The History of Rugby

It has been said that rugby was first introduced to the world when William Webb Ellis picked up the football (soccer ball) during a match and ran with it. Though it is unknown if that is how rugby truly started, it is the preferred story. In pre-nineteenth century England, football (soccer) was banned by the monarchy due to its dangerous nature and lack of productivity. Luckily, the sport and those branched from it found sanctuary at schools around the country. One such school was the Rugby School, which was the school William Webb Ellis had attended. In the mid-nineteenth century, all the schools with their unique style of football play gathered to form universal rules of play. Representatives of the major public schools gathered and created the Cambridge Rules. These rules were not accepted by every school, which in turn created a divide between Football (soccer) and Rugby Football (rugby). In 1871, the Rugby Football Union was formed and they removed many of the more violent aspects of the game. With the help of three ex-Rugby School students the first rules were created for the sport, but because all the men wee layers they named them “laws”. And so, the creation of the game we all love to play, RUGBY!

Cumberland Valley Rugby Football Club was established in the Spring of 2004 with the help of Old Gaelic Men's Club. In 2005, the team lost only one game against Warwick and went on to win the Division II Championship. Our 2006 Spring season was strong, with only a single loss by a slim margin against West Shore United, who went on to win Division I. We proudly hosted the Division II Championship and obtained first place. Though young, Cumberland Valley Rugby is a strong and proud program.