Westcombe Park RFC is a

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 ...

club based in

Orpington Orpington is a town and area in south east London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is 13.4 miles (21.6 km) south east of Charing Cross. On the south-eastern edge of the Greater London Built-up Area, it is south of St Ma ...

in south-east

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. The name of the club comes from the

Westcombe Park Westcombe Park is a largely residential area in Blackheath in the Royal Borough of Greenwich, South East London, England. It is bounded by the main London-Dartford railway line to the north, the Blackwall Tunnel southern approach to the east, ...

area of what is today part of the

Royal Borough of Greenwich The Royal Borough of Greenwich (, , or ) is a London borough in southeast Greater London. The London Borough of Greenwich was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. The new borough covered the former area of the Metropolitan Borough ...

, where the club was founded. The club played on fields in Lee,

Shooter's Hill Shooter's Hill (or Shooters Hill) is a district in South East London within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It borders the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north of Eltham and south of Woolwich. With a height of , it is the highest point in t ...

and

Sidcup Sidcup is an area of south-east London, England, primarily in the London Borough of Bexley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, bordering the London Boroughs of Bromley and Greenwich. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the ...

before the move to Orpington. Westcombe Park play in

National League 2 East National League 2 East is a new rugby union league at level four in the English rugby union system and provides semi-professional competition for teams in London, South East England and East of England. The remainder of England is covered b ...

, a level four 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 ...

following their promotion from

Regional 1 South East Regional 1 South East (up until 2022-23 known as London & South East Premier and up until 2016-17 known as National League 3 London & South East) is a level five league in the English rugby union system. It is one of six leagues at this level. ...

at the end of the 2022–23 season.

History

The club – also known as 'Combe' – was founded by rugby fanatic Dudley E Roughton, a disabled man unable to play the game himself, making the club unique in that its founder was not an original player. In the summer of 1904 he decided to form his own team. Founding members included siblings, friends and extended family. The Church aided the formation of the club in the shape of the Rev W T Money, who played until the age of 52. Several pictures from this time are on display on the club website. The club's early results were encouraging and sometimes two or more sides turned out. Before the

Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

the club shifted its headquarters several times and eventually lighted upon Harrow Field Farm, Lee. With the outbreak of World War I in 1914, club rugby was put on hold for four years. The war took its toll on the team with 23 of the club's 84 members being killed on duty. Amongst them was Cecil Harold Sewell – posthumously awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

in 1918. The club reconvened in 1919 and resumed playing at Sidcup RFC's ground. By 1925–6 Combe was running six sides and was fully involved in the

Kent Cup The Kent Rugby Challenge Cup is an annual rugby union knock-out club competition organised by the Kent Rugby Football Union. It was first introduced during the 1890-91 season, with the inaugural winners being R.N.C., Greenwich. It was discontin ...

. In 1930, the club started to look for its own ground. The club had by then transferred to

Shooters Hill Shooter's Hill (or Shooters Hill) is a district in South East London within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It borders the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north of Eltham and south of Woolwich. With a height of , it is the highest point in t ...

and was using converted stables as a club-house, complete with baths and electricity. When the Shooters Hill ground was acquired for housing, the search for a permanent home became even more pressing. A club member negotiated with Orpington Council for the lease of two pitches (later increased to four) and a plot of adjoining land was purchased to enable the erection of a pavilion. At this time the pavilion was one of a handful of properties in what became Craven Road. Club rugby was further interrupted by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, after which the club reformed and two teams ran out during the 1945–46 season (Combe was also able to repay Sidcup for their hospitality earlier). Players more local to Orpington now joined the club. Membership and the number of playing sides increased. By the mid-1960s the original club house had been replaced with a wooden structure, housing baths, changing rooms with re-mountable partitions, and warm-air heating. The club remained in the Craven Road site until 1990.

Today

Most youth rugby occurs on Sundays (occasional National Cup Academy matches take place on Saturdays). The club fields at least one team per age group between the ages of 7 and 19 with a strong reputation amongst other clubs, including

London Irish London Irish RFC is a professional rugby union club which competes in the Premiership, the top division of English rugby union. The club has also competed in the Anglo-Welsh Cup, the European Champions Cup and European Challenge Cup. While ...

Colchester RFC Colchester Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union club based in Colchester, Essex. The first XV team play in Regional 1 South East at Level 5 in the English rugby union system, having been promoted (third) from London 1 North following t ...

and Blackheath. The club boasts international representatives at several levels. The 1st XV will play its rugby in National 2 East from 2023–24, having been promoted back into the National League having won

in 2022-23. With up to four senior teams playing at weekends including the 1st team and a 2nd XV commonly known as the Extra 1st XV, who play in the RFU league at Level 8 (Counties 2 Kent). Combe' aim to be a vibrant community club for all, from mini's and juniors up to the 1st XV, including social sides, Vets and everything in between. Relocation to the present site at Goddington Dene, Orpington took place in 1990 when the club became the major section within the Orpington Sports Club. In 1994, Westcombe Park took over the running and responsibility for the sports club and offered playing facilities, issuing contractual terms, to other sports (cricket, football, tennis and table tennis) as Associated Clubs under the control of Westcombe Park and Orpington Sports Club. In 1995, the club became a limited company, registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965. The club now has four rugby pitches, a grandstand, a fully equipped gymnasium, two football pitches, two cricket squares and three tennis courts.

Honours

London 3 South East London 3 South East is an English level 8 Rugby Union League involving club sides from Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex and the south-east London. It is made up of teams predominantly from London, Sussex and Kent. The twelve teams play home and a ...

champions: 1989–90 * London Division 1 champions: 1998–99 * National Division Three (north v south) promotion play-off winners: 2006–07 *

champions 2022–23 *

winners (8): 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2016 *

Kent Plate The Kent Plate is an annual rugby union knock-out club competition organised by the Kent Rugby Football Union. It was first introduced during the 2001–02 season, with the inaugural winners being Bromley. It is the fourth most important rugby ...

winners (2): 2014, 2018 * Kent Vets Plate winners (1): 2017 * Kent Vets Cup winners (3): 2019, 2020, 2022

References

External links

* {{National League 2 East Rugby union teams in England Orpington Rugby clubs established in 1904 Rugby union clubs in London 1904 establishments in England