A guide to Bath Rugby Club

Founded in 1865, Bath Rugby Football Club is one of the oldest rugby union clubs in the world. The club plies its trade in England's top rugby league, the Aviva Premiership, and has generated scores of internationally acclaimed players throughout its many years of existence. The club is based at the 12,300 capacity Recreation Ground, more commonly known as "The Rec".

The Recreation Ground

The home of Bath RFC The Recreation Ground, familiarly known as the Rec., is the home of Bath Rugby Club.
With a 12,300 capacity, the ground is officially owned by the council-operated Recreation Ground Trust - a special board which was set up to protect the future of one of the city of Bath's largest and most picturesque green spaces. The east stand The Recreation Ground's east stand is a temporary structure that can be (and is) moved away outside the summer months, when the ground is used by local cricket teams as well as Somerset County Cricket Club. Flooding Given its adjacency to the River Avon, the Recreation Ground has been known to flood severely during inclement weather.
This trend of flooding led to an alleviation system being installed in the 1960s.

Club honours

A proud history Bath RFC has a long and proud history as one of the country's most decorated and distinguished clubs.
The club first won Britain's top rugby league in 1989, going on to win the league a further five times between '89 and '96 during a period of near absolute domination.
The club has also won the Anglo-Welsh cup on ten separate occasions, with their first win occurring in 1984, and their most recent competition win in 1996. International achievements Bath rose to European prominence when they won the 1997/1998 Heineken Cup, one of two tournaments organised by the European Rugby Cup Group, defeating Brive courtesy of a dramatic late penalty kick. In 2008, Bath completed the set of European competitions by adding the European Challenge Cup, defeating fellow English club Worcester Warriors.

Notable former players

International acclaim Many famous and well-known internationally capped players have pulled on the black and blue Bath Rugby Club jersey over the years.
English world cup winners Jason Robinson, Steve Borthwick, Mike Catt, Iain Balshaw, Mike Tindall and Danny Grewcock have all played for the Southwestern club.