THE CALDY RUGBY CLUB STORY
Rather than round the kitchen table, a meeting took place at a café
in the Blenheim Buildings in West Kirby on 27 February 1924 and
that meeting made history.
On that day Caldy Rugby Union Football Club, as we now know it,
was formed. A handful of Old Boys from Caldy School wanted to
carry on playing rugby and so they got together, with the support of
the then headteacher Mr Glasspool, and founded the original club
“Old Caldeians” Caldy. They started playing in a farm field at Caldy
Crossroads. The changing facilities were in the farm buildings at
Croxton Farm, with the added luxury of the use of an old tin bath filled
from the farmyard tap!
The following year, Sir Alfred Paton, another Old Boy, bequeathed
20 acres of Thurstaston Common to the National Trust. Hence the
eponymous title Paton Field. The gift of the land from his will came
with the stipulation that the land was to be available for the Rugby
Club to use in perpetuity. In 1928, at a cost of £856 and 10 shillings the
wooden clubhouse and 3 changing rooms was built.
Fast forward some 90 years and on the field we have seen the club
continually achieving in all aspects. It was the fifth club in England to
be awarded the “RFU Seal of Approval” and in 2003 it was awarded
Rugby World’s Team of the Year.
The Caldy 7’s will see its 75th competition taking place this May. Prior
to the advent of professional Rugby, Caldy added an international 7’s,
attracting many overseas sides such as Fiji, Western Samoa, Russia,
Latvia and Malaysia together with representative sides from Canada,
South Africa, France and Scotland. Several top English sides took
part including Harlequins Wasps, Orrell, Bristol to name but some.
Previous events during the 1960s also saw the likes of Acker Bilk
providing the evening entertainment and a little know band called the
Beatles were due to play although had to pull out as they’d got a record
deal!
Last year, we saw the tremendous achievement of the 1st XV reaching
the highest level yet in the Club’s history, gaining promotion to
National League 1, the third tier of English Rugby. In the same season,
they “did the double” by winning the Cheshire Cup for the 6th time.
For a club based in a small Wirral village, competing against some big
city-based boys, that’s no mean feat.
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One of the fantastic spinoffs from the success of the 1st XV is that it
has filtered through to all sections of the club with the 1st team players
providing inspiration and sharing their skills with the mini and junior
sections at some of their training sessions. The club has around a
thousand members and 18 teams. Ages range from vets in their 50’s
down the youngest aged 5. Each weekend Caldy have an attendance of
1,500 visitors to the club, 500 minis and juniors on a Sunday; add that
to match day visitors and you can understand why it’s one of the most
sociable, respected and friendly clubs in the North West.
For those who want to join in for fun and fitness, without the worry
of contact injury, Touch Rugby has been played at Caldy for a number
of years and continues to grow in popularity. Touch Rugby is played
on a Wednesday and Sunday at Paton Field culminating each year in a
Woody Dog Cup every summer. It is six a side game, played on half a
normal pitch and participants have been ex Senior players, with family
and friends including under 16’s and women.
In the summer of 2017, the Ladies Touch section got underway and
the club has supported the growth of this section by providing RFU
qualified coaches with the main aim to facilitate enjoyment, closely
followed by fitness and skills After months of steady improvement the
Ladies first friendly game was held at Hoylake RUFC in a Tri team
friendly competition including Wirral RUFC. It proved to be a huge
hit with the Ladies teams, boosting their own individual and team
confidences in the sport. The Wirral has had a Ladies Touch Rugby
league operating for a few years now and the Caldy team will play their
first league game on 18th April continuing fortnightly until 4th July.
“Providing something for everyone and welcoming new members
to the rugby family at every age and every level remains one of our
continuing objectives at Caldy” says Rugby Club Chairman, Jed
Bartley.
The continued success of this talented and all-inclusive club relies on
the hard work of volunteers, coaches and on continued sponsorship. To
find out more about how to get involved visit www.caldyrugby.co.uk.
Caldy’s 75th Sevens Tournament is taking place on Saturday 19th
May and promises to be a fun day for all the family from 10am-10pm,
Adults £5 and children are free.