Ballynahinch RFC
Encyclopedia
| Founded | 1954 |
| Address | Ballymacarn Park, 6 Mountview Road, Ballynahinch, Co Down County Down -Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:... |
| Phone | (+ 44 28) 9756 3063 |
| Website | www.hinchrfc.com |
| President 2009-10 | Alan Montgomery |
| Head Coach | Derek Suffern |
| Assistant Coach | Dan Soper |
| Sports | Rugby Union |
| League | AIB Division 2 AIB League The Ulster Bank All-Ireland League is the national league system for the 48 senior rugby union clubs in Ireland, covering both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is not, however, the highest level of rugby union in Ireland, as teams representing the four provinces of Ireland play... |
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Ballynahinch Rugby Club is an Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
club based in the County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
town of Ballynahinch in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. Founded in 1954, the club is affiliated to the Ulster Branch
Ulster Rugby
Ulster Rugby, usually referred to simply as Ulster, is an Irish professional rugby union team based in Belfast, representing the Irish province of Ulster, that competes in the RaboDirect Pro12 and also competes in the Heineken Cup...
of the Irish Rugby Football Union
Irish Rugby Football Union
The Irish Rugby Football Union is the body managing rugby union in Ireland. The IRFU has its head office at 10/12 Lansdowne Road and home ground at Aviva Stadium, where Irish rugby union international matches are played...
.
The first team currently plays Senior rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
in All Ireland League Division 1B
AIB League
The Ulster Bank All-Ireland League is the national league system for the 48 senior rugby union clubs in Ireland, covering both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is not, however, the highest level of rugby union in Ireland, as teams representing the four provinces of Ireland play...
and the club also fields six Junior standard adult teams. Youth teams compete at under-20, under-18, under-16, under-14 and the mini-rugby levels.
History of Ballynahinch Rugby Club
At a meeting in the local Royal British Legion Hall in April 1954, a dozen people attended and agreed that a club should be formed. An application was made to enter the Junior League for the 1954-55 season. The application was accepted by the Ulster BranchUlster Rugby
Ulster Rugby, usually referred to simply as Ulster, is an Irish professional rugby union team based in Belfast, representing the Irish province of Ulster, that competes in the RaboDirect Pro12 and also competes in the Heineken Cup...
.
Membership for the club grew quickly with players coming from all over County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
and the Mournes region. It was at this point that the Club started to gather pace and a pitch was required due to the growing player base. A pitch was rented from a local farmer at Ballykine. Even though the grounds had no changing rooms or showers it did the job of providing Ballynahinch club with a home.
In 1964 the club enjoyed success with the winning of the Ulster Towns Cup
Ulster Towns Cup
The Ulster Towns Cup is a rugby union competition organized by the Ulster branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union.It is confined to teams outside of Belfast...
. The Ulster Junior Cup
Ulster Junior Cup
The Ulster Junior Cup is a rugby union competition for clubs in the Irish province of Ulster that are not considered strong enough to play in the Ulster Senior Cup. It also includes the second teams of the senior clubs...
was won consecutively in 1966 and 1967.
An increasing player and fan base meant that proper grounds were required. In August 1970, at the cost of £6,500, the current playing facilities at Ballymacarn Park were purchased. The 16 acres (64,749.8 m²) site soon had its own clubhouse in front of the 1st XV pitch.
It was from this point that the club grew to field 7 teams. The 1st XV went on to be one of the top teams in Ulster Junior League rugby for the next 10 years.
Senior status
In the early 1990s, Irish rugby underwent changes with the introduction of professionalism. Ballynahinch for many years had campaigned for senior status. An open promotion-and-relegation system was introduced and in 1995 Ballynahinch achieved their goal.As a senior club, they won promotion from All Ireland League Division 4
AIB League
The Ulster Bank All-Ireland League is the national league system for the 48 senior rugby union clubs in Ireland, covering both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is not, however, the highest level of rugby union in Ireland, as teams representing the four provinces of Ireland play...
to Division 3 in 1996-97 season. The following season a further promotion was gained to All Ireland Division 2
AIB League
The Ulster Bank All-Ireland League is the national league system for the 48 senior rugby union clubs in Ireland, covering both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is not, however, the highest level of rugby union in Ireland, as teams representing the four provinces of Ireland play...
.
The 1998-99 season saw the successful run come to an end when they got relegated back to Division 3, only to go back up again after the 2000-01 season. Mid-table finishes were achieved in Division 2 until the 2005-06 when the club was once again relegated to Division 3.
Ballynahinch played Division 2 rugby again in the 2007-08 season, with another mid-table finish after winning promotion in the 2006-07 campaign.
In 2008-09 the club had its most successful season, winning the AIB All-Ireland Cup by beating Division 1 team Cork Constitution in the final, Ulster Senior League, Ulster Senior Cup and promotion to Division 1 of the AIB League
AIB League
The Ulster Bank All-Ireland League is the national league system for the 48 senior rugby union clubs in Ireland, covering both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is not, however, the highest level of rugby union in Ireland, as teams representing the four provinces of Ireland play...
.
Honours
- Ulster Club of the Year (4 Occasions)
- 1998, 2002, 2003, 2009
- AIB All-Ireland Cup (1 win)
- 2009
- AIB League Division 2AIB LeagueThe Ulster Bank All-Ireland League is the national league system for the 48 senior rugby union clubs in Ireland, covering both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is not, however, the highest level of rugby union in Ireland, as teams representing the four provinces of Ireland play...
(1 win)- 2009
- Ulster Senior League (1 win)
- 2009
- Ulster Senior CupUlster Senior CupThe Ulster Senior Cup is a knock-out competition for senior rugby union teams in the province of Ulster.It is administered by Ulster Rugby.The most successful club is Queen's University with 22 wins...
(1 win)- 2009
- Ulster Junior CupUlster Junior CupThe Ulster Junior Cup is a rugby union competition for clubs in the Irish province of Ulster that are not considered strong enough to play in the Ulster Senior Cup. It also includes the second teams of the senior clubs...
(6 wins)- 1st XV - 1966, 1967, 1988, 1992, 1995
- 2nd XV - 2011
- Ulster Towns CupUlster Towns CupThe Ulster Towns Cup is a rugby union competition organized by the Ulster branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union.It is confined to teams outside of Belfast...
(5 wins)- 1964, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1995
- Knutty Crust Cup (3 wins)
- 1985, 1986, 1990
League and Cup Titles for Junior teams and 1st XV League titles before Senior Club Status was gained, are not included.