On back of Running Order is a summary of playing appearances. This is a very early version of this sheet which we will probably spend years to extend and also be unlikely to complete in full.

This is part of a project to digitise the huge collection of documents, photos, videos and physical items like Club Caps and trophies. As we digitise we will index them all so that people can search the database to explore their own history and those of all the other club members via records that date back to about 1900.

Surprisingly The Club only has decent playing records going back to 2009. Or we haven’t yet found older records but this doesn’t mean that they don’t exist. So to make good the gaps I invited our past players to submit their honest and best recollection of their playing histories. A small number of these have arrived and are on the table.

You can see that there are some very big scores on this table. Rob Williams and Dave Horne head the table with 644 appearances each. Dave Horne has an astonishing record which includes: 1sts 424 appearances, 2nds 98, and Evergreens 121 appearances.

As we gather more data and index more documents we expect to unearth information which will allow us to better verify the histories submitted by past players.

There are some even larger scores lurking. For example Paul Lowen started playing with Ealing in 1971 and continued playing regularly and virtually injury-free for 40 years. Do the sums. 40 years, twenty games per season, gives a number floating near the 800 mark. Remarkable.

Interestingly the table also provides a summary of the last twenty years of history at Vallis Way.

• 1999 we move from Horsenden Hill to Vallis Way. We have five or six teams plus Exiles, Wanderers and Evergreens.
• 2000 Firsts/Seconds squad starts on its journey to professional rugby.
• At some point a Development Squad was formed.
• Then the Development Squad is renamed the Cougars and is playing in MMT1. No payments are made to Cougars players.
• The Third Team, known as “The Mighty Turds” is renamed The Buffaloes.
• Player frustrations begin to build as Cougars and Buffaloes are no longer managed as part of Mike Cudmore’s squad but cannot access “proper” league rugby.
• In 2012 Cougars and Buffaloes are renamed as 1sts and Ams 2nds
• Ams 1sts now playing in the Shield league typically against second teams of national league clubs. A good quality of rugby but frustrations grow.
• About this time we take a decision to find a route to allow our players to play league rugby.
• Middx RFU is very supportive but Middx & Herts Clubs are strongly opposed and veto our applications to play in RFU leagues.
• In 2018 we decide to form Ealing Rugby 1871 RFC which sits alongside Ealing Trailfinders RFC.
• We enter the leagues, at the bottom, in 2019 and are promoted having won all of our games that season.
• The rest, as they say, is history, or will be soon.

There is another reason why we started to count historic games. To celebrate the formation of Ealing 1871 for its inaugural season in 2019 we decided to create a, special award exclusively for the new club. This award, which is a special Club Tie, is awarded based on two criteria.

1. Must have played one or more games for Ealing 1871 or been an alikado for Ealing 1871.
2. Must have validated record of playing 100 or more games for The Club.

Now I expect that some folk will be a little frustrated if they don’t meet these criteria. If you are a current player then get some games under your belts. If you are an over 35 player then gets some Evergreens games in. Failing that, if you have 100+ games under your belts, then come and join the alikados at Ealing 1871 to help this team progress on its exciting journey up the leagues.

• So as I read out the winners of this award please set up to collect these from Ricky.