LEAGUE HISTORY

1987 - 88
League rugby began at Buckingham this season when the newly formed leagues played their first competitive matches. Buckingham were placed in Bucks/Oxon 1 alongside eleven other sides and played each side once only. They finished in 10th place winning 4 of their 11 games scoring 119 points to 175 against. Abingdon & Didcot finished below them and were relegated.

1988 - 89
The following season Buckingham finished last out of 11 sides winning only 2 games and scoring 104 points to 221. They were relegated with Witney and it is interesting to note that Littlemore finished 2nd in the league whilst Pennanians and Drifters both finished well above Buckingham.

1989 - 90
The club in Bucks & Oxon 2 and in a league of 10 sides, a struggling Buckingham finished in 6th place scoring 148 points to 133 against. They won four and drew one of their 9 games with Wheatley, Didcot, Witney, Abingdon and Phoenix finishing above them, and Chesham, Gosford All Blacks, Harwell and Chipping Norton below.

1990 - 92
They remained in the doldrums in the 90 - 91 season but the season after showed a marked improvement by finishing in 4th place winning 6 and drawing one of their 11 matches. Even so their points totals were 151 for and 153 against. Meanwhile in Bucks & Oxon 1 local rivals Bicester went through the season undefeated conceding only 37 points in their 10 games played.

1992 - 93
Records for the next season are rather sketchy but by the 1992-93 season Buckingham were back in Bucks & Oxon 1 only to finish 11th out of 12 teams and be relegated again with Wheatley. They won only 2 of their 12 games scoring 176 points to 351.

1993 - 94
They bounced back up immediately with their best ever league season to date. For the first time the leagues played home and away fixtures against the other clubs and Buckingham won 14 of their 16 league matches scoring 385 points to 109 and finished second to Phoenix and moving back to Bucks & Oxon 1 the season after being relegated .

1994-95
The leagues reverted to only one game against the opposing sides and in a league of 13 clubs Buckingham won 6 and lost 6 to finish in 5th place. They scored 207 points to 199 against. Chinnor were the undefeated champions in this season whilst Oxford Old Boys, Phoenix and Witney were the other clubs to finish above them in the league.

1995-96
This season was a historic one so far as Buckingham was concerned. In Bucks and Oxon 1 they finished 4th, winning 8 and losing 4 of their 12 games. Simon Fletcher scored 57 of the 254 points scored whilst Sparky Roberts was the leading try scorer with 10. Their 4th place ensured them of promotion to the newly formed Southern Counties North the following season. League clubs were placed in Levels with the top sides in the country at Level 1 down to Level 4. Then the top sides in the four countrywide divisions of North, Midlands, London & South East and South West were Level 5 and the leagues underneath going down to 10, 11 and 12 in some divisions. Southern Counties North was at level 7 and Buckingham has remained in that league to the present day. In 1995-96 Buckingham regularly turned out 5 sides and the leading scorers for each team [all games included] were 1st XV Simon Fletcher 173 pts., 2nd XV Roy Stevenson 116 pts., 3rd XV Chris Rennie 125 pts, 4th XV Neville Pritchard 104 pts and the Vets XV Steve McCabe 180 pts. In addition to the above, Buckingham also reached the final of the Lewis Shield played at Franklins Gardens and a slightly weakened side lost to Olney.

1996 - 97
Being promoted from 4th place in the league did not auger well for Buckingham but in the 1996-97 season, they won 8 and drew I of their 18 matches and finished in a respectable 4th position in the first season of Southern Counties North. Stow-on-the-Wold won the league and were promoted but Bicester, who finished 2nd, were beaten in a play-off by Wimborne. Simon Smith was leading points scorer in the league matches with 88pts and Ben Wood scored 7 times to head the try scorers. The side also secured their highest ever league wins with a 13 try destruction of Grove in an 84-0 victory. The 2nd XV, playing only friendlies, had a tremendous season winning 23 out of 32 games and topping a thousand points for. In all games that season Simon Smith with 174 pts and Ben Wood with 15 tries led the way for the 1sts, Mike Ferens with 103 pts and Steve Coldrick & Mike Harper with 15 tries each for the 2nds, Phil Rowe with 81 pts and Steve Robinson 11 tries for the 3rds, Neville Pritchard with 37 pts and 5 tries for the 4ths, whilst Martin Holtom scored 147 points and Matthew Wagland scored 14 tries for the Vets. Buckingham made amends for the previous season by once more reaching the final of the Lewis Shield, again played at Franklins Gardens, where they won the competition for the first and only time in their history by beating Northampton Old Scouts by 32 points to 11. Steve Coldrick (2), Sam Wood and Matthew Tutt scored tries and Simon Smith converted 3 and also kicked 2 penalties.

1997 - 98
In 1997-98 Buckingham finished in 5th place winning 8 of their 18 games and scoring 347 pts to 331. Simon Smith again led the points scoring with 107 and Matt Harper touched down for 11 tries, a record that still remains unbeaten for the side in a league season. In all 1st XV matches Simon Smith remained the highest points scorer with 166 and Matt Harper led in the try list with 18. In the 2nds, Mike Ferens scored 155 points and Julian Cook led the try scorers with 12 whilst Phil Rowe scored 221 points for the 3rds and also led the try scorers alongside Alistair Robinson, both touching down ten times.

1998 - 99
The 1998-99 season saw Buckingham really struggle and they finished three from the bottom of the league only avoiding relegation by one point. They scored 318 points to 413. Olney & Bicester were promoted and Bletchley and Pennanians were the 2 sides relegated. Adam Izzard led in the points scoring table with 64, and Matt Harper & Julian Cooper each scored 5 tries. In all 1st XV matches Adam Izzard scored 121 points whilst Tim Robinson & Ben Wood each ran in 10 tries. Mike Ferens led the 2nd XV points scoring for the third consecutive season with 117 and Julian Cooper notched up 16 tries. For the 3rds Phil Rowe again led the way with 80 points and Phil Ross scored 5 tries whilst for the 4ths, Martin Holtom scored 99 points and Chris Aylesworth scored 7 tries.

1999 - 2000
Buckingham improve to 6th place out of 10 teams winning ten and drawing one of their 18 matches. They scored 359 points to 268 with Simon Smith and Sam Wood leading the way scoring 59 points and 6 tries respectively. In all 1st XV matches the same pair topped the scoring with 118 points and 10 tries. Mike Ferens again led the 2nd XV with 153 points whilst Phil Jones scored 6 tries. Phil Rowe scored 243 points for the 3rds with Phil Ross going over for 21 tries, a remarkable achievement for someone playing mainly in the second-row or No.8. For the 4ths Martin Holtom topped both points and tries with 103 pts. And 10 tries.

2000 - 01
This proved to be another struggling season in the league finishing in 7th place out of 11 teams. All their games were close and the 9 wins and 11 losses saw the points scored almost identical with 254 to 265. Simon Smith topped the points scorers with 108 and Bryan Hamilton scored most tries but with only 4 touchdowns. In all 1st XV matches Simon Smith scored 138 pts and Julian Cooper ran in 6 tries. For the 2nds Tim Norman managed 123 points and Mark Gann scored 12 tries whilst for the 3rds Phil Rowe again topped 200 points with a total of 238 and John Lambert scored 18 tries. Jerry Anderson led the way for the 4ths with 82 points mainly scored through his 14 tries.

2001 - 02
In 2001-02 Buckingham again finished in the lower half of the table with 8 wins and one draw in their 18 matches. The highlight of the season was the 61-7 home win against Chipping Norton. Simon Smith managed 88 points and Matt Harper was back in business with 8 tries. In spite of an ordinary league season however, Buckingham surprised everyone by reaching the Bucks County Cup Final for the first time in their history beating Aylesbury and High Wycombe on their way to an encounter with Marlow who played at two levels higher than them. Marlow won comfortably at Marlow in the final but the experience was one cherished by all the Buckingham players and followers. In all 1st XV matches Simon scored 142 pts and David Hawkins and Matt Harper both scored 10 tries. For the other sides Tim Norman (74 pts) and Graham Hain (9 tries) led the 2nds, Phil Rowe (123 pts) and Tony Child (13 tries) the 3rds, and Matt Wagland (20 pts from 4 tries) the 4ths.

2002 - 03
Buckingham moved up to 5th place winning 9 and losing 9 of their games. Points were 361 for and 341 against. Highlights were the 52-7 and 51-0 wins against Beaconsfield and Wallingford respectively. David Hawkins was leading points scorer with 120 and Jim Roberts scored 6 tries. During the season Simon Smith and Ben Wood became the first players to reach 100 Level 7 league matches for the club and Simon topped 500 league points scored. In the 2nds Tim Norman scored 92 points and Adrian Goosey ran in 8 tries, and in the 3rds John Lambert led the way with 107 points and 12 tries. An unofficial 2nd XV League was also played amongst the teams in Southern Counties North. Only 9 teams participated and games only counted so long as the respective 1st XV's also played in their league on the same day. Aylesbury 2nds won the title with 12 wins and a draw from 16 games, but Buckingham 2nds finished in a commendable 2nd place with 10 wins.

2003 - 04
Buckingham finish in 4th place, their highest position since their first season in Southern Counties North. They won 11 and drew one of the 18 games but the points difference was disappointing with 377 for and 359 against. Adam Izzard scored 104 points and Julian Cooper touched down 7 times. For the 2nds a young Henry Colver scored 58 points, whilst Chris Dicey and Adrian Goosey scored 7 tries each . Henry Colver also led the way for the 3rds with 65 points and Tony Child scored 10 tries.

2004 - 05
Buckingham again struggled mainly due to a series of injuries to key players. They won 9 of their 22 games but the highlight was the last game of the season when they trounced old rivals Bicester by 52-17 away from home, a defeat which committed Bicester to relegation and from which they have to date not been able to get back to the same level as Buckingham. Henry Colver , taking over the kicking duties from the injured Simon Smith, scored 90 points and Ben Wood scored 7 tries. This season saw the introduction of leagues for the 2nd and 3rd XV's and in a desperate season the 2nds only just avoided relegation winning 4 and drawing 2 of their 18 matches. They did beat Bicester 2nds by 50-14 and Bletchley 2nds by 50 nil however. Tim Norman scored 59 points and Adrian Goosey & Shaun Twelftree both scored 3 tries. The 3rds had a tremendous season only missing out on promotion because it was decided that only one team should go up. 15 wins out of 18 matches saw them finish in a comfortable 2nd position. Their 463 points for were spread across 30 players with Ian Barham and Simon Bishop leading the way with 50 points each, in Bishop's case from 10 tries.

2005 - 06
Buckingham recovered to again finish in 4th place and setting new records with a 41-0 away win over Chipping Norton, scoring 461 league points in a season, 297 of these being at home, a best points difference of plus 95 and scoring 60 tries. John Duthaler also equalled Ben Wood's record of scoring 4 tries in a league match. Chris Sutton topped the scoring with 114 points and David Hawkins scored 6 tries. The 2nds finished in 3rd place in Berks, Bucks & Oxon 1 North winning 13 out of their 18 matches and although Aylesbury Athletic finished 2nd , Buckingham were promoted. Tim Norman scored 62 points whilst Judd O'Connor ran in 11 tries, a great achievement for a 2nd row forward. The 3rds went even better storming to the Berks, Bucks & Oxon 2 North title with 16 wins from 20 matches. Jim Mackway topped the points with 51 and Tony Child went over for 7 tries.

2006 - 07
This was a dismal season for all three sides. The 1sts needed to win the last game of the season to avoid relegation which they did with a 37-15 win over Milton Keynes to finish in 10th place, the 2nds finished in 9th place but above Reading Abbey 2nds, High Wycombe 2nds and Aylesbury 2nds [the latter two being relegated] with 4 wins and 2 draws from their 22 games, and the 3rds finishing next to bottom with only 3 wins from 20 games. They finished with a huge points deficit playing in a league with only 2 other 3rd XV's, 5 2nd XV's and 3 1st XV's. They should really have been relegated but by Bicester 2nds pulling out of the last game of the season and thus having points deducted, and only one team going down, Bicester craftily ensured that it would be them and not Buckingham. For the 1sts Henry Colver set a new record with 172 points whilst he and Andy Turvey both scored 9 tries. For the 2nds Tim Norman scored 62 points and Greg Laird scored 4 tries, and for the 3rds Ian Barham scored 30 points and Jake McInnes scored 2 tries.

2007-2008

In Southern Counties North under the captaincy of Andy Turvey also Winners of the Bucks County Sheild aginst Phoenix and runners up in the Lewis Sheild Final at Northampton Saints Ground against BBOB's.

2008-2009

Promotion from Southern Counties North to SouthWest 1 East under the captaincy of Andy Turvey also won the Lewis Shield Final at Northampton Saints ground against Towcestrians RFC

2009-2010

First year in SouthWest 1 East under the captaincy of Jamie Harnett

2010-2011

SouthWest 1 East under the captaincy of Tom Amos

2011-2012

Relegated from SouthWest 1 East to Southern Counties North under the captaincy of Tom Amos along with Reading Abbey and Olney.

2012-2013

Promoted back up from Southern Counties North to SouthWest 1 East under the captaincy of Tom Amos. Memorable wins include doubleheaders against Olney (7-18 and 50-31) and Grove (21-32 and 15-10) and some super play against Reading Abbey in a 73-7 game under the new floodlights. Not so memorable were loses to Alchester 21-17 and MK 26-15. Cracking tour to Sofia, Bulgaria organised by Ash McCormac.

Buckingham RUFC

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