Border Reivers (Rugby) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

See also Border Reivers
Border Reivers
Border Reivers were raiders along the Anglo–Scottish border from the late 13th century to the beginning of the 17th century. Their ranks consisted of both Scottish and English families, and they raided the entire border country without regard to their victims' nationality...

for the historical background.

Border Reivers, originally known as 'Scottish Borders Rugby' and also known as 'The Borders' were one of four professional 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...

teams in Scotland, alongside Edinburgh, Caledonia Reds

Caledonia Reds

Caledonia Reds were a Scottish rugby union district team who participated in the precursor to the Celtic League and in two seasons of the Heineken Cup. They represented one of four districts of Scotland, covering the North and Midlands Caledonia Reds were a Scottish rugby union district team who...

and Glasgow Warriors

Glasgow Warriors

The Glasgow Warriors, formerly Glasgow Rugby, are one of two professional rugby union teams in Scotland, Edinburgh being the other. They play in the RaboDirect Pro12 and their home ground is Firhill Stadium, also the home of Partick Thistle Football Club.-History:Glasgow Rugby were created to...

.

Border Reivers were active in the Celtic League

Celtic League (rugby union)

The Celtic League is an annual rugby union competition involving professional sides from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....

, Celtic Cup and the Heineken Cup

Heineken Cup

The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...

from 2002 until 2007 when, as part of the Scottish Rugby Union's

Scottish Rugby Union

The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...

cost cutting measures, they were disbanded. They played their home matches at Netherdale

Netherdale

Netherdale, is an area of Galashiels, a town in the Scottish Borders.It is perhaps best known as being the home of Gala Rugby Club, Gala Fairydean Football Club and more recently the professional Border Reivers rugby union team. Gretna F.C...

(capacity circa 6,000) in Galashiels

Galashiels

Galashiels is a burgh in the Scottish Borders, on the Gala Water river. The name is often shortened to "Gala" .Galashiels is a major commercial centre for the Scottish Borders...

, Scottish Borders

Scottish Borders

The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...

Rugby union in the Borders Regions

Borders Rugby has many long and proud traditions. The Border League

Border League

For the defunct baseball league, see Border League The Border League, is the oldest established rugby union league in the World, having been formed in 1901...

was the first rugby union

Rugby union

league to be set up anywhere in the world, and a select South team used to regularly compete against Touring sides from the Southern Hemisphere

Southern Hemisphere

The Southern Hemisphere is the part of Earth that lies south of the equator. The word hemisphere literally means 'half ball' or "half sphere"...

.

Many Borders clubs have helped train and nurture many of Scotland’s

Scotland national rugby union team

The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...

current internationals.

Border Reivers and Borders Rugby

When the Heineken Cup was suggested SRU officials were concerned that the existing and long established Scottish semi-professional club sides could not compete against the best teams from France and England and that by establishing district sides they would be more capable of advancing Professionalism within Scottish Rugby.

Scottish Borders Rugby was created in the South district to compete in the Heineken Cup

Heineken Cup

.

Then financial difficulties - the SRU's high debt, partly as a result of the redevelopment of Murrayfield

Murrayfield Stadium

Murrayfield Stadium is a sports stadium located in the west end of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Its all-seater capacity was recently reduced from 67,800 to 67,130 to incorporate the largest permanent "big screen" in the country though it still remains the largest stadium in Scotland and one...

- called for retrenchment. After two seasons, financial difficulties forced the Union to merge the four teams into two. The now renamed "Border Reivers" merged with Edinburgh to form a team to be known as Edinburgh Reivers, causing outrage with many Border

Scottish Borders

rugby fans.

They were resurrected in 2002 as 'The Borders' and joined the second season of the Celtic League

Celtic League (rugby union)

The Celtic League is an annual rugby union competition involving professional sides from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....

.

Since their return as a team in 2002, the Borders failed to challenge for the Celtic League

Celtic League (rugby union)

The Celtic League is an annual rugby union competition involving professional sides from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....

title, however they performed well during the 2005/06, finishing mid-table.

Disbandment

On 27 March 2007, Scottish Rugby Union

Scottish Rugby Union

The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...

announced the Reivers were to disband at the end of the season as a cost-cutting exercise http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/scottish/6498449.stm. Many fans and sections of the Scottish media

Scottish media

Scottish media has a long and distinct history. Scotland has a wide range of different types and quality of media.-Television:BBC Scotland runs two national television stations...

have claimed that the Reivers have suffered due to SRU's

Scottish Rugby Union

The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...

determination, despite poor crowds and results, to make rugby a success in Glasgow

Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

(a city traditionally where Football

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

has always been the most popular sport). At the end of the 2006/07 season several Borders players transferred to Glasgow Warriors

Glasgow Warriors

.

Following the decision by the SRU to disband the Borders Reivers, the Border Reivers Action Group was formed to fight against the disbandment.

However in April 2007, the Borders Rugby Action Group conceded defeat as the SRU insisted there would be no finance available from the governing body. The action group pledged an attempt to resurrect the team in 2008; however no such attempt was made.http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/my_club/borders/6567403.stm

Notable Former players

Ross Ford

Ross William Ford is a professional rugby union player who plays as hooker for both Edinburgh and Scotland. He signed for Edinburgh after starting his professional career with the Border Reivers, but after the Reivers disbandment in the summer of 2007, Ford was left without a club...

(Hooker) Bruce Douglas

Bruce Douglas (rugby union)

Bruce Andrew Ferguson Douglas is a Scottish rugby union footballer. He plays as a prop, and had been signed with French top 14 club Montpellier Herault from July 2008 up until March 2010 when it was confirmed that he was signed with Worcester Warriors...

(Prop) Gavin Kerr

Gavin Kerr

Gavin Kerr is a retired rugby union footballer who played prop, he played international rugby for Scotland. He played club rugby for Leeds Tykes , the defunct Border Reivers, Edinburgh and Sale Sharks...

(Prop) Scott MacLeod

Scott MacLeod

Scott MacLeod is a Scottish rugby union footballer. He currently plays as a lock for Edinburgh and the Scottish national team....

(Lock) Opeta Palepoi

Opeta Palepoi

Opeta Palepoi is a Samoan rugby union footballer, with 48 caps. He currently plays for Scottish side Gala RFC. He has previously played for Glasgow Warriors, Border Reivers and English club Harlequins. He is 1.95m tall and weighs 106kg. He was also a part of the Samoa squad at the 2003 Rugby World...

(Lock) Doddie Weir

Doddie Weir

George "Doddie" Weir, born 4 July 1970 in Edinburgh, is a Rugby Union player, in the lock position.George Weir started playing rugby for Stewarts Melville RFC, his former school, in Edinburgh. He studied at the Scottish Agricultural College, gaining an HND, from 1988-1991 . He moved to Melrose RFC...

(Lock) Kelly Brown

Kelly Brown (rugby player)

Kelly Brown is a Scottish rugby union player, who plays for Scotland's national side, and for Saracens F.C. as a flanker.Brown made his debut for the national side on June 5, 2005, in a match against where he scored a try...

(Flanker) Semo Sititi

Semo Sititi

Semo Sititi is a rugby union footballer in Samoa. He was born in Moto'otua.-Career:He is a flanker and currently plays for Ricoh in Japan, having previously played for Celtic League side Border Reivers and Manu Samoa internationally. He made his test debut in 1999 against Japan in Apia, Samoa...

(No.8) Gary Armstrong

Gary Armstrong

Gary Armstrong is a former Scottish rugby union player who played scrum-half. He played for Jed-Forest RFC, Newcastle Falcons, The Borders and represented Scotland and the British Lions. His nickname is the Border Terrier...

(Scrum Half, retired 2004) Chris Cusiter

Chris Cusiter

Christopher Peter Cusiter is a Scottish rugby union player who plays at scrum-half. Cusiter played for the British and Irish Lions in their 2005 tour of New Zealand. Originally from Aberdeen, where he attended Robert Gordon's College, he now plays for Glasgow Warriors. He left the Border Reivers...

(Scrum Half) Gregor Townsend

Gregor Townsend

Gregor Peter John Townsend MBE is a former Scottish rugby union player who played at fly-half, full back and latterly centre....

(Fly Half) Tanner Vili

Tanner Vili

Tanner Vili is a Samoan rugby union footballer. He plays as a fly-half and full backHe played for Samoa at the 1999 Rugby World Cup and 2003 Rugby World Cup....

(Fly Half/Full Back) Nick De Luca

Nick De Luca

Nick De Luca is a Scottish internationalist professional rugby union player. He currently plays club rugby for Edinburgh Rugby in the RaboDirect Pro12.-Club rugby:...

(Centre) Ben MacDougall

Ben MacDougall

Ben MacDougall is an Australian professional rugby league player and former Rugby Union international. He primarily plays in the centres....

(Centre) Simon Danielli

Simon Danielli

Simon Charles Jonathan Danielli is a professional rugby union player who plays on the wing for Ulster and Scotland.-Early life:...

(Wing) Nikki Walker

Nikki Walker

Nikki Walker is a rugby union footballer who plays on the wing for the Ospreys and Scotland. Walker has cemented a regular starting place with The Ospreys at the Liberty Stadium. He and opposite-wing Shane Williams have created an exciting "Little and Large" combination that utilises their...

(Wing)

External links

Official site
Unofficial Supporters Club site
Borders secure Heineken spot with record victory - The Scotsman, May 27, 2006
Border Reivers video vault on Channel XV
Scottish rugby union fans forum
savebordersrugby.com

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