Club History & Honours 1 of 4

1. A Brief History of TRFC


Twickenham RFC. by Jim Peters, Club President

Twickenham football club can trace a heritage back to 1867 when Wellesley House, Twickenham, a young men’s academy in Twickenham played against Richmond.

The academy closed in 1869. In 1873 an advert appeared in the Richmond and Twickenham Times for the formation of a football club, for sons of gentlemen only. They seemed to have taken the Wellesley House fixture, and no doubt the players, against Richmond, losing to them in a match played on Richmond green in the same year. A Twickenham seconds are recorded in 1874 and an unbroken record of fixtures exists up to 1884, with the club being accepted into the Rugby Football Union in 1880, the colours being magenta and dark blue.

The rugby mantle in Twickenham then seems to have been taken over by the Twickenham Young Men’s Friendly Society, playing as ‘Twickenham’ in 1888.
In 1893 a meeting was held in the Prince Blucher pub to form a football club and the proposal to play the rugby version of the game defeated one to play the association game’ by twenty one votes to fourteen.
The original colours were black jerseys with a very large white TFC sewn to the front.

Home games were played on Twickenham green. One year later the club was banned from playing on the green due to the damage caused and the club re-organised itself, changing colours to those worn today, black and red hoops. From then on the club has an unbroken record of fixtures.
After being turfed off the green a succession of meadows and fields in and around Twickenham were used as home grounds and the’ headquarters’ were usually a local pubs, The Albert, The Prince Blucher and the Albany to name a few.

The membership was made up of players from a number of public schools and locals and the club was referred to as’ being one of the leading metropolitan clubs’ in the press.

The club moved to it’s present ground, Parkfields , in the early 1930s and now runs four teams, and thriving Colts, junior and mini sections. Having been promoted in each of the last two seasons, it currently plays in London One South league.