{{Short description|Irish rugby union club based in Ballymena, Co.Antrim, N.Ireland}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}} {{Infobox rugby team | teamname = Ballymena | image = Ballymena rfc logo.png | imagesize = 120 | fullname = Ballymena Rugby Football Club | union = {{flagicon|IRE|rugby union}} [[Irish Rugby Football Union|IRFU]] | branch = [[Ulster Rugby|Ulster]] | nickname = | founded = {{start date and age|1887}} | region = [[County Antrim|Antrim]] | ground = Eaton Park, [[Ballymena]] | countryflag = Northern Ireland | capacity = 1,000 | url = http://ballymenarugbyclub.com/ | president = Peter Crabbe | chairman = David J McNeill | coach = John Nicholl, Michael Stevenson, [[Andrew Warwick]], Gareth Fisher, Matthew Dick, Alasdair Frazer | league = [[All-Ireland League (rugby union)#Division 2A|All-Ireland Div. 2A]] | season = [[2024–25 All-Ireland League (rugby union)|2024–25]] | position = 8th.<ref>[https://www.irishrugby.ie/all-ireland-leagues-old/men/league-tables/ A.I.L. Tables 2024–25]</ref> | pattern_la1 = | pattern_b1 = _vneck | pattern_ra1 = | pattern_sh1 = | pattern_so1 = _white_bands | leftarm1 = 000000 | body1 = 000000 | rightarm1 = 000000 | shorts1 = 000000 | socks1 = 000000 }} '''Ballymena Rugby Football Club''' is a [[rugby union]] club based in the town of [[Ballymena]], [[Northern Ireland]], playing in [[2024–25 All-Ireland League (rugby union)#Division 2A|Division 2A]] of the [[All-Ireland League (rugby union)|All-Ireland League]]. It is affiliated to the [[Ulster Rugby|Ulster]] branch of the [[Irish Rugby Football Union]]. The club fields five adult teams and an under-20s team. In youth rugby, there are under-18s, under-16s and under-14s teams.
==Formation== Ballymena RFC was first affiliated to the Northern Branch of the [[Irish Rugby Football Union]] in 1887, but the Club as we know it today, began after the First World War, in 1922, and entered the Junior League in the 1923–24 season, playing their games in the local Demesne. Within the next 10 years, they twice won both the Provincial Towns· Cup and the Junior Challenge Cup, and even competed, albeit with little success, in the Senior Challenge Cup. The Post War Era at the end of the Second World War, the Club reformed, and were now playing at the Showgrounds, using the changing facilities provided by [[Ballymena Academy]], whose Headmaster, the late W.H. Mol, had taken over the position of Club President. Ballymena a Senior Club After a number of successful years, which produced successive Junior League Championship wins in 1950–51 and 1951–52, an application was made to the Ulster Branch for admission to the senior ranks, and so, in the 1952–53 season, Ballymena became a Senior Club. Two years later, they moved to their present home at Eaton Park, then a modest 9 acres, which they had acquired from the Mid-Antrim Sports Association, and where other sports like Cricket, Tennis, Men's Hockey and later Athletics, were being catered for. Only the first of these has survived, and continues to flourish as a very successful and thriving Section of the Club. The following couple of decades saw Eaton Park expand to 30-odd acres, and the erection of a pavilion, a function hall, training floodlights, a grandstand and a clubhouse with kitchen facilities. Success After acquiring senior status in 1952, Ballymena had to wait ten years for their next playing success, winning the Senior Cup in 1962–63, benefiting from the leadership and superb place-kicking of captain [[Jonathan Moffett (rugby union)|Jonathan Moffett]]. This was followed by a number of lean years, which, however, still produced Internationals like [[Syd Millar]], a past-President of the I.R.F.U., and a past-Chairman of the International Rugby Board, [[Barton McCallan]] and the legendary [[Willie John McBride|W.J. McBride]].
Trail Blazers in 1970, Ballymena blazed a trail in Irish rugby by appointing a principal coach, Maurice Crabbe, adopting a squad system and setting up a club coaching scheme, and the stage was set for the golden decade that was to follow, during which Ballymena were arguably the foremost club in Ulster and Ireland. They contributed many players to the Ulster Provincial side and to the Irish International team during this period, which came to a climax in 1980 with a major Club tour to Canada.
==Honours== *[[All-Ireland League (rugby union)|All-Ireland League]]: 1 ** 2002–03 *[[Ulster Senior Cup (rugby union)|Ulster Senior Cup]]: 14 ** 1962–63, 1969–70, 1974–75, 1976–77, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1995–96, 1996–97, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2011–12, 2012–13 *[[Ulster Senior League (rugby union)|Ulster Senior League]]: 14 (3 shared) **1972–73 (shared), 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1985–86, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1996–97, 1997–98, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2004–05 (shared), 2005–06 (shared), 2015–16 *[[Ulster Towns Cup]]: 13 ** 1927–28, 1931–32, 1952–53, †1962–63, †1969–70, †1972–73, †1973–74, †1976–77, †1978–79, †1990–91, †1993–94, †1999–2000, †2004–05 *[[Ulster Junior Cup]]: 8 ** 1928–29, 1929–30, †1971–72, †1972–73, †1997–98, †1999–2000, †2000–01, †2004–05
† Won by 2nd XV
==Notable players== :''See also {{cat|Ballymena R.F.C. players}}'' ===Ireland=== The following Ballymena players have represented [[Ireland national rugby union team|Ireland]] at full international level. {{div col|colwidth=20em}} * [[Jonny Bell (rugby union)|Jonny Bell]] * [[Isaac Boss]] * [[David Humphreys (rugby union)|David Humphreys]] * [[Willie John McBride]] * [[Matt McCullough]] * [[Syd Millar]] * [[Jonathan Moffett]] * [[Dion O'Cuinnegain]] * [[Trevor Ringland]] * [[Gary Longwell]] * [[Steve Smith (rugby union, born 1959)|Steve Smith]] * [[James Topping]] * [[Jamie Smith (rugby union)|Jamie Smith]] * [[Andrew Trimble]] * [[Bryan Young (rugby union)|Bryan Young]] * [[Luke Marshall]] * [[Chris Henry (rugby union)|Chris Henry]] {{div col end}}
===British and Irish Lions=== The following Ballymena players have also represented the [[British and Irish Lions]] .<ref>''The Ireland Rugby Miscellany'' (2007): Ciaran Cronin</ref>
* [[Willie John McBride]]: [[1962 British Lions tour to South Africa|1962]], [[1966 British Lions tour to Australia and New Zealand|1966]], [[1968 British Lions tour to South Africa|1968]], [[1971 British Lions tour to New Zealand|1971]], [[1974 British Lions tour to South Africa|1974]] * [[Syd Millar]]: [[1962 British Lions tour to South Africa|1962]], [[1968 British Lions tour to South Africa|1968]] * [[Trevor Ringland]]: [[1983 British Lions tour to New Zealand|1983]] * [[Steve Smith (rugby union, born 1959)|Steve Smith]]: [[1989 British Lions tour to Australia|1989]] * [[Tommy Seymour]]: [[2017 British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand|2017]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{official website}}
{{AIB League}} {{Rugby union in Ulster}}
[[Category:Ballymena R.F.C.| ]] [[Category:Rugby union teams in Ireland]] [[Category:Rugby union teams in Northern Ireland]] [[Category:Rugby union teams in County Antrim]] [[Category:Rugby clubs established in 1887]] [[Category:Sport in Ballymena]] [[Category:All-Ireland League rugby union teams]] [[Category:Ulster Senior League (rugby union) teams]]