Next Season – we are 50!!
In 1975, at the Blue Boar pub in Chipping Norton, Anthony (Tony) Cripps and a group of friends sat down together and founded what would become Chipping Norton Rugby Union Football Club. Originally the club had neither clubhouse nor pitches, they would follow later in 1977 when Chipping Norton Town Council took on the land at Greystones as a base for local sports clubs. The club was certainly playing games by 1978, as Leamington RFC record a 90-0 victory over Chipping Norton, a new record for their Stags team – it was early days!
Thanks to those founding figures and the work of many, the club introduced mini rugby and, for a number of years, supported a Women’s team. In 1997 the current clubhouse opened and, after Tony Cripps’ untimely death in June 2007, our main pitch now carries his name in memory. In 2007-08 our first XV became league champions in the Berks/Bucks& Oxon Premiership competition for the second time, a fitting testament to Tony’s legacy. Today the club supports rugby across all age groups, organises an annual minis festival and has added free community touch and walking rugby outside the traditional season. As we approach our 50th year in 2024-05 the club will be celebrating our history and looking ahead to the future, so there is no better time to be involved in events, volunteering and fundraising for our wish-list attached. Look out for our special 50th logo, new anniversary kit and more information on events and activities will follow as we plan the season ahead. Here’s to the next 50!
