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Dings Crusaders
Full nameDings Crusaders Rugby Football Club
UnionGloucestershire RFU
Founded1897; 127 years ago (1897)
LocationFrenchay, Bristol, England
Ground(s)Shaftesbury Park (Capacity: 2,250 (250 seats))
Captain(s)England George Boulton
League(s)National League 1
2023–24Promoted from National League 2 West (champions)
Team kit
Official website
www.pitchero.com/clubs/dingscrusadersrfc/

Dings Crusaders RFC is an English rugby union team based in the Bristol suburb of Frenchay having previously been based in Lockleaze up until 2018. The club was relegated from National Division Two South, the fourth tier of the English rugby union system in 2015, to the South West Premier[1] The club are currently playing in the third tier of the English rugby union system, National League 1, following their promotion as champions of the 2023–24 National League 2 West.

Dings is one of the oldest clubs in Bristol, with its roots in a slum area of Bristol stretching back over 110 years. The club is entirely amateur, as opposed to the semi-professional structure of other clubs. The mantra "we don't play for personal gain" is a poignant line in the club's anthem, being very much a part of the community of Lockleaze it is not uncommon to find that some players in the teams today are third generation Dings players.

Current standings

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2024–25 National League 1 table
Pos Team
 Pld W D L PF PA PD TB LB Pts Qualification
1 Richmond 11 10 1 0 383 199 +184 7 0 49 Promotion place
2 Rams 11 10 0 1 357 187 +170 8 1 49
3 Rotherham Titans 11 9 0 2 358 250 +108 6 1 43
4 Rosslyn Park 11 7 0 4 374 257 +117 7 2 37
5 Blackheath 11 7 0 4 314 252 +62 6 1 35
6 Birmingham Moseley 10 6 0 4 234 237 −3 4 0 28
7 Bishop's Stortford 11 5 0 6 268 268 0 6 2 28
8 Plymouth Albion 11 4 0 7 286 287 −1 7 5 28
9 Sale FC 11 5 0 6 240 290 −50 4 3 27
10 Dings Crusaders 11 4 1 6 312 363 −51 7 0 25
11 Esher 11 3 0 8 291 450 −159 6 0 18
12 Sedgley Park 11 2 0 9 278 310 −32 4 4 16 Relegation place
13 Leicester Lions 11 2 0 9 227 370 −143 5 3 16
14 Darlington Mowden Park 10 1 0 9 195 397 −202 3 1 8
Updated to match(es) played on 23 November 2024. Source: National League Rugby [2]
Rules for classification: If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order:
  1. Number of matches won
  2. Difference between points for and against
  3. Total number of points for
  4. Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams
  5. Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled

History

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The Dings was a slum area of Bristol located between Barton Hill and Temple Meads. The Shaftesbury Crusade, a Christian mission in the area, encouraged sporting activity in the Dings. In 1897, H W Rudge founded Dings Crusaders as part of the Dings Boys Club. Dings is one of only two remaining members of the original Bristol Combination set up in 1901, the other being Bristol Saracens. In 1948, Jack Steadman instigated a move to Dings current home in Lockleaze. Since league structure was introduced, Dings gained three promotions between 1996 and 2003 to enter the National League for the first time. The club finished in the relegation places at the end of the 2003–04 season, their first in National Division Three South, but were spared demotion by the demise of Wakefield. Since then, the club has consolidated its position within the league.

In 2014 it was announced that the club would be moving from the 1,500 capacity Lockleaze ground to Shaftesbury Park, which is based on Frenchay Park Road in Frenchay, South Gloucestershire.[3] The new ground will be part of a £8 million pound sports facility with a main stand/club house, a gym and two court sports hall, eight changing rooms, two full size floodlight pitches including the main pitch which will have an 4G artificial surface, parking for up to 220 cars and multiple junior pitches.[4] Capacity will include 250 seated and up to 2,000 standing, bring the total figure up to approximately 2,250.

On 17 February 2018 after 10 years in the making, Dings finally played their first game at Shaftesbury Park in front of a crowd of around 1,000, defeating Weston-super-Mare 34–26 in a South West Premier league game.[5]

Dings Crusaders finished as National League 2 West champions at the end of the 2023–24 season, taking the title with a game to go.[6] This win would also see Dings promoted to National League 1 - the highest level the club had reached in its league history.

Honours

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[7][8][9][10][11][12]

Current squad

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Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.

Player Position Union
Charlie Taylor Prop England England
William Thompson Lock England England
Harry Tarling Centre England England
George Boulton Centre England England
Harry Hone Number 8 England England
Tom Foot Centre England England
Ollie Smith Fullback England England
Sol Taufa Wing Fiji Fiji
Matthew Bennett Flanker England England
Ezra Caven Wing Jamaica Jamaica
Joe Hawkesby Hooker England England
Mackenzie Hill Scrum-half England England
Tom Hargan Wing England England
Player Position Union
Simon Foot Fly-half England England
Brian NCube Prop England England
Kenzie Jenkins Flanker England England
Aaron Tull Flanker England England
Max Dorrington Hooker England England
Ciaran Donoghue Fullback England England
Tom Gollop Hooker England England
Sam Morton Smith Scrum-half England England

Club officials

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President : Raymond Bowden

Vice President : Phillip Knowles

Chairman : Steve Lloyd

General Secretary : Ian Haddrell

Treasurer : James Luck

Membership Secretary : Rob Stevens

Head Coach : Luke Arscott

Director of Rugby : Stean Williams

Club Captain : George Boulton

References

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  1. ^ "RFU National League 3 South West Rugby Fixtures". South West Sports News. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  2. ^ "National League 1". NCA Rugby.
  3. ^ "Dings Crusaders RFC to move after selling its site". Western Daily Press. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 13 December 2015.[permanent dead link‍]
  4. ^ "Frenchay ground beginning to take shape". Fishponds Voice. 2 September 2016.
  5. ^ "Dings Crusaders kick off with a win!". Ferguson Mann Architects. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  6. ^ "Dings rack up the points to celebrate lifting title". The RugbyPaper. No. 813. 14 April 2024. p. 34-35.
  7. ^ "Bristol & District Rugby Football Combination". Pitchero. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  8. ^ "Dings Crusaders see off Weston in Combination Cup final". Bristol Post. 5 May 2011. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  9. ^ "RUGBY: Dings' season ends on a high with Combination Cup win". Bristol Post. 14 May 2015. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  10. ^ "Final League Tables 2000-2001". Trelawny's Army. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  11. ^ "Final League Tables 2002-2003". Trelawny's Army. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  12. ^ "Dings rack up the points to celebrate lifting title". The RugbyPaper. No. 813. 14 April 2024. p. 34-35.
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