Royal Indian Engineering College RFC was a nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century Surrey-based rugby union club, who were attached to

Royal Indian Engineering College The Royal Indian Engineering College (or RIEC) was a British college of Civil Engineering run by the India Office to train civil engineers for service in the Indian Public Works Department. It was located on the Cooper's Hill estate, near Egham, ...

from 1871 to 1903.

Formation

The estate of Coopers Hill in Surrey was bought by the India Office in 1870; and a college was built to train civil engineers to be sent to India. The college was officially opened in 1872. The rugby club was formed in 1871. In its day, the college's rugby union team, referred to by its opponents as "Cooper's Hill", was one of the most prominent rugby clubs in England. By the 1890s, the team was deemed of medium strength, and a long way behind the form of its heyday. This was put down to boys leaving school earlier than they had previously, thus the team became composed of men who were physically smaller in stature and physique than their predecessors.Marshall, Francis, ''Football; the Rugby union game'', (1892) (London Paris Melbourne, Cassell and company, limited) The engineering college closed in 1906.

Notable former players

England internationalists

The following former RIE College players have represented

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

at full international level.

Scotland internationalists

The following former RIE College players have represented

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

at full international level.

External links

Engineering a career in India

References

{{reflist, 2 1871 establishments in England Rugby clubs established in 1871 English rugby union teams University and college rugby union clubs in England Defunct English rugby union teams 1903 disestablishments in England