Withycombe RFC Club History

Formed in 1924, the Club’s full name of Withycombe Rugby Football & Recreation Club derives from the use of the old Recreation Rooms in the village, which no longer exist but stood on the site of the main entrance to the local primary school. These premises were used until 1964 when the first clubhouse was erected at Raleigh Park. Having played at various venues around the village, the Club made its permanent home on the former market garden owned by Raleigh Wilmot who turned it into a sports field and in whose honour it is named. The ground was sold to Exmouth Urban District Council and leased to the Club. In 1971,with the formation of East Devon District Council, they became the new landlords and have supported the Club superbly over the years, with various loans and grants enabling the present-day clubhouse facilities to be mainly completed during the early 90`s with some more recent additions, such as the refurbished lounge and clubroom and the very popular patio area overlooking the pitch.

Always traditionally a family Club, it was dominated by the Burch, Rowsell and Willmot families in the early days and a few members of those families are members still. As the Club has progressed, on and off the field, it has maintained that “small club family atmosphere” which makes people welcome .We say “once a Withy, always a Withy” and former members who may have moved away, even abroad, still keep in touch and call in to see us whenever they are home.

With the inception of league rugby in 1987,we were placed in the old Devon 2b; the very bottom rung of the league ladder. We bumped along for a few seasons then got promotion to Devon One with a terrific win at Dartmouth in 1993.Four seasons there saw us strengthen and we earned promotion to Cornwall and Devon in 1997.After two seasons, we moved up to the dizzy heights of Western Counties (West) by winning at Sidmouth with the last kick of the game. Our tenure in this division has lasted ten years to date; a fantastic achievement by a small club. Until last year we just ran two teams, with no junior section but the juniors are flourishing as they enter their second full season and numbers are growing at the Sunday morning training sessions. They may not provide our first XV stars for a few years yet, but eventually we will have our own “production line” to carry us forward.  The “Withies” 1st XV now play in the Cornwall and Devon League and are looking to build a solid foundation with an eye towards a return to Western Counties West in the not-too-distant future.

Watch this space!