Suttonians RFC
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Suttonians Rugby Football Club is an Irish Rugby Union club whose first team play in Division 3 of the AIB All Ireland League. The club, now in its 83rd season, is located at the JJ McDowell Memorial grounds on Station Road, Sutton, Dublin 13. The Club fields four senior sides with underage teams from under 6 age grade up to under 20. Proudly representing the North Side of the city, Suttonians is one of only two Northside Dublin Clubs (Clontarf RFC being the other) currently playing in the All Ireland Leagues.
| Suttonians Rugby Football Club | |||
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| Emblem(s) | Crest featuring three castles representing Dublin roots, the coats of arms of the Sutton famiy and the harp of Leinster | ||
| Founded | 1925 | ||
| Location | Sutton, Dublin, Ireland |
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| Ground(s) | JJ McDowell Memorial Ground | ||
| Captain |  Joey Walsh |
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| League | AIB All Ireland League Division 3 | ||
| Official website | |||
| www.srfc.ie.ie | |||
Contents |
[edit] History
Suttonians RFC was formally established in 1925 although rugby has been played in Sutton on the northside of Dublin since the start of the twentieth century.
1993/94 The 93/94 season saw the club win the Leinster League, the Spencer Cup and finalists in the Metropolitan Cup.
1995/96 The club won the Leinster League in and was promoted to the then 4th Division of the AIB All Ireland League.
1996/97 The Club won the 4th division of the AIB All Ireland League with an 100% record, one of only three teams to have ever achieved this in any division.
2004/05 For the first time the club was involved in Division 3 playoffs after a creditable fourth place finish, losing out to runaway Division 3 winners Greystones.
2005/06 Suttonians achieved the historic feat of gaining promotion to the AIB All Ireland League Division 2, progressed to the semi final of the Leddin Finance Leinster Senior Cup and competed in the inaugural All Ireland Cup as one of the five sides representing Leinster.
2006/07 The club finished thirteenth in their first season of AIL division 2 having risen to the lofty heights of joint third at the Christmas break.
[edit] Players
Drawing on the local community, Suttonians has been for many years a 'parish' style club attracting members from the immediate surroundings and just beyond.
[edit] Records
| Top AIL Try | Scorers | Top AIL Points | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Tries | Name | Points |
| David Walsh | 20 | Joey Walsh | 312 |
| Joey Walsh | 18 | Paddy Maguire | 256 |
| John Tainui | 18 | Eamon Molloy | 214 |
| Daire Higgins | 16 | David Walsh | 132 |
| Vinnie Patton | 15 | Niall Murray | 112 |
[edit] Academy
Founded in the 2002/03 season, the Suttonians Academy was generated with the aim of identifying and working with elite players among the under 18 and under 20 age grades who have the potential and commitment to develop to AIL Division 1 standard. Specialist additional coaching in a variety of areas is provided to aid those players in their quest to improve the required skills. All players remain fully amateur and work or attend college during their time in the Academy. Every summer, two Academy players are sent to Durban, South Africa and spend the Summer months attending the Academy of the Super 14 franchise The Sharks to further their rugby education.
[edit] Youth Section
With a strong, vibrant minis section (age u6-u12) Suttonians' fledglings take to the pitches on Sunday mornings and some midweek evenings. Hard work invested by those in the club's J.A.C. (Juvenile Affairs Committee) and coaches has seen the club become strong in numbers and results at these ages. Over the years, Suttonians have fed at least as many high quality players into the schools system as any other nursery in the city. This, in many cases, has been damaging to the club with the rugby schools reaping the benefits of the hard work invested. A large number of Suttonians minis have gone on to represent Leinster and Ireland at underage level and often do not return to the nest, instead favouring the lure of AIL Division One rugby after leaving school. In recent years players such as Aidan Kearney (now returned as club captain), Dave O'Brien and Ian Keatley have taken this route.
The minis 'exodus' impacts hardest at youths level (age u13-u18) as Suttonians has been in a position where restocking in terms of numbers and quality has left the club and coaches with a hard task. Traditionally, some youths attending schools in the neighbourhood have filled the void by taking up the game afresh to play alongside those in local schools continuing through from minis. The increase in popularity of the game in 'non traditional' rugby areas has helped recruit larger numbers in recent years and it must be said that while recruitment at youths has been difficult for the club the potential to attract young talent from local, 'non traditional' areas could surely be an area of huge, hitherto largely untapped, growth. The club employs a Y.D.O. (Youth Development Officer) whose role is to introduce the game into new schools and propegate interest in the sport with the hope that some of these young players will join the club during or after school. St. Fintans High School, winners of Leinster Schools Development Cup 2006/07 are a good example of the work being done in the community.
[edit] Club Presidents & Captains
[edit] Presidents
| 1920s/30s | President | 1940s/50s | President | 1960s/70s | President | 1980s/90s | President | 2000s/10s | President |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1925/35 | A Jameson | 1940/42 | G Greenway | 1960/62 | H L Hick | 1980/82 | R Hogg | 2000/01 | J Hannigan |
| 1935/37 | H Patton | 1942/44 | R C Barton | 1962/65 | S N Grant | 1982/84 | B F Lynch | 2001/02 | D Headon |
| 1937/40 | E F Thornley | 1944/47 | A Horton | 1965/68 | J J McDowell | 1984/85 | J Kelly | 2002/03 | T McHenry |
| 1947/50 | J J McDowell | 1968/70 | J Geary | 1985/86 | M Connolly | 2003/04 | F Kearney | ||
| 1950/51 | P J Lavery | 1970/71 | T Thunder | 1986/87 | R Barry Duke | 2004/05 | C Smyth | ||
| 1951/54 | W H S Campbell | 1971/73 | J J McDowell | 1987/88 | L O'Reilly | 2005/06 | M McEvoy | ||
| 1954/55 | S J Hurley | 1973/74 | E Martin | 1988/89 | N Reilly | 2006/07 | J Quill | ||
| 1955/56 | R Malcolm | 1974/75 | J J McDowell | 1989/90 | A Chambers | 2007/08 | P Magner | ||
| 1956/57 | R G Watson | 1975/77 | D O'Shea | 1990/91 | J Lee | 2008/09 | P Penlerick | ||
| 1957/58 | P J McDonnell | 1977/79 | A Knowles | 1991/92 | D Fitzpatrick | ||||
| 1958/60 | J W Smythe | 1979/80 | B M Hearne | 1992/93 | S Scanlon | ||||
| 1993/94 | J Dowling | ||||||||
| 1994/95 | B Fahy | ||||||||
| 1995/96 | P Reilly | ||||||||
| 1996/97 | P Lawless | ||||||||
| 1997/98 | B Lennon | ||||||||
| 1998/99 | B Melinn | ||||||||
| 1999/00 | D Gallagher |
[edit] Captains
| 1920s/30s | Captain | 1940s/50s | Captain | 1960s/70s | Captain | 1980s/90s | Captain | 2000s/10s | Captain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1924/26 | A G Keddie | 1940/41 | C Foley | 1960/61 | L O'Reilly | 1980/82 | M Shatwell | 2000/01 | N O'Reilly |
| 1926/28 | W J Spenser | 1941/42 | T D Geary | 1961/62 | M Webb | 1982/84 | B Lennon | 2001/02 | J B Finucane |
| 1928/29 | W J Keddie | 1942/43 | N Conn | 1962/63 | R Hogg | 1984/86 | M Shatwell | 2002/04 | D Dowling |
| 1929/30 | M Spenser | 1943/44 | P J Reynolds | 1963/64 | J N Bell | 1986/87 | M De Buitlear | 2004/05 | K Cowman |
| 1930/31 | W W Cairns | 1944/45 | K B Scott | 1964/65 | N Bourke | 1987/88 | D Cassidy | 2005/06 | V Patton |
| 1931/32 | P J Lavery | 1945/46 | W P Scott | 1965/66 | P Kilbride | 1988/89 | M DeBuitlear | 2006/07 | D Walsh |
| 1932/33 | J J McDowell | 1946/47 | M J Geary | 1966/68 | R Kavanagh | 1989/90 | C Smyth | 2007/08 | A Kearney |
| 1933/34 | W N McCracken | 1947/48 | S Henry | 1968/69 | B M Hearne | 1990/91 | M Reddin | 2008/09 | J Walsh |
| 1934/35 | K O'Grady | 1948/49 | M J Geary | 1969/70 | K Kavanagh | 1991/92 | A Kiernan | ||
| 1935/36 | W H S Campbell | 1949/50 | M Cagney | 1970/71 | D Howe | 1992/93 | S O'Grady | ||
| 1936/37 | T K O'Dowd | 1950/51 | B B Russell | 1971/72 | D Fitzpatrick | 1993/95 | E McKeon | ||
| 1937/39 | R Malcolm | 1951/52 | E B Booker | 1972/73 | D O'Boyle | 1995/97 | N O'Reilly | ||
| 1939/40 | R Campbell | 1952/53 | S N Grant | 1973/75 | A Chambers | 1997/00 | E McKeon | ||
| 1953/54 | O Campbell | 1975/76 | D McHenry | ||||||
| 1954/55 | S O'Shea | 1976/77 | F Byrne | ||||||
| 1955/56 | J N Bell | 1977/79 | S Quinn | ||||||
| 1956/57 | T Byrne | 1979/80 | B Stafford | ||||||
| 1957/58 | M McDonagh | ||||||||
| 1958/60 | L O'Reilly |
