Dunstablians Rugby Union Football Club are an amateur

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 based in

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...

, who play their rugby in

Midlands 3 East (South) Midlands 3 East (South) is a level 8 English Rugby Union league and level 3 of the Midlands League, made up of teams from the southern part of the East Midlands region including clubs from Bedfordshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and o ...

, an eight tier league in the

English rugby union system Men's Rugby union in England consists of 106 leagues, which includes professional leagues at the highest level, down to amateur regional leagues. Promotion and relegation are in place throughout the system. Women's Rugby union in England cons ...

. Their ground is located just outside nearby

Houghton Regis Houghton Regis is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, East of England. The parish is located in Central Bedfordshire, which includes the hamlets of Bidwell, Bedfordshire, Bidwell, Thorn, Bedfordshire, Th ...

and is commonly known as Bidwell Park. The club run two Senior teams and a full Mini & Junior section (catering for 5-15 year old players) and Academy teams (catering for 16-18 year old players). Numerous local rivalries are shared, most notably with Stockwood Park and

Luton Rugby Club Luton Rugby Football Club are a Bedfordshire-based English rugby union team who currently play their rugby in London 2 North West following their relegation from London 1 North at the end of the 2018–19 season. Their ground is located by the M1 ...

History

In 1927, members of

Dunstable Grammar School Dunstable Grammar School was a grammar school in the market town of Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England. Opened in 1888, it was closed in 1971. The site is now home to residential flats and apartments. Foundation Dunstable Grammar School was esta ...

formed a rugby section, based at Fensomes Field in

Leagrave Leagrave is a former village and now a suburb of Luton, in the Luton district, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England, in the northwest of the town. The area is roughly bounded by Vincent Road, Torquay Drive and High Street to the nor ...

Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...

. Unfortunately, the number of regular players dwindled, forcing the closure of the club after only three seasons. In 1948, another group of former pupils made a new start, securing a ground at French's Avenue in

Dunstable Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the ...

and later moving to Skimpot Lane in Luton. In 1954 ground in Bullpond Lane, Dunstable was leased. The event was marked with a match against an East Midlands Invitation XV. It was eventually decided that a new ground was needed and the site at Bidwell Hill in Houghton Regis should be purchased, with the bulk of the financing raised through the sale of the Bullpond Lane site for housing development. In September 1985, the club opened the current clubhouse by hosting an International XV that included six past England Captains. The club has seen several promotions in the past. Highlights include the near perfect 1999/2000 season which delivered victory in all RFU competitions entered, along with League, County and East Midlands Cup success. This culminated in Dunstablians becoming National Intermediate Cup Champions at

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...

. A successful period followed; Dunstablians retained the County Cup in 2000/01 and added the Colts Cup to the collection. They lifted the County Cup again in 2005. During 2006/07 Dunstablians also secured the Bedfordshire County Cup, defeating

Bedford Athletic Bedford Athletic Rugby Club is a rugby union team based in Bedford, in the county of Bedfordshire. The club currently play in the fifth tier of the English rugby union system, participating in Regional 1 South East after being promoted from M ...

in the process. They then returned to Twickenham for their second Intermediate Cup Final losing 36–46 to Cornish side

Mounts Bay Mount's Bay or Mounts Bay may refer to: *Mount's Bay, Cornwall UK *Mounts Bay RFC, a defunct rugby club formerly based in Penzance *Mounts Bay Road, Perth, Western Australia *Mounts Bay, in the Swan River Estuary, Perth, see Swan River (Western Aus ...

and finished 3rd in Midlands League 1 (RFU Level 5), their highest ever league placing. After a five-year wait, Dunstablians won the Beds County Cup again by defeating Stockwood Park in 2012, but since then have finished runners up in no less than three successive County Cup Finals.

Club Honours

1st XV: * Midlands East 2 champions: 1997–98 * Midlands East 1 champions: 1999–00 *Bedfordshire County Cup winners (5): 2000, 2001, 2005, 2007, 2012 *East Midlands Cup winners: 2000 *

Midlands 2 East Regional 2 East Midlands is an English level 6 rugby union regional league for rugby clubs in the eastern region of the Midlands, including sides from Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire and occasion ...

champions: 2000–01 *Rugby World Magazine - Team of the Year: 2001 *Bedfordshire Shield winners: 2019 Youth *Bedfordshire Colts County Cup winners: 2001

Current squad

International honours

Notes

References

External links

Dunstablians Rugby Football Club

Rugby Football Union
{{Rugby union in England Rugby union teams in England Rugby clubs established in 1948 Rugby union in Bedfordshire Dunstable