Gala Rugby Football Club are a 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...

 team based 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...

 in the 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...

, founded in 1875, they play their home games 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...

.

The team currently plays in the Scottish Premiership Division One and 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...

 (the oldest established rugby union league in the world).

Notable players

Gala Rugby Club have provided 44 internationalists to the Scottish national side

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...

.

• Peter Brown (no 8 capped 28 times)
• David Leslie
  David Leslie (rugby union)
  David Leslie is a former Scottish rugby union player. He played for Scotland 32 times between 1975 and 1985. He usually played at number eight, but occasionally at flanker....
  
  
• Jim Aitken
  Jim Aitken
  Jim Aitken is a British businessman and former Scotland international rugby union player. He won 24 international caps and scored one try, playing at loose head prop, between 1977 and 1984, and captained the Scottish Grand Slam side in the 1984 Five Nations Championship.He is now a successful...
  
   (capt 1984 GS & hooker)
• Jock Turner
  Jock Turner
  John "Jock" William Cleet Turner is a former international rugby union player.He was capped twenty times for Scotland between 1966 and 1971, winnings six caps at fly-half, thirteen as a centre and one at fullback...
  
   centre
• Duncan Paterson
  Duncan Paterson
  Duncan Paterson was a Scottish rugby union player. He played at scrum-half, for Gala RFC at club level and was capped at international level for Scotland...
  
   scrum half in late 60s.
• 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....
  
  , born within a mile of Netherdale
• Derek White capped 41 times for Scotland.
• Nathan Hines
  Nathan Hines
  Nathan Hines is an Australian-born Scottish rugby player. He currently plays for ASM Clermont Auvergne...
  
  
• Chris Paterson
  Chris Paterson
  Chris Paterson is a Scotland internationalist who plays for RaboDirect Pro12 side Edinburgh Rugby. He is Scotland’s record cap and points holder with 109 caps and 809 points. Paterson is capable in a range of positions, including fullback, wing and fly-half. In recent years Paterson has played...
  
  
• Noel Kennedy
• John Kennedy
• Colm Reidy
• Malcolm Wilson
• Duncan Paterson
• Tom McMenemy
• John Frame
  John Frame
  John M. Frame is an American philosopher and Calvinist theologian especially noted for his work in epistemology and presuppositional apologetics, systematic theology, and ethics...
  
  
• Jock Turner
  Jock Turner
  John "Jock" William Cleet Turner is a former international rugby union player.He was capped twenty times for Scotland between 1966 and 1971, winnings six caps at fly-half, thirteen as a centre and one at fullback...
  
  
• Billy Hollands
• Arthur Brown
• Nairn McEwan
  Nairn McEwan
  Nairn Alexander MacEwan was a Scottish international rugby player and coach. He played at flanker, and was capped twenty times for Scotland between 1971–75, including a try in the match against in 1972....
  
  
• Ken Lawrie
• Gordon Dickson
• Peter Dods
  Peter Dods
  Peter Dods is a former international rugby union player, who played fullback for Gala and Scotland.He made his international debut against Ireland in the opening match of the 1983 Five Nations. It was a largely disappointing championship for Scotland, but Dods scored 11 points in a 22-12 win over...
  
  
• Michael Dods
• Neil Crooks
• Johnny Gray
• Bob Wilson
• Tom Elliot
  Tom Elliot
  Tom Elliot was a Scottish international rugby union player, who played for and the Lions. He was a prop alongside Hugh McLeod, and was described by Bill McLaren as "a tough rugged son of the soil"....
  
  

In the 1964-5 season, PB Townsend scored 327 points for Gala.

See also

• 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 Premiership Division Two
• 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...
  
  
• Borders Sevens Circuit
  Borders Sevens Circuit
  The Borders Sevens Circuit is the name given to rugby union sevens tournaments that are held annually in the Scottish Borders. It is the oldest Sevens Circuit in the world, with most sevens dating from the 19th century.-Kings of the Sevens:...
  
  
• Rugby union in the Borders

External links

• Galashiels Rugby Football Club - Official website of the Galashiels Rugby Football Club