Law, or The Law Club as it was also known, was a 19th-century football club that fielded teams playing by

rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league. Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...

codes. It is notable for being one of the twenty-one founding members of the Rugby Football Union and for producing in a very short life span, a number of international players.

History

Law was established in 1870 as a closed club for members of the legal profession. Presumably because of the demands of their profession, the club could only play on Wednesdays. The club was also nomadic, and so despite having a secretary based at

Lincoln's Inn Fields Lincoln's Inn Fields is the largest public square in London. It was laid out in the 1630s under the initiative of the speculative builder and contractor William Newton, "the first in a long series of entrepreneurs who took a hand in develo ...

, the club effectively played only away matches. The team's colours were Black with a red cross on the breast. On 26 January 1871, it sent representation to a meeting of twenty-one London and suburban football clubs that followed

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. ...

rules (

Wasps A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. ...

was invited by failed to attend) which assembled at the

Pall Mall Restaurant The Pall Mall Restaurant was a hostelry situated at Number 1 Cockspur Street, Westminster, London, just off Pall Mall and near Trafalgar Square. The site was subsequently the offices of the White Star Line, and was then occupied by a Tex Mex res ...

in Regent Street. E.C. Holmes, captain of the Richmond Club assumed the presidency. It was resolved unanimously that the formation of a Rugby Football Society was desirable and thus the Rugby Football Union was formed. A president, a secretary and treasurer, and a committee of thirteen were elected, to whom was entrusted the drawing-up of the laws of the game upon the basis of the code in use at Rugby School. Law was considered prominent enough to have been invited, and also gain one of the thirteen places on the original committee in the person of R. Leigh.Marshall, Francis, ''Football; the Rugby union game'', p68, (1892) (London Paris Melbourne, Cassell and company, limited)

Disbandment

The club disbanded in 1874 after just four seasons.

Notable players

Despite their short longevity, the club produced three international players with nine caps between them: * Percival Wilkinson (''1872 vs Scotland'') * Sydney Morse (''1873 vs Scotland''; Morse received two more caps whilst playing for Marlborough Nomads) * Ernest Cheston (''1873 vs Scotland''; Cheston received four more caps whilst playing for

Richmond F.C. Richmond Football Club is a rugby union club from Richmond, London. It is a founding member of the Rugby Football Union, and is one of the oldest football clubs (of any code). It fields teams in both men's and women's rugby; the men's first ...

)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Law Fc English rugby union teams Rugby clubs established in 1870 Defunct English rugby union teams Rugby union clubs in London