Bath RFC
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| Full name | Bath Rugby |
|---|---|
| Union | Somerset RFU |
| Founded | 1865 |
| Location | Bath, Somerset, England |
| Ground(s) | The Recreation Ground (Capacity: 14,509) |
| Chairman | Bruce Craig |
| Director of Rugby | Todd Blackadder |
| Coach(es) | Tabai Matson |
| Captain(s) | Guy Mercer |
| League(s) | Premiership Rugby |
| 2016–17 | 5th |
| Official website | |
| www |
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Bath Rugby (also known as just Bath) is an English professional rugby union club in Bath, Somerset. They play in the English Premiership. The club has won England's domestic competition, the Anglo-Welsh Cup, the Heineken Cup, and the European Challenge Cup.
The club was founded in 1865 as Bath Football Club. The club plays at the Recreation Ground.
Bath Football Club is one of the oldest clubs in existence, having been founded in 1865 by members of Lansdown Cricket Club in Bath (founded 1825) for 'something to do in the winter'. This is the reason why the club colours of the two clubs are identical. With an original home base at North Parade, Bath then led a nomadic existence during the 1800s playing at Claverton Down, Lambridge Meadows, Taylor's Field and Henrietta Park. They then leased a plot of land at Pulteney Meadow where today's Rec stands. With most games played against local opposition: Weston-super-Mare, Gloucester, Clifton and the "Arabs" from Bristol. By the 1890s, Welsh clubs were starting to become regular opponents, with Cardiff and Penarth regularly appearing in the fixture list. With a traditionally lightweight pack, they would suffer regular defeats. The club played its first fixture against overseas opposition in 1907, as Racing Club de Bordelais crossed the Channel to play at the Rec. 1954 saw a first overseas tour by Bath, who beat the French teams St Claude (23–3). Givors (9–6) and Tour du Pin (17–0).
The trip was repeated the following year with wins against St Claude (13–8), Dijon (14–0) and Macon (8–3) as Captain Peter Sibley was the first to develop the ethos for fast, attacking rugby in the Sixties.
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