By Trefor Evans

Whitland RFC was founded in 1889 thanks to the efforts of Dr. Rowland Lewis Thomas, Parke, who also became the club’s first president. He gained six Welsh caps between 1889 and 1892, and was captain in two of those games.

Little is known of the early history of the club, but after the First World War the club took part in the Pembrokeshire Knock Out Cup in 1919-20, only to be defeated in the first round by Kilgetty by nine points to nil. Whitland did not win the cup until 1950-51 when Neyland were beaten by three points to nil. Since then the cup has been won some 10 times.

The first Pembrokeshire League Championship was also won in 1950-51, successfully defending the title for the next two seasons. In all, the championship was won 13 times. The last championship success in 1992/93 earned Whitland a game against Cilfynydd in the play-off for a place in the Fourth Division of the National Heineken League. Victory was achieved in a memorable game held at Pembroke and so season 1993-94 saw Whitland enter the National League set up for the first time. The club has gained promotion up the leagues over the years and played in various divisions during many WRU reorganisations.

Many memorable matches were played in the old Welsh Cup in the ’70s and 80s, none more so than the one against Pontypridd on December 27, 1971. At full-time the score stood at seven points all and, as was the rule in those days, the result was decided on the toss of the coin. Tradition has it that the Ponty captain, Denis John, said “as we’ve had our tails between our legs all game I’ll call tails.” His call was correct and so Pontypridd went on to the next round. Neath were fortunate to gain a seven points to three win in 1975 and there were also memorable games against Aberavon, Pontypool, Cardiff and Llanelli.

The Welsh Cup has also been a source of success for the Youth team, reaching the final on two occasions. The first was in 1983 when against all the odds Cardiff were defeated by 10 points to nine. The final was again reached in 2009, held at the Millennium Stadium, against Bridgend Athletic. Despite an excellent performance, Whitland were defeated by 30 points to 18.

The various Junior and Youth teams have been a successful breeding ground for the club over the years, with many going on to gain caps at both school and youth level.

In addition to Dr. Thomas playing for Wales, four other senior internationals have come from the club, namely Alan Reynolds, Scott Williams, Michael Phillips and Jonathan Davies, with the latter two also representing the British and Irish Lions.

The Second XV has also gained many successes, with both the Pembrokeshire League and Knock Out Cup won on many occasions.

The Ladies section was formed in 1994 and has continued to develop over the years. The team won Division One last season and so this season will compete in the Premiership as one of the best seven teams in Wales. Individuals have also enjoyed success, with four gaining full caps and six Under 20s caps.

In due course it is planned to publish a book giving the history of Whitland RFC. If anyone has anything they feel could be included in the book, especially old cuttings and photographs, please contact either Paul Kirk: [email protected] or Trefor Evans: [email protected]