Ballymena RFC

Ballymena RFC (Ballymena Rugby Football Club) is a rugby union club based in the town of Ballymena in Northern Ireland. It is affiliated to the Ulster branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union. The club fields six adult teams and an under-20 team. In youth rugby there are under-18, under-16 and under-14 teams. The first team will play in Division One of the AIB All-Ireland League in 2007-08, in addition to the Ulster Senior League and Ulster Senior Cup.

Formation

The club was first affiliated to the Ulster Branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union in 1887, but the club did not participate in league competitions until 1922 when it decided to play in the Junior League in the 1923-1924 season. In 1953 Ballymena became a senior club. The club had to wait until 1963 for its first senior success - the Ulster Senior Cup. Many more successes have followed since that date.

Notable past players

Notable players have included Syd Millar, Willie John McBride, Trevor Ringland, David Humphreys, Davy Tweed, Brian Robinson, Philip Rainey and Matthew Banks who all played for Ireland and the latter who played for the world XV.

ources

External links

* [http://www.ballymenarfc.com Ballymena RFC website]
* [http://www.ulsterrugby.com Ulster Rugby website]