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Richard Parks (writer)
Richard David Parks (born 14 August 1977) is a former Wales international rugby union player turned extreme endurance athlete and television presenter. In rugby he represented Newport RFC, Pontypridd RFC, Celtic Warriors, Leeds Tykes, Perpignan and Newport Gwent Dragons over a professional career which spanned 13 years. In May 2009 he was forced to retire from rugby due to a shoulder injury. Early years Parks was born on 14 August 1977 in Pontypridd to a Jamaican mother, Lee, and a Welsh father, Derek Parks. Richard grew up in Newport, Wales and attended Rougemont School, Newport and Monmouth School. Parks first started playing rugby at the age of 11 at Rougemont School and progressed quickly through the school ranks playing at flanker throughout. He was selected for Welsh Schools at under-18 level and then had a brief spell with Newport youth before spending a year in South Africa in 1996 at Michaelhouse, a boarding school for senior boys in Durban. He competed for t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pontypridd
() (colloquially: Ponty) is a town and a community in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Geography comprises the electoral wards of , Hawthorn, Pontypridd Town, 'Rhondda', Rhydyfelin Central/Ilan ( Rhydfelen), Trallwng (Trallwn) and Treforest (). The town mainly falls within the Senedd and UK parliamentary constituency by the same name, although the and wards fall within the Cynon Valley Senedd constituency and the Cynon Valley UK parliamentary constituency. This change was effective for the 2007 Welsh Assembly election, and for the 2010 UK General Election. The town sits at the junction of the and Taff valleys, where the River Rhondda flows into the Taff just south of the town at War Memorial Park. community recorded a population of about 32,700 in the 2011 census figures. while Pontypridd Town ward itself was recorded as having a population of 2,919 also as of 2011. The town lies alongside the north–south dual carriageway A470 between Cardiff and Merthyr Tydfil. The A405 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Free State Stadium
The Free State Stadium ( af, Vrystaatstadion), currently known as the Toyota Stadium for sponsorship reasons and formerly known as Vodacom Park, is a stadium in Bloemfontein, South Africa, used mainly for rugby union and also sometimes for association football. It was originally built for the 1995 Rugby World Cup, and was one of the venues for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The primary rugby union tenants of the facility are: * The Cheetahs, which represents Free State and Northern Cape provinces in the international Pro14 competition. * The Free State Cheetahs, which participate in South Africa's domestic competition, the Currie Cup. The primary association football tenant is: * Bloemfontein Celtic, who play in South Africa's domestic Premier Soccer League. Notable matches 1995 Rugby World Cup The stadium was one of the host venues for the 1995 Rugby World Cup. It hosted first round matches in Pool C during the tournament. 1996 African Cup of Nations The Free State Stadiu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2007–08 Celtic League
The 2007–08 Celtic League (known as the 2007–08 Magners League for sponsorship reasons) was the seventh Celtic League season and the second with Magners as title sponsor. The season began on 31 August 2007 and finished on the weekend beginning 10 May 2008. Some disruption to fixtures occurred as a result of the 2007 Rugby World Cup, which took place during September and October 2007. The teams competing were the same as the previous season with one exception; only two Scottish teams participated, as the Scottish Rugby Union scrapped the Border Reivers region at the end of the 2006–07 season. As in previous seasons, the league was played on a home and away basis, with teams earning four points for a win, and a bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match. The losing team may also earn a bonus point if they lose by seven points or less. The losing bonus point system is intended to ensure that both teams compete fully in all matches. The ten teams competing were the f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium () in Twickenham, south-west London, England, is a rugby union stadium owned by the Rugby Football Union (RFU), English rugby union governing body, which has its headquarters there. The England national rugby union team plays home matches at the stadium. It is the world‘s largest rugby union stadium, the second largest in the United Kingdom, behind Wembley Stadium, and the fourth largest in Europe. The Middlesex Sevens, Premiership Rugby fixtures, Anglo-Welsh Cup matches, the Varsity Match between Oxford and Cambridge universities and European Rugby Champions Cup games have been played at Twickenham Stadium. It has also been used as the venue for rugby league Challenge Cup finals and American football, as part of the NFL London Games in 2016 and 2017. Twickenham Stadium has hosted concerts by Rihanna, Iron Maiden, Bryan Adams, Bon Jovi, Genesis, U2, Beyoncé, The Rolling Stones, The Police, Eagles, R.E.M., Eminem, Lady Gaga, and Metallica. Overview T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anglo-Welsh Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup (), was a cross-border rugby union knock-out cup competition that featured the 12 Premiership Rugby clubs and the four Welsh regions. It was a created as a replacement for the RFU Knockout Cup, which featured only English clubs. The competition was replaced by the Premiership Rugby Cup, involving only the 12 English Premiership clubs, beginning with the 2018–19 season. History Background RFU Knockout Cup From 1971 to 2005, English clubs played in the RFU Knockout Cup. At its formation, it was the highest honour that a club could win, as there were no nationally organised leagues until merit leagues were introduced in 1984, followed by the full national league pyramid in 1987. It was an open tournament to any club that was a member of the Rugby Football Union. Previous Anglo-Welsh fixtures 2005–2018: Anglo-Welsh Cup 2005–09: Initial format Starting in the 2005–06 season, the Powergen Anglo-Welsh Cup was formed as a successor tournament to the K ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
English Premiership (rugby Union)
Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the top division of the English rugby union system. Premiership clubs qualify for Europe's two main club competitions, the European Rugby Champions Cup and the European Rugby Challenge Cup. The winner of the second division, the RFU Championship is promoted to the Premiership and until 2020, the team finishing at the bottom of the Premiership each season was relegated to the Championship. The competition is regarded as one of the three top-level professional leagues in the Northern and Western Hemispheres, along with the Top 14 in France, and the cross-border United Rugby Championship for teams from Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Italy and South Africa. The competition has been played since 1987, and has evolved into the current Premiership syste ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leeds Carnegie
Leeds Carnegie was a brand name used by several sports teams associated with the Carnegie School of Physical Education, now part of Leeds Beckett University. These include: Current * Leeds Carnegie Handball Club Changed name * Leeds Carnegie (basketball), now Leeds Force * Leeds Carnegie (women's basketball), now Leeds Force (women) * Leeds Carnegie (rugby union), now Leeds Tykes * Leeds Carnegie L.F.C., now Leeds United Women F.C. Defunct * Leeds Carnegie F.C. * Leeds Carnegie (netball) Yorkshire Jets were an English netball team based at Leeds Beckett University. Their senior team played in the Netball Superleague. Between 2005–06 and 2011 they played as Leeds Met Carnegie or simply Leeds Carnegie. Together with the men' ..., later Yorkshire Jets Leeds Beckett University Sport in Leeds ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2003–04 Celtic League
The 2003–04 Celtic League was the third Pro14, Celtic League season, and the first following the Introduction of regional rugby union teams in Wales, formation of the five regional rugby sides in Wales. The Celtic League, having previously been played as a pool stage followed by knockout rounds was restructured into a typical league system, based on home and away games only. The league was won by the Llanelli Scarlets, with all the other Welsh regions finishing in the top 6. Following this season, the Celtic Warriors were bought-out and disbanded by the Welsh Rugby Union, and in subsequent years, only four Welsh sides have competed. Teams Table Fixtures Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 Round 6 Round 7 Round 8 Round 9 Round 10 Round 11 Round 12 Round 13 Round 14 Round 15 Round 16 Round 17 Round 18 Round 19 Round 20 Round 21 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Introduction Of Regional Rugby Union Teams In Wales
Welsh regional rugby is the top tier of professional Welsh club rugby and is composed of the Scarlets, Ospreys, Cardiff Rugby and the Dragons which compete in the United Rugby Championship. The regions were established for the start of the 2003/04 rugby union season. From this date, Wales was represented by a smaller number of regional teams in both the Celtic League and European Cup competitions, where previously the top club sides were entered into them. Current regions Cardiff Rugby/Rygbi Caerdydd Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, Cardiff Rugby (Welsh: ''Rygbi Caerdydd'') play at Cardiff Arms Park and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Ltd, who also own and run Cardiff Rugby Football Club. From 2003 to 2021 the club were known as the Cardiff Blues before changing their name to Cardiff Rugby prior to the start of the 2021-22 season. Cardiff Rugby are responsible for developing rugby in the city of Cardiff, Vale of Glamorgan, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Merthyr Tydfil and south Powy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2003 Rugby World Cup
The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup. Originally planned to be hosted by India, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the Indian Rugby Union and Rugby World Cup Limited. The pre-event favourites were England, regarded by many at the time as the best team in the world. New Zealand, France, South Africa and defending champions Australia were also expected to make strong showings, with New Zealand being second favourites after victory in the southern-hemisphere Tri-Nations championship. The tournament began with host nation Australia defeating Argentina 24–8 at Stadium Australia in Sydney. Australia went on to defeat New Zealand 22–10 in the semi-final, to play England in the final. Along with a try to Jason Robinson, Jonny Wilkinson kicked four penalties and then a drop-goal in extra time to win the game 20–17 for England, who became the first northern hemisphere team to win the Webb Ellis C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
