Neath Port Talbot Steelers were 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 11 ...

team based in

Port Talbot Port Talbot (, ) is a town and community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, situated on the east side of Swansea Bay, approximately from Swansea. The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which dominates the south ...

West Glamorgan , HQ= County Hall, Swansea , Government= West Glamorgan County Council (abolished 1996) , Status= , Start= 1974 , End= 1996 , Arms= ''Coat of arms of Wes ...

. They played in the Welsh Premier 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 ...

at Aberavon Green Stars RFC.

History

''Aberavon Fighting Irish'' were formed in 2003 and joined the newly formed Welsh division of the

. The club rebranded as ''Neath Port Talbot Steelers'' in 2007. The Steelers soldiered through many storms only to record two wins during the league fixtures, however, this was enough to cement a place in the first round of the play-offs. They turned over

Torfaen Tigers Torfaen Tigers are a rugby league team based in Pontypool, Torfaen, Wales. They play in the Southern Conference League division, which is the 4th tier in the Rugby league pyramid Torfaen Tigers runs 4 junior teams U12’s,14’s,16’s and 19� ...

to progress to the semi-final against the Titans in Newport. The match against the Titans however, proved to be a bridge too far as the Steelers were well beaten on the day. The 2008 campaign was to be of a different set of fortunes for the Steelers. A lot of work had been made to see an improvement, with better standing in the league and a step forward, however with much disruption off the field with many players out injured for most, and in some cases, the entire season and a couple away with international duty and losing key backroom staff for some of the season, it took its toll on the field. Only one win was recorded in what was a long and hard-fought season. The 2009 season saw them only one game in the whole campaign. They were struck with ground issues and injuries which led them to have the worst season in history. The junior sides had very good seasons with the U15's winning the league, and the U17's coming runners-up. This will put the Steelers in good sted for the future. The 2010 season was slow starting due to the league kicking off late as several West Wales clubs failed to complete any fixtures. The Steelers narrowly lost the first two fixture against Merthyr Wildcats and Dyffryn Devils, then with a late recruitment push dominated the remaining fixtures with good wins over Torfaen Tigers and revenge over Dyffryn Devils, the Wildacts couldn't play the repeat fixture to union players having commitments. The grand final was the Steelers versus Tigers where the Steelmen won 42-10 at the Gnoll.

Players earning International Caps while at Aberavon Fighting Irish/Neath Port Talbot Steelers

* Neil Davies won a cap(s) for ''Wales'' while at Aberavon Fighting Irish 2004…2005 1(2?)-caps + 2-caps (sub) * Richard Johnston won caps for ''Wales'' while at Aberavon Fighting Irish 2005…2006 (3?)4-caps 3(2?)-tries 12(8?)-points

Club honours

* RLC Welsh regional: 2010

Juniors

Neath Port Talbot Steelers' junior teams take part in the Welsh Conference Junior League.

External links

Official site

Official Wales Rugby League Website
{{British_Rugby_League_links Defunct rugby league teams in Wales Rugby League Conference teams Rugby league in Wales Sport in Port Talbot Welsh rugby league teams Rugby clubs established in 2003 2003 establishments in Wales