Mid-Rhondda RLFC
Encyclopedia
Mid-Rhondda Rugby League Football Club was a professional rugby league
club based in Tonypandy
, Wales
playing in the Welsh League and Northern Union. Based at the Athletic Ground
in Tonypandy, Mid-Rhondda were one of the first professional Welsh teams, formed in 1908 but folding after just a single season. Mid-Rhondda later became Mid Rhondda F.C.
, a notable association football team in the Rhonnda Valleys
.
and Merthyr Tydfil
. Although South Wales was best known for its rugby union
teams, events in Aberdare
and the Rhondda between 1905 and 1907 had revealed several clubs were breaking amateur rules and were paying their players. This led to club and player suspensions by the Welsh Rugby Union
, and this in turn lead to some clubs considering switching to the professional Northern Union
and rugby league. On 1 January 1908, Aberdare hosted a Wales
versus New Zealand
encounter in the world's first full international rugby league game. Then, on 20 April, Tonypandy was chosen as the location for the very first rugby league encounter between Wales and England
, with the match played at the local Athletic Ground. Wales won 35–18, and a crowd of 12000 was recorded.
The Mid-Rhondda club, also known as the Mid-Rhondda Social and Athletic Club, was formed just a few weeks after the Wales vs. England game and was admitted to the Northern Union on 30 June 1908. The club headquarters was based at the Cross Keys Hotel in Tonypandy, and their home pitch was the Athletic Ground, later known as King George's Park. With the formation that year of three other Welsh league teams, Barry
, Aberdare
and Treherbert
, a Welsh League
was formed allowing Mid-Rhondda to compete in two leagues.
Mid-Rhondda played their debut in the Northern Rugby League on 5 September 1908 in a home fixture with Bradford Northern
. A crowd of 2000 watched the game, in which Mid-Rhondda took an early lead before eventually losing 15–5. This was followed by a string of defeats to Treherbert, Ebbw Vale and Merthyr, before the club faced international opposition, the first touring Australian team. Mid-Rhondda were the Australian's first opponents of the tour, and a crowd of 7500 was recorded for the match, one of the largest attendances of the tour. The Australians led 18–0 at half time, but tries from Wrentmore and Dai Thomas
, gave Mid-Rhondda some respectability, losing the match 20–6. Australia's Dally Messenger
, one of rugby league's greatest players, scored two tries and four goals during the match.
The Australia game was followed by an away loss to Swinton
, but the next game, a NU encounter with Merthyr, saw Mid-Rhondda achieve their very first victory, winning 7–3. The next six games were of mixed fortunes, with victories over Aberdare and Barry, but the club were still finding the Northern clubs difficult to beat, losing heavily to both Bradford Northern
and Hull. On 12 December, the club played in their first Challenge Cup
match, and were drawn against fellow Rhondda team, Treherbert. In a close encounter, Mid-Rhondda won 8–7, opening up a tie in the next round to Barry. The second round cup game took place just two weeks later, with Mid-Rhondda winning 2–0 to take them into the quarter-finals.
The season continued in a familiar pattern for Mid-Rhondda with fair success over the Welsh teams, but being unable to beat the English teams. The club beat Barry in the Northern League and Welsh League, managed a double victory over Aberdare and Merthyr and a win and a loss to Treherbert. Amongst these games there were loses to Broughton Rangers
(0–6), Swinton (7–16) and Hull (7–15). On 27 February, the club faced Hunslet
in the quarter-finals of the Challenge Cup; however Hunslet proved too strong, with their star player Billy Batten
scoring four tries in a 25–5 victory over the Welshmen.
Mid-Rhondda finished the season with a record of 18 games played in the Northern League, five won, one drawn and twelve loses, leaving them 24th out of 31 clubs.
and Ton Pentre. The game, won by Ton Pentre 2–0, was watched by a crowd of 8,000, an attendance figure Mid-Rhondda only matched when they faced the touring Australians. After the match, the Mid-Rhondda chairman stated that the financial position under the Northern Union had not realised expectations, and that as far as club could see, soccer was the coming game.
In July 1909, it was reported that neither Treherbert or Mid-Rhondda, would be included in the Challenge Cup draw as both teams were in arrears to the Northern Union as of 30 June. In the same month Mid-Rhondda RLFC withdrew from the Northern Rugby League, and as was expected an Association side appeared at the Athletic Ground, called Mid-Rhondda AFC, from the 1909–10 season.
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
club based in Tonypandy
Tonypandy
Tonypandy is a town in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying in the Rhondda Fawr Valley. A former industrial coal mining town, today Tonypandy is best known as the site of the Tonypandy Riots....
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
playing in the Welsh League and Northern Union. Based at the Athletic Ground
Athletic Ground
Athletic Ground or Athletic Grounds may refer to:*McCain Stadium, a disused football stadium formerly known as the Athletic Ground in Scarborough, England.*Athletic Grounds, a Gaelic Athletic Association stadium in Armagh, Northern Ireland....
in Tonypandy, Mid-Rhondda were one of the first professional Welsh teams, formed in 1908 but folding after just a single season. Mid-Rhondda later became Mid Rhondda F.C.
Mid Rhondda F.C.
Mid Rhondda Football Club was an association football team, based in Tonypandy, Wales that was formed in 1912. Mid Rhondda were one of the earlier South Wales teams to form, as competition from rugby union within the Rhondda Valleys was very strong...
, a notable association football team in the Rhonnda Valleys
Rhondda
Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley , is a former coal mining valley in Wales, formerly a local government district, consisting of 16 communities built around the River Rhondda. The valley is made up of two valleys, the larger Rhondda Fawr valley and the smaller Rhondda Fach valley...
.
Formation
In 1907 the first two rugby league teams in Wales were formed, Ebbw ValeEbbw Vale RLFC
Ebbw Vale Rugby League Football Club was a professional rugby league club based in Ebbw Vale, Wales playing in the Welsh League and Northern Union. Based at Bridge End Field, Ebbw Vale were one of the first professional Welsh teams, and the last to disband in 1912 after the failure of the Welsh...
and Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil RLFC
Merthyr Tydfil Rugby League Football Club was a professional rugby league club based in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales playing in the Welsh League and Northern Union. Based at College Field, Merthyr Tydfil were one of the first professional Welsh teams, and folded in 1911 after the failure of the Welsh League...
. Although South Wales was best known for its 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, events in Aberdare
Aberdare
Aberdare is an industrial town in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Dare and Cynon. The population at the census was 31,705...
and the Rhondda between 1905 and 1907 had revealed several clubs were breaking amateur rules and were paying their players. This led to club and player suspensions by the Welsh Rugby Union
Welsh Rugby Union
The Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Wales, recognised by the International Rugby Board.The union's patron is Queen Elizabeth II, and her grandson Prince William of Wales became the Vice Royal Patron of the Welsh Rugby Union as of February 2007.-History:The roots of the...
, and this in turn lead to some clubs considering switching to the professional Northern Union
Rugby Football League
The Rugby Football League is the governing body for professional rugby league football in England. Based at Red Hall in Leeds, it administers the England national rugby league team, the Challenge Cup, Super League and the Rugby League Championships...
and rugby league. On 1 January 1908, Aberdare hosted a Wales
Wales national rugby league team
The Wales national rugby league team represent Wales in international rugby league football matches. Currently the team is seventh in the RLIF World Rankings. The team were run under the auspices of the Rugby Football League, but an independent body, Wales Rugby League, now runs the team from...
versus New Zealand
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league football since intercontinental competition began for the sport in 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name...
encounter in the world's first full international rugby league game. Then, on 20 April, Tonypandy was chosen as the location for the very first rugby league encounter between Wales and England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
, with the match played at the local Athletic Ground. Wales won 35–18, and a crowd of 12000 was recorded.
The Mid-Rhondda club, also known as the Mid-Rhondda Social and Athletic Club, was formed just a few weeks after the Wales vs. England game and was admitted to the Northern Union on 30 June 1908. The club headquarters was based at the Cross Keys Hotel in Tonypandy, and their home pitch was the Athletic Ground, later known as King George's Park. With the formation that year of three other Welsh league teams, Barry
Barry RLFC
Barry Rugby League Football Club was a professional rugby league club based in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales playing in the Welsh League and Northern Union...
, Aberdare
Aberdare RLFC
Aberdare Rugby League Football Club was a professional rugby league club based in Aberdare, Wales playing in the Welsh League and Northern Union...
and Treherbert
Treherbert RLFC
Treherbert Rugby League Football Club was a professional rugby league club based in Treherbert, Wales playing in the Welsh League and Northern Union. Based at the Athletic Ground, Treherbert were one of the first professional Welsh teams, formed in 1908 but folding after just two seasons...
, a Welsh League
Welsh League
The Welsh League was the first club rugby league competition in Wales. Its inaugural season was in 1908/09 when four additional teams were formed to join Ebbw Vale RLFC and Merthyr Tydfil RLFC, which allowed a league tournament to take place...
was formed allowing Mid-Rhondda to compete in two leagues.
1908–09
Bradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls is a professional rugby league club based in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. They play in the European Super League and are currently joint 10th in the league....
. A crowd of 2000 watched the game, in which Mid-Rhondda took an early lead before eventually losing 15–5. This was followed by a string of defeats to Treherbert, Ebbw Vale and Merthyr, before the club faced international opposition, the first touring Australian team. Mid-Rhondda were the Australian's first opponents of the tour, and a crowd of 7500 was recorded for the match, one of the largest attendances of the tour. The Australians led 18–0 at half time, but tries from Wrentmore and Dai Thomas
David Thomas (rugby league)
David "Dai" Thomas was a Welsh professional rugby league footballer of the 1900s who at representative level played for Wales, and Welsh League XIII, and at club level for Halifax, and Mid-Rhondda, playing at , i.e...
, gave Mid-Rhondda some respectability, losing the match 20–6. Australia's Dally Messenger
Dally Messenger
Herbert Henry "Dally" Messenger was an Australian rugby union and rugby league footballer, recognised as one of the greatest ever players in either code. Messenger, or 'The Master' as he was dubbed, represented his country in both rugby football codes, playing two rugby union tests and seven...
, one of rugby league's greatest players, scored two tries and four goals during the match.
The Australia game was followed by an away loss to Swinton
Swinton Lions
Swinton Lions is an English professional rugby league club from Swinton, Greater Manchester. The club has won the Championship six times and three Challenge Cups. They currently play in the Championship.-Early years:...
, but the next game, a NU encounter with Merthyr, saw Mid-Rhondda achieve their very first victory, winning 7–3. The next six games were of mixed fortunes, with victories over Aberdare and Barry, but the club were still finding the Northern clubs difficult to beat, losing heavily to both Bradford Northern
Bradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls is a professional rugby league club based in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. They play in the European Super League and are currently joint 10th in the league....
and Hull. On 12 December, the club played in their first Challenge Cup
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout cup competition for rugby league clubs organised by the Rugby Football League. Originally it was contested only by British teams but in recent years has been expanded to allow teams from France and Russia to take part....
match, and were drawn against fellow Rhondda team, Treherbert. In a close encounter, Mid-Rhondda won 8–7, opening up a tie in the next round to Barry. The second round cup game took place just two weeks later, with Mid-Rhondda winning 2–0 to take them into the quarter-finals.
The season continued in a familiar pattern for Mid-Rhondda with fair success over the Welsh teams, but being unable to beat the English teams. The club beat Barry in the Northern League and Welsh League, managed a double victory over Aberdare and Merthyr and a win and a loss to Treherbert. Amongst these games there were loses to Broughton Rangers
Broughton Rangers
Broughton Rangers was a British rugby football, and subsequently a rugby league club. It was based in Broughton, Salford.-History:Broughton Rangers was founded in 1877 as Broughton and added Rangers for its second season...
(0–6), Swinton (7–16) and Hull (7–15). On 27 February, the club faced Hunslet
Hunslet Hawks
Hunslet Hawks is a professional rugby league club based in Hunslet, West Yorkshire, England. The club, sometimes known as 'the Parksiders' after their former stadium, are currently champions of Championship One.-History:-Early years:...
in the quarter-finals of the Challenge Cup; however Hunslet proved too strong, with their star player Billy Batten
Billy Batten
William "Billy" Batten, was an English rugby league footballer of the early 20th century. He played at , and for Great Britain, England, Hunslet, and Hull, and was one of the new game's first superstars...
scoring four tries in a 25–5 victory over the Welshmen.
Mid-Rhondda finished the season with a record of 18 games played in the Northern League, five won, one drawn and twelve loses, leaving them 24th out of 31 clubs.
Switch to association
At the end of the season the club officials stated that they had not been happy with the low attendances and financial rewards offered by the Northern Union game. In April 1909, the Athletic Ground played host to the final of the South Wales and Monmouthshire Association Football Cup, played between Merthyr TownMerthyr Town F.C.
Merthyr Town Football Club is a Welsh semi-professional football club based in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. For the 2011–2012 season the club will be playing in the Western Football League Premier Division at Penydarren Park in Merthyr....
and Ton Pentre. The game, won by Ton Pentre 2–0, was watched by a crowd of 8,000, an attendance figure Mid-Rhondda only matched when they faced the touring Australians. After the match, the Mid-Rhondda chairman stated that the financial position under the Northern Union had not realised expectations, and that as far as club could see, soccer was the coming game.
In July 1909, it was reported that neither Treherbert or Mid-Rhondda, would be included in the Challenge Cup draw as both teams were in arrears to the Northern Union as of 30 June. In the same month Mid-Rhondda RLFC withdrew from the Northern Rugby League, and as was expected an Association side appeared at the Athletic Ground, called Mid-Rhondda AFC, from the 1909–10 season.
Notable players
- Dai ThomasDavid Thomas (rugby league)David "Dai" Thomas was a Welsh professional rugby league footballer of the 1900s who at representative level played for Wales, and Welsh League XIII, and at club level for Halifax, and Mid-Rhondda, playing at , i.e...
, ex-Wales league international, signed from Halifax in 1908 - Frank Wrentmore, ex-Penygraig RFCPenygraig RFCPenygraig Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Penygraig, Wales. Penygraig RFC formed in 1877, one of the earlier rugby clubs to emerge, and by 1890's were a strong voice in the Welsh Rugby Union, one of four clubs from the Rhondda Valley that held WRU representation.-Early...
player who is also notable as being one of the British soldiers involved in the Christmas truceChristmas truceChristmas truce was a series of widespread unofficial ceasefires that took place along the Western Front around Christmas of 1914, during the First World War...
of 1914.