By Peter Ryan – @PeterRyanSports
“This is RGC, this is North Wales rugby” is an excellent mantra for an essential team in Welsh rugby.
In most of Wales, rugby is life, yet if you go to the country’s north, there are fewer opportunities in the national game.
Football plays a more prominent role up north than in other parts of the country; Wrexham AFC’s massive following is a big reason.
However, many parts of the region have rugby as number one or at least on par with the ‘Beautiful Game’.
Rygbi Gogledd Cymru, also known as RGC, is a haven for North Walian rugby fans. It is a fascinating club with a unique history; they have developed into a well-polished team that competes in the top flight of the Welsh domestic game.
RGC will look for a solid first year in the new Super Rygbi Cymru competition. The North Wales team is essential for the future of the Welsh game.
An Intriguing History
2010 marked the club’s start as the Welsh Rugby Union felt there needed to be a side up north.
Rugby is prominent in the country’s south, where Wales’s most well-known grassroots clubs are found.
The likes of Pontypridd, Bridgend, and Neath come to mind. Yet, RGC has quickly proven to be a formidable force in the domestic game.
They enjoyed a meteoric rise through the leagues and are now well in the SRC mix.
In the 2012/13 season, they entered the competitive league, and after a few years of up-and-down results, they managed to reach the pinnacle.
They gained promotion to the Premiership in 2016 and have not looked back. It is not just in the league competitions that they have relished success.
A year after their promotion, they had a great run in the Welsh Cup, which saw them travel to the Principality Stadium to defeat Pontypridd 15-11 to capture the gold.
Even though they have achieved a lot recently, as a club, they had to overcome a tremendous amount off the field.
Location
There will always be hardship when starting a club in North Wales. The first big challenge that popped up was the location of the team.
They play their home games in Stadiwm CSM in Colwyn Bay, the hub for rugby up north. As stated before, there seems to be a lack of interest in the area for the sport.
This meant that many players moved to South Wales or England. The fact that the club was isolated from the south meant there was a lack of opportunities for professional development for players because all the professional clubs were miles away.
The North Wales Academy was a big step in overcoming this issue.
This allowed young players to stay close to home and develop skills. Many improvements to Stadiwm CSM were made, such as a 3G pitch and facilities to help players off the pitch.
RGC has relished the benefits of this development system. Players like Sam Wainwright are products of the academy.
They played for RGC and then went on to have prosperous professional careers. Wainwright played for Saracens and Scarlets clubs; the 26-year-old also has four Welsh caps.
He is a prime example of how the system works, as it has developed players who have gone on to compete at the highest level.
Yet, there is an abundance of players who have worn the RGC jersey, even if they have not been in the academy, who went on to compete at the highest levels.
Professional Players
Olly Cracknell is playing some very entertaining rugby with the Leicester Tigers. It is safe to say that Cracknell has made a monumental impact at Welford Road.
He has applied his trade worldwide from Yorkshire to South Africa. His travels include a stint at Colwyn Bay with RGC. It led to the 30-year-old playing a large amount of rugby in Wales.
He spent seven years with the Ospreys and was part of the 2017 Wales Six Nations squad. Eventually, Cracknell decided to pursue a career outside and joined London Irish.
After the iconic team went bankrupt, the Tigers called for his services. Cracknell is a fantastic player, and his time with RGC would have helped him develop as a young athlete.
When looking at an electrifying Scottish centre, James Lang is a fantastic player with a stint with RGC.
Lang was developed in the London Irish academy and played under 18s rugby for Scotland.
However, his work with Phil Davies at the North Wales club was essential in making the international you see now.
Like RGC, Lang produced quality performances for the Harlequins and the Exeter Chiefs. His performance resulted in a global call-up for Scotland.
Lang is a valuable player, and his time in RGC helped him in his rugby journey.
There are too many talented players with a connection to RGC to count. Joe Jones has had a successful rugby career playing for teams like Scarlets, Cardiff, and Sale Sharks.
Another athlete who has competed at Colwyn Bay is Morgan Williams, who has played for the Ospreys and Scarlets and made his mark in rugby sevens.
Harri Ford
Looking with an eye towards the future, Harri Ford looks to be an exciting prospect who has been making his mark with Wales Under 20s.
The academy helped develop talent for the club. Another potential issue the club faced was attracting fans and support from the local community.
It was crucial to raise the club’s profile in the area. Since the early days of RGC, fans have shown up in full force, but like many sports teams worldwide, they were struck by the COVID-19 pandemic.
It is safe to say that support has returned to the way it was. RGC is one of the best-supported clubs in Welsh grassroots rugby today.
They achieved this through outreach programmes in the community, relationships with schools, and youth development programmes.
Of course, with the club’s success over recent years, their following was bound to grow. It is great to see the support RGC is now receiving and its impact on North Wales.
North Walian Rugby and the Impact of RGC
Rugby is deeply ingrained in Welsh culture, with many children in North Wales dreaming of wearing the famous red jersey.
However, the lack of a clear pathway and the logistical challenges can make it difficult for players to take the necessary steps.
Football now more than holds a special place in North Wales due to the monumental rise of Wrexham AFC.
The iconic club is one of the oldest in the sport’s history, and its seismic following has only grown stronger since the arrival of Hollywood megastars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
However, despite the prominence of football in North Wales, RGC has proven there is a market for the national sport.
This quote from the club perfectly sums up what RGC is all about, “Our values and DNA make North Wales a unique community; the most powerful commodity we own is our beliefs in the values rugby can add to making our communities healthier, stronger and more vibrant.”
Strong Home
Over 600,000 people call that part of Wales home, and there is a lot of talent among them.
RGC allows competitors to play the game they love without worrying about relocation. All four of Wales’ professional clubs are located within an hour down the M4 from each other, which has led many to say that North Wales has been neglected for far too long.
Even though it is unlikely that North Wales will get a professional club, the creation and continued investment in RGC show the WRU’s commitment to nurturing talent from the region.
If they can keep producing quality players and continue putting in solid performances on the pitch, there is no reason they cannot further their reach.
The Club as of Today and the Future
RGC have a strong side that can achieve strong results. They compete in the SRC and are coming off a few intense years in the Premiership.
RGC have had some competitive clashes in the league so far, and they will be looking to make a real impact as they have talented players in their squad.
Looking towards the future, the WRU will continue to try to expand the game’s growth in North Wales.
There have always been talks about a professional club moving to the north. Over the coming years, RGC’s development will play a crucial role in that decision because if there is proof of a strong market, the decision seems straightforward.
RGC will be focused on proving itself as a top team in the SRC, and there is no reason it should not be able to get there.
It is easy to forget that it is an incredibly young club compared to its competitors, so it will only get stronger as time passes.
RGC’s Future
Alun Pritchard, the General Manager of North Wales Development Region, gave an exciting insight into the future of RGC.
“The future of RGC lies very much in the hands of the WRU and its vision for the development of rugby in North Wales.
A new ‘One Wales’ strategy will be launched later this year, which will lead to the development of a plan for North Wales.
From a club perspective, the aim is to keep developing players and getting them into the professional and international game.
We also need to ensure that we are financially sustainable, and a big part of this will be the development of a permanent clubhouse that can be used away from matchdays.”
It is crucial that all areas in Wales get the opportunity to play rugby, and RGC is excellently displaying the skills of players in North Wales.
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