Bridgnorth RFC

I have been a Member of Bridgnorth RFC since 1962.

I have had various roles over the years from Groundsman to President and had my last game at 71.

As mini and junior Chairman I coached a very young farmers son called Mark Keyworth.

Our Chairman was Edgar Mervyn Davies from Swansea who persuaded our Bank Manager to become President and when he retired Edgar became President himself for the next 40 years. Bridgnorth won the Newport (Shropshire) Cup for the first time that year. Edgar became President of Shropshire then was elected to the North Midlands committee. He arranged a Shropshire tour to Holland only for them to beat the Holland National side.

In 1962 there wasn’t much for young men to do, a drug culture was creeping in, but two schoolmasters at the Oldbury Wells school, proposed Rugby as a solution.

The Club was founded on 5th January 1962 by Phil Bladen and Roy Colburn of Oldbury Wells School. Phil Bladen together with Roy Colburn and Phil a serving RAF fitness Instructor “obtained” a set of black and white hooped jerseys from the RAF which served the Club well for a couple of seasons.

The best team in the World were the All-Blacks from New Zealand and as the Club grew and more new shirts were required.

As single colour shirts were cheaper and more readily obtainable some clever bugger decided we change to all black and dye the hooped one’s, after all Bridgnorth All-Blacks had a good ring to it.

This was fine until the shirts were washed, the shirts became various shades of grey, or pale black!

The club and its history is a great story!

Bob Turner

BRFC Dad and Founder member

Pictured - Paddy founder member presenting Bob Turner with a picture of the Original XV from 1962.