The game of Rugby Football had been played in Ireland for over 40 years before it reached the provincial town of Banbridge. In 1918 the Headmaster of Banbridge Academy, W J Warren, introduced the game to his pupils, but it was eight years before a town team was formed.

Late in 1925 a nucleus of former Academy pupils and others interested in the game from in and around the town got together a team to play Newry. The date of that historic first game was 2nd January 1926 and the score as recorded in the local press was 6-0 in favour of the frontier town.

The Banbridge Chronicle did not reveal the names of the fifteen players who did duty on that occasion but it was noted that “ they had hard luck in not crossing the Newry line.”

Presumably to establish the Club on a more formal basis, a preliminary meeting was held in Banbridge Orange Hall on Monday, 25th January. This lead to the first General Meeting, held on 1st February.

Meanwhile the return fixture with Newry had taken place on 30th January.

Newry again came out on top, by two tries to one, and the rugby correspondent of the Chronicle reported that “the forwards were good in the loose, but weak in the scrummaging”.

On the 6th February, before a “fair muster of spectators” at Rifle Park, Bann had a little more success against Lurgan, recording a 6-6 draw. The display was “not scientific, but the players showed plenty of vigour and enthusiasm”.

That year two local boys, Gerald Finney and Teddy McWilliam were on the Campbell College side in the Schools’ Cup final at Ravenhill.

The Banbridge Club got some wider publicity in April when a reporter from the Northern Whig went along to Pirrie park on Saturday 17th to watch Bann take on Queen’s Island. Though going down by one drop goal, one penalty goal and three tries to one goal, Bann earned some praise from “Impartial”. He described the team as “quite a lively lot with a hefty set of forwards and a smart back division”. It was a “fine open game, played in the proper spirit”. The writer concluded by “wishing Banbridge every success in the Minor League next season”.

So in 1926-27 Bann had their first experience of League Football, competing in Section C of the Minor League against Knock 3, Y M C A 2, King’s Scholars, C P A 3, Cooke 2, Sirocco and Holywood.

On 2nd October 1926 the firsts suffered a 17-0 defeat at the hands of Portadown, but in the return game at Portadown two weeks later turned the tables completely to win by the same result. The players who represented Bann in this, the club’s first victory were: J.W. Patton, Rev I.R. Peacock, G. McSpadden, J. Kennedy, H.L. Chambers, T. Hynes, J.B. Carter, T. Henry, D. Finney, T.L. Moffett, R. Hamilton, R.W. Carson, A. Nelson, J.T. Gailey and L. Kirk.

In late October a Second XV was formed, thanks to a large and enthusiastic membership. On 6th November for the first time two teams were fielded.

The Chronicle of 4th December 1926 reported that J.W. Lusk, a Banbridge man attending Edinburgh University and captain of the students’ team, played for Ulster against Munster on 27th November. The paper noted that : “Lusk always assists the local club while on vacation and coached the team at the start of the season.

Bann entered the Towns’ Cup that season but drew tough opponents in Donaghadee, who had won the Junior Cup and Junior League the previous year. The 6-0 defeat in that game of 8th January 1927 can be seen as a very creditable performance.

The club did not have to wait long for representative honours. In March T. Henry and Rev C.I. Peacock were capped for Co. Down and Co. Antrim.

In their first season of rugby under the captaincy of Tom Henry a total of 22 matches were played, winning 12, losing 8 and drawing 2. The points tally was 236 for, 119 against. Four league games were lost but Bann’s overall record was considered good enough to warrant promotion to the Junior League. A credit balance of £20-8-0 was reported at the end of the season.

The 1927-28 League fixtures were against Knock, Sydenham, Bangor, Portadown, King’s Scholars, Newry, Carrick and Cooke. Their first entry in the Junior Cup resulted in a 6-5 defeat by Newry on 4th December 1927.

In terms of playing strength, BRFC remained fairly static during the pre-war years. Even during the highly successful 1932-33 season, during which Bann won the Towns’ Cup for the first time, a 2nd was fielded with only some difficulty.

Seen against this background of player shortage, the winning of the Towns’ Cup, which was and still is the Blue Riband of Junior rugby, was quite an accomplishment.

Since the 1926-27 season the First XV had worked its way up to Section 1 of a three section Junior League. However, in the period before Christmas 1932, results were somewhat mixed, and a serious League challenge was never mounted.

The New Year saw a considerable improvement and when C.F.A. were defeated 11-6 in a League game on 21st January it was Bann’s seventh consecutive victory. The following Saturday Newcastle visited Rifle Park to play a Towns’ Cup game and were summarily dismissed 19-0. Further victories that followed were gained at the expense of Larne (14-6) and Queen’s 2’s (14-0) before Armagh ended the run on 18th March by defeating Bann 6-0 in the League.

A fortnight later however, Bann gained revenge by defeating Armagh in the semi-final of the Towns’ Cup. There was little open play in this game played at Rifle Park, with the only score being a penalty kicked by home full-back C. Woods.

The final was played just nine days later on Easter Monday at Ravenhill. Portadown provided the opposition and the following XV took the field for Banbridge: A. Williamson, J. Leitch, W. Cargin, A. Chambers, D. Finney, D. Forsythe , J Rutherford, W. Johnstone, W. McCallum, H.M. Scott, S. Mehaffey, (capt.), H. McMillan, J. Ledlie, E. Marshall, W. Lusk and C. Woods.

Bann fielded the heavier pack but the game was very even throughout, with full-back Woods again proving a matchwinner. His penalty seven minutes into the second half was the only score of the game, and he put in two try saving tackles, one with such ferocity that the Portadown player had to retire injured. The Bann defence held out in spite of a late Portadown rally and so the Towns’ Cup came to the Co. Down town for the first occasion.

The 1933-34 season again saw the First XV competing in Section 1 of the Junior League, with, for the record, the following teams:- Armagh, Ballymena, King’s Scholars, Lurgan, Malone 2’s, Queen’s 2’s, Queen’s Freshers and Sirocco.

Reports at the 1933 AGM showed: “an increasing interest being taken in the game in Banbridge”, and the Towns’ Cup success must have done much to foster this interest. However, such was the turnover in players that the First XV six years later contained only two survivors from the Cup side, namely S.J. Mehaffey and W.J. Cargin. This turnover can be attributed to some extent to the transfer of players from the town for business reasons.

However, by the 1938-39 season the club was established, and this in itself was satisfactory progress in a town which for many years had been synonymous with top-class hockey.

From 1940-45 the Club ceased its activities. More than thirty past and present members served in the Forces. The Club reformed after the Second World War with one team and played in the Junior League during the 1945-46 season. The next couple of seasons proved to be a difficult time with funds and playing strength at their lowest level ever. However stalwart members such as T. Aulds, A.W.Buller, W Cupples, J.D.Finney, W.J.Jamison, R.L.Kennedy, J.H.Todd and J.S.Mehaffey put in a lot of hard work which was to lay a firm foundation for the future.

A Second XV was fielded in the 1947-48 season and entered in the following season in Division B of the Minor League, but “seldom fielded a full team”.

The 1947-48 season saw the installation of new showers in the Clubrooms at Bridge Street and the Secretary remarked that he hoped that this would encourage the players to train regularly!

The 1949 AGM report was rather less encouraging, with a drop in playing members that season. The First XV had been in sight of league honours in mid-season but faded and made early exits from the Junior and Towns’ Cups to Coleraine and Dromore respectively.

The early Fifties saw a build-up in playing membership and by 1955-56 the Club was able to field four XV’s, the Fourths being captained by J.Jamison.

However the improvement in the Club’s fortunes was best evidenced by the performance of the 1st XV in the ‘56-’57 season. Portadown were taken to extra time in the final of the Towns’ Cup before Bann went down 12-0. However the League was won and Bann lost narrowly (9-6) to Lurgan in the Past Players’ Cup.

The following season Bann finished in the middle of Junior League Section 1 but with only three XV’s being fielded a steady decline had begun which was to take some time to reverse.

Off the field the Club moved home – or rather hotel – moving from the yard of the Imperial Hotel in Bridge Street to converted stables at the rear of the Downshire Arms Hotel in Newry Street in January 1969.

The 1961 AGM heard the Secretary report a poor season with several good Club members having left the area. The following year it was reported that training was very poor with only four players availing themselves of the indoor facilities at the Intermediate School, and some matches had to be cancelled because of late cry-offs.

Although social and fund-raising activities continued apace during this time the playing side remained in the doldrums and by the late 60’s only two teams were being fielded. However at the 1971 AGM the Hon. Sec. K.McElroy said that the past season would be remembered as the one when the tide began to turn for the teams, with the First XV captained by David Ledlie having finished in the top half of Junior Section Four.

The following season a 3rd XV was fielded on occasions and at the AGM the question of purchasing grounds was discussed. After a temporary lapse in ‘72-’74, the 3rd XV started under Sam Lytle and re-joined the League in ‘75-’76. From then membership continued to swell and since the late 70’s the Club has fielded five adult XV’s in league competition.

The First XV earned promotion in ‘74-’75 and again in ‘79-’80 and there was similar success for teams down the Club. In the period from 1977-81 there were seven promotions for the teams.

In 1981 Bann at last acquired their own premises adjacent to the playing fields. With the assistance of grant-aid from the Department of Education a new Clubhouse was built on land at the end of Arderys Lane.

In 1984 the Firsts made their first appearance in a Ravenhill final for 27 years. Despite playing in Section Three of the Junior League they battled their way through, under Philip Mehaffey’s leadership, claiming the scalps, among others, of Section One sides Ballyclare and notably Coleraine in a momentous semi-final.

The final against Omagh was a forgettable affair, due to the atrocious weather conditions. But the Co. Tyrone side got the only points with a solitary penalty, leaving the losers only with the longing to return and taste victory.

Fifty six years after that 1933 Towns’ Cup victory Bann got their name on the Cup again, with Robert Ervine leading his side to a 9-6 win over Antrim in the 1989 Easter Monday final. Early the following season they claimed the popular Nutty-Krust Floodlit Cup, a competition they came to dominate in the nineties.

But probably the greatest cup success as a junior club came in 1990 when captain John Best lifted the Junior Cup for the first and only time in the Club’s history. Tyrone Howe, later to earn fame as captain of Oxford University and with the British Lions, Ulster and Ireland, raced 60 metres for the winning try against the RUC.

Success bred more success in the 90’s with another Towns’ Cup victory in 1993, Ian Wray lifting the trophy after victory over Ballyclare.

But by the mid-90’s thoughts were focussed on the All-Ireland League which was opening its ranks to successful Qualifying Clubs. Bann were at this stage showing their league pedigree and three successive Qualifying League Championships from 1992-95 suggested they would be among the front runners the following season when the top Club from each province would be admitted to the AIL.

However Bann had to watch enviously as first Ballynahinch in 1996 and then Omagh in 1997 went up ahead of them. Bann were not to be denied however and after round robin wins over the other provincial qualifying champions Naas, Monivea and Midleton, they earned their place in Division Four of the AIL for the 1998-99 season.

Two significant developments had taken place which gave the Club the confidence that they could not only survive in the AIL but also go on to make their mark.

Although the Club had been running mini rugby since the mid-70’s there were no youth teams to provide the link from 12 year-olds to adult rugby. This was identified as a weakness in the Club structure and in 1993 a youth section was created to promote rugby at U-14, U-16 and U-18 levels.

The youth section was quick to make its mark with the U-16’s picking up the provincial cup in 1994 after defeating Malone in the Ravenhill final. The following season the U-18’s beat Dundalk in the final of the Coca-Cola Floodlit competition organised by Armagh RFC and the U-14’s picked up the Don Robinson Cup in Potadown’s Floodlit competition. Two seasons later the same squad was successful in the U-16 competition at Lisburn RFC and made the semi-final of the International Festival of Rugby at Murrayfield.

Secondly the Club had, in the mid-90’s, undertaken a major ground improvement programme to provide three first-class pitches, one floodlit, a floodlit training area and a Clubhouse extension at a total cost of £300,000.

With the playing and coaching structure in place and facilities to match any Club in the country, Banbridge moved confidently into the senior ranks in the ‘98-’99 season, some 72 years after those first tentative rugby steps had been taken in the town.