Stahl Brandenburg Rugby

Stahl Brandenburg Rugby is a German rugby union club from Brandenburg, currently playing in the Rugby-Regionalliga East A.

Stahl Brandenburg Rugby
Full nameSG Stahl Brandenburg Rugby
UnionGerman Rugby Federation
Founded1950 (club)
1959 (rugby department)
LocationBrandenburg, Germany
Ground(s)Medizinsportplatz
ChairmanMichael Domke
Coach(es)Torsten Busse
Captain(s)Sebastian Pfeiffer
League(s)Rugby-Regionalliga East
2014–156th
Official website
rugby-brandenburg-havel.de

The club, located in former East Germany, used to be part of the BSG Stahl Brandenburg, a multi-sports club formed in November 1950. Stahl was home, apart from rugby, to a football department, now the FC Stahl Brandenburg, as well as a large number of other sports. Stahl, German for steel, took its name from its association with the local steelworks.[1]

History edit

Rugby union came first to the city of Brandenburg in 1958, when an international between the German Democratic Republic and Romania was played there.[2]

The following year, in 1959, a rugby department was formed at the Thälmannwerft, a shipbuilding company, as part of the BSG Motor Nord. The Thälmannwerft, and BSG Motor Nord, were closed in 1961-62 and the rugby players moved to the BSG Stahl Brandenburg.[2]

The team took part in the East German rugby union championship without actually winning a championship, coming closest in 1988, when it finished runners-up to Stahl Hennigsdorf. The club also managed to provide five players to the East Germany national team.[2]

With the German reunion, the club lost many players and was in real danger of having to close its rugby department, but managed to avoid this drastic step.[2]

The team competed at third-tier level in the following years, the local division of the Rugby-Regionalliga, until 2000, when a second place in the league and a good performance in the promotion round meant qualification to the tier-two 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East.[2]

Stahl suffered relegation from this league in 2002 but returned in 2005 after a championship in the Regionalliga. It played two more seasons in the 2nd Bundesliga before returning to the Rugby-Regionalliga East A again in 2007, where it plays today.

Club honours edit

Recent seasons edit

Recent seasons of the club:[3]

Year Division Position
1999-2000
2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East relegation round 9th — Promoted
2000-01 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East (II) 6th
2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East relegation round 3rd
2001-02 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East 8th — Relegated
2002-03
2003-04 Rugby-Regionalliga East (North) (III) 3rd
Placings round 1 2nd
2004-05 Rugby-Regionalliga East A 4th
North/East championship round 1st — promoted
2005-06 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East (II) 5th
2006–07 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East 8th — Relegated
2007–08 Rugby-Regionalliga East A (III) 5th
2008–09 Rugby-Regionalliga East A 4th
2009–10 Rugby-Regionalliga East (III) 4th
Rugby-Regionalliga East A 4th
2010–11 Rugby-Regionalliga East 5th
2011–12 Rugby-Regionalliga East 10th
2012–13 Rugby-Regionalliga East 5th
2013–14 Rugby-Regionalliga East 6th
2014–15 Rugby-Regionalliga East 6th
2015–16 Rugby-Regionalliga East

References edit

  1. ^ Der Traditionsverein von der Havel (in German) FC Stahl Brandenburg website - History, accessed: 11 April 2010
  2. ^ a b c d e Geschichte (in German) Stahl Brandenburg Rugby - History, accessed: 11 April 2010
  3. ^ RugbyWeb Ergebnisarchiv (in German) rugbyweb.de - Results archive, accessed: 24 July 2012

External links edit