Blackpool Sea Eagles are a

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

team based in

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre rivers, and is ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

History

''Blackpool Sea Eagles RLFC'' were founded in 2002 by Chris Aylen who was convinced Blackpool was the ideal place for summer rugby . With help from Dave Gavaghan with assistance from the Blackpool Rugby League Supporters Club. Friendlies took place throughout the summer. The first taking place at Hutton v Lancashire Police Three more games were played at the home of Blackpool RUFC. Blackpool Sea Eagles became founder members of the North West Division of the

Rugby League Conference The Rugby League Conference (RLC) (also known as the Co-operative Rugby League Conference as a result of sponsorship from The Co-operative Group), was a series of regionally based divisions of amateur rugby league teams spread throughout England ...

in 2003. They ended the league campaign with two wins both coming against local rivals Lancaster before crashing out to

Gateshead Storm Gateshead Storm are an amateur rugby league club in the North East of England. They play in the NCL Division Three. History Gateshead Storm ''Gateshead Storm'' were formed in September 2002, many of the original squad having played together a ...

in the first round of the RLC Shield play-offs. 2004 saw the club compete in an expanded eight team North West Division. The Sea Eagles competed well in every match, but only finished the campaign with 1 point. Despite this disappointing league campaign the Sea Eagles reached the quarter-finals of the RLC Shield with victories over

North Wales Coasters Rhyl Coasters are a rugby league team based in Rhyl, Denbighshire, Wales. They played in the Rugby League Conference History The original ''North Wales Coasters'' formed in 1989 and joined the nearest district association which was Widnes in En ...

and Lancaster before losing out to

Crewe Wolves Lymm RL is a rugby league side based in Lymm, Cheshire. They play in the North West Merit League. History Crewe Wolves entered the Northern Division of the Rugby League Conference in 1999 playing their first season at Georges Playing Fields, ...

37 - 20. The club enjoyed a much better league campaign in 2005 ending the regular season with a 50% win ratio. The Sea Eagles went on to defeat four teams en route to the RLC Shield final against

St Ives Roosters St Ives Roosters are a rugby league club from St Ives in Cambridgeshire. They were founded in 1991 as one of the first rugby league clubs in East Anglia. Currently they play in the Rugby League Conference East Division. History The club were f ...

. The final staged at the Butts Park Arena, Coventry saw Blackpool register a record 74 - 10 win and be crowned RLC Shield winners. In 2006, Blackpool Sea Eagles were promoted to the RLC North Premier division. Despite the step up, Blackpool recorded seven victories and finished in fourth place, just missing out on the play- offs. Due to a restructuring of the leagues, the 2007 season saw Blackpool rejoin the North West division. Taking this opportunity to integrate a number of younger players into the squad, the club picked up seven wins and finished the season in third place; going out of the play-offs in the first round to eventual champions

Widnes Saints Widnes Saints are a rugby league team based in Widnes, Cheshire. They play in the North West Premier Division of the Rugby League Conference. History Widnes Saints were formed in 2004 operating from the Widnes St Maries premises. The club join ...

. 2008 saw the club compete in a combined North West & Cheshire division. A tough season saw the Sea Eagles finish with only one victory to their name, a 20 - 18 victory over Rhyl Coasters. Despite the lack of wins, Blackpool competed well in every game, blooding a number of youngsters in the process. In 2009 the club stepped up to the newly created North West Premier. An up and down season saw the club compete well in every game, finishing the season with three victories. In 2010, Blackpool made the decision to take a step down to the North West regional division. A strong season saw the Sea Eagles finish the regular league season with six wins and progress to the divisional grand final, where the club lost out to

Mancunians RL Mancunians is Manchester's rugby league and sports club fielding several rugby and handball teams across the city at various age groups. The club is a Sports Club Community Mutual (Co-operative) and carries out development work across the city ...

48 - 14.

Club honours

* RLC Shield: 2005

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackpool Sea Eagles RLFC Rugby League Conference teams Sport in Blackpool Rugby clubs established in 2002 2002 establishments in England Rugby league teams in Lancashire English rugby league teams