Newcastle University Engineers' Rugby Team

Background

LineoutEngineers RFC is an intramural team drawn mainly from the engineering departments of Newcastle University but open to all students. The team was set up in the 2003/4 season and has seen some significant highs and lows over the years, but has always provided a source of entertainment for players and spectators alike. The team competes in the weekly intramural league against other teams from the university and won the title in the 2008/09 season.

The Engines team takes part in an annual tour to a charity tournament for engineering teams from around the country, hosted by University of Birmingham in aid of the Matt Hampson Trust. They have had some success in this tour, having won in 2009/09 and retained in 2009/10.

“Ultimately we are about having a good time on and off the pitch so we organise nights out throughout the year including our Christmas dinner and awards ceremony at the end of the first term,” said former team captain Adam James.

The 2010/11 season was a big rebuild for the Engines. The team has had a large turnover of players over the past two seasons and was starting to try and build a squad after a poor season in 2009/10. There were some good games in the league and the Engines managed a respectable mid table finish which was a big improvement on the year before.

The high point of the season was definitely the run to the semi finals of the intramural cup where the Engines conceded in the last few minutes, having been leading for the majority of the game. Unfortunately this was the last game of the season and while it was as far as the Engines have ever reached in the cup it was still a blow. “Due to clashing dates with various exams and deadlines we were not able to go on our annual tour which was unfortunate but we hope to return next season and compete again,” said Adam.

Sponsorship

ScrumThe team would like to express their immense gratitude to all of their sponsors over the years, including NCS Survey; Parsons Brinckerhoff; School of Mechanical and Systems Engineering, School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences and The Brandling Bar, Jesmond. Without this generous sponsorship the team would not be able to enter the league and would have poor training equipment and playing kit. We very much hope that this generous sponsorship will continue for years to come and that the sponsors will benefit from the publicity we can provide as a strong rugby team.

If you are interested in getting involved, or even just turning up to matches to give your support, please contact the current team captains Richard Clarke and Toby English.