World's oldest rugby club ends 27-year wait vs Dean Richards' Doncaster

After two near-misses, Blackheath FC celebrated their first win at Level 2 in the English league system for 27 years when they beat Doncaster Knights 33-26 in the Elior Champ at The Utilita, Well Hall on Sunday.

Blackheath, the oldest rugby club in the world, had picked up losing bonus points in their first two Champ games, after falling just short against Nottingham (31-38) and Caldy (24-28) on the opening two weekends.

Champ stalwarts Doncaster, now managed by ex-England No.8 Dean Richards, were always going to be a tough proposition with talent such as Semesa Rokoduguni and Telusa Veainu in their ranks.

But Blackheath, led by their remarkable hooker Sam Harding, showed the togetherness and spirit that got them promoted from National League One to hold on for a famous win, which was televised live by free-to-air channel Blaze TV.

The Knights raced into an early 12-0 lead but their indiscipline and tries from Luke Pollock and Archie Holland and seven points from the boot of Morley ensured ‘Club’ only trailed by two points (17-19) at the break.

Having lost captain Veainu to a yellow card in the first half, Doncaster had two more players sin-binned in the second period and Blackheath took advantage.

Following Jordan Burns’ converted try shortly after the restart, Morley slotted three more penalties to keep the visitors at arm’s length.

Veainu’s late try gave Doncaster the chance to level the game, but Blackheath’s defence held firm and forced a turnover.

Interviewed post-match by Blaze lead commentator Sam Roberts, Blackheath head coach Tom Stradwick said: “I thought the grit from the players was outstanding. You could see how tired they were on the pitch at the end. Massive, massive credit to them.

“Every time there was an opportunity to jackal, they were slowing ball down, on them straight away, and closing down space. I am really proud of the boys’ performance.”

Before the win over Doncaster, Blackheath’s last victory at this level was 27-26 against Fylde, on 1 May, 1999, in what was then known as Allied Dunbar Premiership 2.

By then, Blackheath’s relegation had been sealed but it is hoped that this latest victory will lead to the south-east London club, which dates back to 1858, consolidating their place in the Champ.

Getting the long-awaited win was timely, too, given that Blackheath play the teams that finished in the top three last season in their next block of fixtures – Coventry, Ealing and defending champions Worcester Warriors.

“We’ve got a five-day turnaound before we go up to play Coventry on a Friday night, so recovery will be really important, making sure we get the bgame plan right for that,” added Stradwick.