Rugby Club
We’re proud to be the choir of the historic London Welsh Rugby Club, which is where you’ll find us on most Saturdays during the season
Founded in 1885, London Welsh has been home to hundreds of Welsh International players, and still holds the record for the most players in a club side to represent the British and Irish Lions (seven in the 1971 winning series against the All Blacks). And despite its recent ups-and-downs the club is very much alive, now led by Cai Griffiths, the man who oversees its rebirth on the pitch.
Since its formation, under the presidency of Wales and British and Irish Lions legend John Dawes OBE, the choir is proud to bear the flag of this most famous of clubs. Rugby and song have gone hand in hand at Old Deer Park since the club’s inception in 1885. It has contributed 177 players to the Welsh national team, including names such as JPR Williams, Gerald Davies, Mervyn Davies and John Taylor – as well as John Dawes, whose recent death was felt deeply in our corner of London.
During the 1970s, Dawes masterminded the advance of London Welsh as one of the most attractive and successful sides in the history of the game, with London Welsh producing seven of the 1971 Lions. As captain and coach of both Wales and the Lions, his place in Welsh folklore was recently secured when he was awarded the accolade as ‘the greatest ever coach in Welsh rugby’. He will be greatly missed but we are honoured that John Taylor, Wales and British Lions international, has agreed to take on the chairmanship of the choir.
The close association of the choir with the rugby club means that you’ll often find us at Old Deer Park during the rugby season, either singing formally or just in and around the bar. If you’re there, come and have a chat.