaining further promotions to National League 1. During this time the team both the level six Champions Cup and EDF Intermediate Cup at Twickenham. In the 2016–17 season, their third at Level 3, Hartpury created history in winning National League 1 with a 100% record — winning all thirty of their fixtures and only twice failing to secure a four-try bonus point.

As a result, the club now play in the Greene King IPA Championship. The first season saw them finish in 10th place, but comfortably clear of relegation. The finish continued Hartpury's remarkable record of having improved their final league position in every single year of their existence.

Honours

Current standings

2023–24 RFU Championship Table
Club Played Won Drawn Lost Points for Points against Points diff Try bonus Losing bonus Points
1Ealing Trailfinders76012811421396131
2Coventry8503266183837027
3Cornish Pirates7502216145714125
4Doncaster Knights8503229210194125
5Bedford Blues7502252170824024
6Nottingham8404229252-236022
7Ampthill8404225228-35122
8Hartpury8305205237-323217
9Caldy7304165251-864016
10Cambridge9108187373-1864311
11London Scottish7106129193-64239
  • 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 Champions (qualify for Promotion play-off if eligible).
Red background will be relegated (there is no relegation this season).
Updated: 13 January 2024
Source: "The Championship". England Rugby.

Current squad

The Hartpury University squad for the 2022–23 season is:[3]

Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.

Player Position Union
Will Crane (cc) Hooker England England
Luke Stratford Hooker England England
Harry Fry Prop Wales Wales
Peter McCabe Prop Ireland Ireland
Sam Rodman Prop England England
Mitch Walsh Prop England England
Jack Davies Lock England England
Dale Lemon Lock England England
Manasa Cakau Back row Fiji Fiji
Iain Grieve Back row England England
Xavier Hastings Back row England England
Oli Robinson Back row England England
Harry Short Back row England England
Aled Ward Back row Wales Wales
Player Position Union
Jean-Baptiste Bruzulier (cc) Scrum-half Wales Wales
Oscar Lennon Scrum-half England England
Charlie Foley Fly-half England England
Tommy Mathews Fly-half England England
Luke Eves Centre England England
Robbie Smith Centre England England
Jack Tovey Centre England England
James Williams Centre England England
Ben Foley Wing England England
Sam Goatley Wing England England
Matthew McNab Wing Zimbabwe Zimbabwe
Alex Forrester Fullback England England
George Simpson Fullback England England

    Notable former players

    James Merriman ( Bristol)

    References

    1. ↑ Team Homepage. Pitchero.com. Accessed 24 March 2012.
    2. ↑ Hartpury College RFC. Schoolsrugby.co.uk. Accessed 24 March 2012.
    3. ↑ "Team". Hartpury RFC. 22 September 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
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