The Founding Members: Anthony Alvernes, Rich Brautigam, Darek Candelore, Bert Curtis, Sagiv Edelman, Chris Gonzalez, Ben Harel, David Hennessey, Tim Horan, Tim Jacob, Phillip John, Joe Korfmacher, Roman Kovalenko, Tony LaVecchia, Tyler Maccubbin, Kevin MacDonald, Jeff Meierdierck, Kenny Milanes, James Morton, Bobby Mroz, Jeff Nusse, Alan Ozdamer, Peter Protogiannis, Matt Renart, Julian Safar, Jason Salomon, Mike Salomon, Eric Schafer, Thomas Taylor, Dan Whitney, Andrew Williams

2004

March 14, 2004- First ever match, scrimmage versus Morris, Union wins 8-5.

March 28, 2004- First METNY D 2 league game versus LI U19, Union wins 39-0.

May 9, 2004- Union beats Staples, 8-5 on Jeff Nusse’s drop goal.

May 15, 2004- Union captures METNY D2 title beating Sayville, 19-10, as Chris Gonzalez scores on the opening kick-off.

2005

April 17, 2005- Union opens its defense of their METNY D2 title with a 25-5 win over Hillsborough

May 28, 2005- Union caps off undefeated league season with a 29-14 win over Kingston to grab their second straight METNY D2 championship.

June 11, 2005- Union wins the Jersey Cup, beating local rival, Morris.

June 2005- JT Sheehan, Julian Safar, Bobby Mroz, and Tyler Maccubbin are selected for the first METNY RFU U19 All-star team.

2006

April 2, 2006- Union travels to Norwalk, CT for 13-0 win, as Tyler Maccubbin makes two drop goals.

April 9, 2006- Union opens defense of their METNY D2 title with a 29-0 win over Kingston

May 5, 2006- Union captures it 3^rd straight METNY D2 championship beating Long Island and East Islip in the play-offs.

May 21, 2006- Union beats Staples, 7-3, in the METNY D2/D1 challenge match.

June 2006- JT, Sheehan, Julian Safar, Bobby Mroz, and Tyler Maccubbin repeat as selections for the METNY RFU U19 All-star team.  Sheehan is named to the USA U18 All-star team and Maccubbin makes the USA U19 squad for 2007 season.

2007

March 11, 2007- Union travels to Albright College and beats Allentown, PA in the A and B games.

April 22, 2007- Union drops its first ever METNY D2 league game, losing to Hillsborough 0-15.

April  29, 2007- In a must win match, Union beats St Peters Prep, 18-0, and gains a wild card place in the METNY D2 play-offs.

May 5 and 6, 2007- Union plays two magnificent matches beating the #1 seed East Islip, 28-14, and #2 Fairfield HS, 17-12, to capture their 4^th straight METNY D2 championship.

June 2007- JT Sheehan, Bobby Mroz, and Tyler Maccubbin are named METNY U19 All-stars for the third year in a row.  They are joined by Tim Jacob and Billy Quinn. Mike Sheehan, Chris Sheehan, Joe Brady, Brandon Dietz, Jim Harbison, Sean Moran, and Brain Emmons all make the first ever METNY U17 All-star team.  JT Sheehan is named to the USA U19 squad and Joe Brady makes the USA U17 team for 2008.

2008

March 8, 2008- Union hosts Quinte SS from Canada and grinds out a 18-0 victory

March 15, 2008- Union travels to New Rochelle HS and beats the METNY D1 side, 21-15.

April 26, 2008- Union goes 4-0 in the Big Apple Classic to take the HS championship.

May 10, 2008- Union beats Parsippany, 29-12, and Long Island, 20-8, to win the first ever METNY U19 championship.

May 17-18, 2008- Union wins three matches to take the NRU U19 championship and earns a trip to the USA U19 National Championships.

May 31 and June 1, 2008- Union travels to Pittsburgh and goes 1-2 at the USA Nationals beating Jesuit Blue Jays, 21-20, to take 7^th in the nation.

June 2008- John Murphy, Jim Harbison, and Sean Moran make the METNY U20 All-star team. Mike Sheehan, Joe Brady, James Brady, Jorge Cuisana, and Connor Leahey are named to the METNY U18 All-stars.

For the Record

2004 Team Record     

Regular Season:   A side- 9 wins, 1 loss [6-0 in Met NY Div 2, Champions]

Tournaments:       2^nd Place in the Jersey Cup (1-1)

2005 Team Record

Regular Season:    A side- 9 wins, 2 losses [7-0 in Met NY Div 2, Champions]

                             B side- 5 wins, 2 losses, 1 tie                           

Tournaments:          1^st Place in the Jersey Cup (1-0)

2006 Team Record

Regular Season:    A side- 8 wins, 1 loss [6-0 in Met NY Div 2, 2-0 in playoffs, Champions]

                             B side- 5 wins, 3 losses

Tournaments:         3^rd Place in Jersey Cup (1-1)

2007 Team Record

Regular Season:  A side- 7 wins, 2 losses [5-1 in Met NY Div 2, 2-0 in playoffs, Champions]

                           B side-  4 wins, 3 losses                                   

Tournaments:       1^st Place in the Jersey Cup (2-0)

2008 Team Record

Regular Season:  A side- 7 wins, 0 losses, 1 tie [5-0 in Met NY U19 League, 2-0 in playoffs, Champions]

                              B side- 4 wins, 1 loss

Tournaments:          1^st Place in Big Apple Classic (4-0)

                              1^st Place NRU U19 Championships (3-0)

                              7^th Place USA U19 Championships (1-2)

Five Year Won/Loss Record

A-side:             53 wins, 9 losses, 1 tie

B-side              18 wins, 9 losses, 1 tie

A Tradition of Excellence

Founded in the Fall of '74 by Boston College Alumni Jerry Rotella and Hank Hanson, together with a contingent of local Union County Novices, Union County Rugby Football Club began its inaugural season. In uniforms of blue and orange, they finished the season a very successful 5-0-1, against Division II and college teams.

The formative years saw some tough and varied seasons building a hard-nosed form of rugby led by the gritty "Rahway Boys". Within those years, a nucleus was built, the club eventually growing to field two teams.

Spring'78 saw a turn in fortune when the club acquired some talent from colleges and the recently disbanded rival Neshanic RFC. This saw the beginning of the era under the Mudturtles legend-Roger Shaw. With a trademark hard-hitting brand of rugby, Shaw led them to an undefeated season in Spring'79, two semi-final appearances in the Can-Am tournament in following years and an overall winning percentage of .800.

Following the Shaw era, there were some highs and some lows. The highs included a consolation finish in the Atlantic Cup in the summer of '81, then going one better in '82 winning the tournament. Spearheaded by former English international John Horton, these involved victories over big opposition national superpowers.

With the arrival of Bryan Morton, experienced university and foreign players, and lessons learned on tour in the Bahamas and England in the early 80's the Mudturtles finally started beat Division I teams regularly.

During the mid-late 80's the club matured on playing and administrative fronts, with many players approaching a decade of membership. Tours were completed to New Zealand, Ireland and Scotland. Trophies were won at tournaments in Lancaster in '85 and Monmouth in '86. The prestigious Jersey Cup was red and blue (the club's colors for some time by then) in '84, '86, '87 & '88.

In 1986, under coach Gerry Glassey, Union became Met Union Junior Division (Div. II) Champions for the first time, and more significantly runners-up in the national competition. A very successful '87 season in the Senior (Div. I) saw them losing to the eventual winners of the league on the last game of the season. Fall '89 saw the pinnacle of Mudturtle achievement to date. In December, victory in Orlando, Florida, crowned the UCRFC Mudturtles National Junior Division (Div. II) Champions. This saw the Mudturtles return to the 1st Division in '90, and with their now exciting brand of running rugby as their trademark notched up some impressive wins. During this time, President Kevin Holt, not only transformed the way the club ran, but also become President of the Metropolitan New York Union.

In the early 90's, the UCRFC Mudturtles continued where they left of in the 80's with their dominance of the New Jersey State Championship-The Jersey Cup. They took the trophy in '90, '91, '93 and '94, finishing runners up in '92. They had arrived as Jersey's No.1 rugby power, as best demonstrated in the '93 tournament when no team crossed their line to score. '96 brought controversial elimination in the Jersey Cup semi-finals, followed by numerous coaching changes and a mass exodus of players. Despite finishing runners-up in the Cup in '97, '98 and '99, success in Div. II was proving difficult. Consolation silverware was collected in the Reading Tournament in Spring '97 & '98.

By the Fall of '98 Union found themselves relegated to Div. III. This saw the appointment of Bill MacLaney as coach, who immediately had an impact in reversing the fortunes of the Mudturtles. Finishing runners-up in their first season, they represented the Met Union as a wild-card and proceeded to win the NRU Div. III Championship (North East USA) in November. Summer '99, a complete club effort saw a team made of 1st XV, 2nd XV and Old Boys walk away with the Club Division Monmouth Cup (Jersey Shore Tournament), having won the consolation competition the previous August.

To celebrate their 25th Anniversary, in October '99 Union toured Wales during the Rugby World Cup. Upon their return they continued their rebuilding by finishing runners-up in Div. III Met Union and the NRU Championships. The following spring (2000), Union started beating Div. II teams regularly again.

Fall 2000, the Mudturtles romped Div. III, losing only once. This yet again put them in the play-offs in Spring 2001, and again they won the NRU Div. III title. Becoming NRU Champs progressed them as #1 seeds to the newly formed Div. III US National Championships.

During the MacLaney era, the Mudturtles also emulated and surpassed an achievement of the Shaw era of the '70s-making three consecutive semi-final appearances in the highly competitive (100 plus teams) CAN-AM tournament in Saranac, NY (August '99, '00 & '01).

The Mudturtles had become both a hard-hitting defense and a creative, running, passing rugby XV, synonymous with the Union teams of old. They came out victorious in the Sweet Sixteen Tournament, eventually going down bravely in the Final Four, one step short of the National Final, leaving them with a respectable #3 finish in the Div. III National Championships. Following this intense spring season, again Union looked to rebuild with the retirement of key personnel.

Uncharacteristically falling at the first hurdle in the 2001 Jersey Cup, the young Mudturtles nevertheless came away winning the Consolation Final. In the summer, an equally young team lost in overtime of the semi-final of the New Jersey 7's . On the verge of higher achievement, the UCRFC Mudturtles returned to Div. II rugby in the fall of 2001. The goal-to be competitive at this level again, and remain in Div. II. With a record 3-5, they were successful in their ambition.

Spring '02, and the Mudturtles finished three minutes short of a perfect season, losing a "to the wire" game against National Division II finalists, Doylestown, PA. On June 1st, 2002, Union County Rugby Football Club swept the Jersey Cup. Both the 1st XV and 2nd XV brought home their respective trophies. Once again the Mudturtles were State Champions, this time taking the Cup by winning the final at the death in arguably the most dramatic and exciting final in the history of the tournament. Three days later they combined with rivals Monmouth, to form the new select side, the Central Jersey Barbarians RFC. Under flood-lights in Red Bank, they pulled off an impressive first victory against a very strong side from Rochdale, Lancashire, England. The following summer (2003) the Barbarians successfully hosted & defeated Cambuslang RFC, on their centenary tour from Glasgow in Scotland.

To complete a very successful summer they won the A Division Cup at the Jersey Shore Tournament for the first time since 1999.

The next fall seasons saw more transitions for the still young Mudturtles, with key veteran players from the previous successful Spring and Summer becoming unavailable through injury and retirement. As a result the League seasons proved too much for the young team, and left them facing new challenges for 2003 & consequently 2004.

The goal for this youthful and talented squad in their 30th year is to develop under a new coaching staff, & with new opportunities created by a re-structuring of the leagues, sees them once again in a very competitive Division II. The goal to yet again be a rugby force in the Tri-State area, has begun well, and has produced a runners-up trophy in the Jersey Cup, quarter-finalists in the Can-Am Tournament, and most recently winning the Club A Division Championship at the Jersey Shore Tournament for the second time in 3 years, having been also the losing finalists in 2003. The next goal is a successful Met Union Division II campaign commencing September 2004.