Garnock RFC
Encyclopedia
Garnock Rugby Club is an amateur rugby union
club based in Glengarnock
in Scotland
. They currently play in the Scottish National League Division One.
in 1911.
National league competitions were introduced in Scotland in season 1973-74 and Garnock had some initial success, being promoted to Division 3. However, this was followed by a period of decline and in 1986 they were relgated to the Glasgow District League.
During most of this early period, the club did not have a permanent home and played matches in Beith, Dalry and Kilbirnie. In 1985, a new clubhouse and playing fields were built on the site of the former Glengarnock steelworks next to Kilbirnie Loch
. After only 8 years, the clubhouse was condemned by the local council as being fundamentally unsound and the club had to resort to using Portakabins
for changing facilities.
Despite this setback, the 1990s were a period of success for the club, going from National League Division 7 to National League Division 3 in consecutive seasons. In 1999, Garnock were runners-up in the national Bowl competition. Success continued into the next decade, with the team gaining promotion to Premiership Division 3, being runners-up in the Shield in 2007 and winning the same competition in 2008.
In August 2009, the club announced plans to build a new clubhouse at Lochshore.
.
Winger David Shedden
, who played for Old Spierians in the 1960s, won 15 caps for Scotland
while playing for West of Scotland.
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 Glengarnock
Glengarnock
Glengarnock is a small village in North Ayrshire that lies near the west coast of Scotland. It forms part of the Garnock Valley area and is approximately 25 miles away for Glasgow, the nearest city...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. They currently play in the Scottish National League Division One.
History
The club was formed in 1972 as the result of a merger of the Old Spierians and Dalry High School FP clubs. This was a response to the amalgamation of feeder schools Spier's and Dalry High (along with Kilbirnie Central and Beith Academy) to form Garnock Academy, which happened around the same time. The Old Spierians club had been founded in the early years of the 20th century and joined the Scottish Rugby UnionScottish 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:...
in 1911.
National league competitions were introduced in Scotland in season 1973-74 and Garnock had some initial success, being promoted to Division 3. However, this was followed by a period of decline and in 1986 they were relgated to the Glasgow District League.
During most of this early period, the club did not have a permanent home and played matches in Beith, Dalry and Kilbirnie. In 1985, a new clubhouse and playing fields were built on the site of the former Glengarnock steelworks next to Kilbirnie Loch
Kilbirnie Loch
Kilbirnie Loch , is situated in the floodplain of between Kilbirnie, Glengarnock and Beith, and runs south-west to north-east for almost , is about wide for the most part and has an area of roughly 3 km2 . It has a general depth of around 5.2 metres to a maximum of around 11 metres...
. After only 8 years, the clubhouse was condemned by the local council as being fundamentally unsound and the club had to resort to using Portakabins
Portable building
A portable building, or demountable building , is a building designed and built to be movable rather than permanently located. A common modern design is sometimes called a modular building, but portable buildings can be different in that they are more often used temporarily and taken away later....
for changing facilities.
Despite this setback, the 1990s were a period of success for the club, going from National League Division 7 to National League Division 3 in consecutive seasons. In 1999, Garnock were runners-up in the national Bowl competition. Success continued into the next decade, with the team gaining promotion to Premiership Division 3, being runners-up in the Shield in 2007 and winning the same competition in 2008.
In August 2009, the club announced plans to build a new clubhouse at Lochshore.
Notable players
Centre Ian McInroy played for the club in the 1990s before going on to captain Scotland U21s and win several caps for the Scotland 7s teamScotland national rugby union team (sevens)
The Scottish national rugby union sevens team compete in the IRB Sevens World Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens and the Commonwealth Games.During 2006, the side were in danger of no longer competing in the Sevens World Series due to the financial problems faced by the Scottish Rugby Union...
.
Winger David Shedden
David Shedden
David Shedden was a Scottish rugby union player. He played for Scotland 18 times between 1972 and 1978.Shedden played for the West of Scotland F.C., and Garnock Rugby ClubRichard Bath writes of him that:-References:...
, who played for Old Spierians in the 1960s, won 15 caps for Scotland
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...
while playing for West of Scotland.