Cobham Rugby Football Club (formerly Old Surbitonians Rugby Football Club) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

club, located in the village of

Cobham, Surrey Cobham () is a large village in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, centred south-west of London and northeast of Guildford on the River Mole. It has a commercial/services High Street, a significant number of primary and private s ...

, who play in the London Division of the

RFU The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby (WR) in 1886. It pro ...

. Cobham RFC is based at the Old Surbitonians Memorial Ground in Cobham and is affiliated to the English

via the Surrey RFU. The club was founded in 1930 by the first leavers of the

Surbiton County Grammar Surbiton County Grammar was a school in Surbiton on the borders of London and Surrey. Established in the 1920s, the school later moved to Thames Ditton and changed its name to Esher County Grammar School. The last grammar school pupils were admi ...

(now

Esher College Esher Sixth Form College is an open access, non-selective 16-19 Academy located in Thames Ditton, Surrey, England. Rated as "outstanding" in September 2022 by Ofsted, it now has around 2100 students enrolled, with a catchment drawn from north ...

). They currently play in

London 1 South London 1 South was an English level 6 rugby union regional league for rugby clubs in London and the south-east of England including sides from East Sussex, south Essex, south Greater London, Hampshire, Kent, Surrey and West Sussex. When this di ...

, following the club's promotion from

London 2 South West London 2 South West is an English level 7 Rugby Union League. When this division began in 1987 it was known as London 3 South West, changing to its current name ahead of the 2009–10 season. The division is made up of teams predominantly fro ...

at the end of the 2015-2016 season.

History

The club was formed in 1930 as Old Surbitonians RFC by the first group of school leavers from Surbiton County Grammar School for Boys. In 1949, as a memorial to those Old Boys who perished in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the grounds at Fairmile Lane, Cobham, were purchased. After the school moved from its original site in Surbiton to Esher as a boys' grammar school, The Braemar Club was created to honour the old school building. The change of name of the school to Esher County Grammar School and more prominently the evolution of the old school into a mixed sixth form college had a significant and detrimental impact on the flow of young players into the Club, which was one of the driving forces behind the club being one of the first in the country to set up a Mini Rugby section, in the Golden Jubilee year of 1980. The club was placed in the first division of the new Surrey Leagues when the

introduced League Rugby in 1987. Prior to this, the club had enjoyed much success, including a famous unbeaten season of 1963–64, and a Surrey Cup Final appearance in 1976. The club changed its name in 1989 to Cobham Rugby Football Club, to both identify more closely with the immediate surrounding area, and to signify the change to an open membership club. Recent years have seen the clubs' steady progress through the leagues, with four promotions in six seasons in the Leagues since 1987, and success elsewhere in winning the Surrey Shield in 1999. The first team now play in London South following successive promotions. Despite its name change, it still recognises its heritage and association with the old school.Club History of Cobham Rugby Club
/ref> During 2007 the club raised significant funds from within, alongside a legacy from a former player, Peter Marsh, which was Sportsmatched allowing the rebuilding of the clubhouse with a two-storey sports and social facility. It announced on 9 May 2011 the acquisition of rights to double the playing areas to six pitches by utilising the derelict golf driving range behind the local Fairmile Pub. The rugby club share the facilities with Cobham Tennis, Cobham Lacrosse and Cobham Netball. In 2015 Cobham RFC was one of only six rugby clubs to host international teams for the 2015 Rugby World Cup. In association with ACS International school Cobham and working closely with Elmbridge Borough Council the club hosted both Namibia and Italy, the only Team Base to host two international teams.

Honours

Surrey 2 Counties 2 Surrey is a level 8 English Rugby Union League. It is made up of teams predominantly from Surrey and south-west London. Teams play home and away matches from September through to April. Promoted teams move up to Counties 1 Surrey/S ...

champions: 1997–98 *

Surrey 1 Surrey 1 is a level 9 English Rugby Union League. It is made up of teams predominantly from Surrey and south-west London. Teams play home and away matches from September through to April. Promoted teams move up to London 3 South West with the ...

champions: 1998–99 *

Surrey Shield Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

winners: 1999 * London 2 (south-east v south-west) promotion playoff winners: 2001–02 * London Division 4 South West champions: 2006–07 *

champions (2): 2007–08, 2015–16 *

Surrey Trophy The Surrey Trophy is an annual rugby union knock-out club competition organized by the Surrey Rugby Football Union. It was introduced in 2009 and the inaugural winners were London Irish Wild Geese. It is the second most important rugby union cu ...

winners: 2012

References

{{reflist English rugby union teams Rugby clubs established in 1863 Rugby union clubs in Surrey

History

Honours

See also

References