Middlesbrough Rugby Club

This Saturday sees our senior men’s section travel away to Pocklington RUFC for our final preseason game.

K.O 14:00pm

🏉CALLING ALL UNDER‑13 RUGBY PLAYERS ! 🏉

Middlesbrough RUFC is recruiting new U13 players for the 2026/27 season — and we want YOU on our team!

Whether you’ve played before or you’re brand new to rugby, our coaches will help you learn skills, build confidence, and make great friends. Come join a fun and supportive squad! 

Contact details are on the poster.

Middlesbrough Rugby Club’s 2nd Car Boot Sale is in full swing — bargains, amusements for the kids, and a brilliant community day out!

Loads of sellers already set up, heaps of treasures to find, and the gates are open — get yourself down to the club at Lions Park in Tollesby, TS5 7 RA.

Wasps v A Team 12/09/26

This Sunday folks. Our 2nd car boot sale is on from 12noon to 4pm. Superb food and drinks available. A great couple of hours with the family for free. Please come and join in at Lions Park, Tollesby Road. TS5 7RA.

This Sunday sees our U’16s welcome Houghton Rugby Club to Acklam Park.

Please come down and show some support.

KO 10:30am

This Saturday sees us play an in-house game at lions park, 2nd XV 🆚 3rd XV.

Everyone welcome to come down and join in.

K.O 13:00pm

MRUFC Coach Aims to Prove Team Belongs in Regional One

Pre-season preparations are in full swing at Middlesbrough Rugby Club, as the team gears up for a second year in Regional 1 North East. Coach, Ollie Hodgson says the club is ready to consolidate its well-earned place in the league.

Champions of Regional North 2 during the 24/25 season, Middlesbrough was promoted to Regional 1 NE last year. The season proved to be a tough one, with the team fighting to stave off relegation right until the end. Hodgson, who also plays in the back row, attributed the team’s survival to the hard work of the players, ‘The step up in standard was significant, but the players showed great resilience and commitment throughout the season. We ultimately secured our place in the league by winning a play-off against York, which was a fantastic achievement and showed the character within the group.’

Going into his third year as first team coach, Hodgson said the experience has given the club a much better understanding of what is required at this level, providing a strong foundation to build on. ‘Our ambition this season is to establish ourselves at Regional 1 level and show that we belong in the league. We know the standard will be higher and that every match will present a significant challenge, so our focus will be on building consistency, competing physically and continuing to develop our game.’

The first friendly of pre-season saw Boro travel to Darlington to go head-to-head with Mowden Park, who play in the league above. Whilst it ended in a 20-0 defeat, Hodgson maintains the game provided valuable insights on the way forward. ‘It was a really physical test and gave us a good indication of where we are. There were plenty of positives, but also some clear areas for us to work on, particularly around our accuracy and decision-making when the intensity goes up.’ Another pre-season friendly is scheduled for September 19th away to Pocklington RUFC.

The summer drought throughout the UK led to England Rugby announcing a delay to the start of the season, giving teams around the country time to adequately prepare struggling pitches. This means that Boro’s first game of the season is now an away fixture against Sandal Rugby Club on September 26th. Hodgson believes the delay has given Middlesbrough additional space to prepare and make sure plans are executed, ‘The next couple of weeks are about sharpening everything up — increasing the intensity, getting combinations right, giving everyone opportunities to put their hand up and making sure we’re ready to go when the league starts.’

Photo By Allan Forsyth.

On Sunday, our Colts welcomed Billingham to Lions Park for a cracking preseason friendly. Both sets of lads served up an entertaining contest, with MRUFC finishing on top 45–12. A huge thank you to Billingham for the game — and all the very best for the season ahead. Billingham Rugby Club