Taunton Titans gave the club’s former players, who attended the annual pre-match lunch, something to cheer about when they comfortably beat Loughborough Students 56-29 at the Summerfield Stadium on Saturday (February 28) afternoon.
Among the large gathering of former players were 16 past captains, including John Beer, who skippered Taunton RFC in 1963/4, and Nick Mason, who had that morning announced his retirement.
John Beer, who is now 85 years old, made his first appearance for the club almost 70 years ago years ago as he explained: “I first played for Taunton Seconds on the last weekend of November 1957 and then the next weekend I played for the first team against Torquay.
“Earlier that year at the end of the previous season in April 1957 I played for Bideford where I started my rugby against Taunton.
“The former players days are always very enjoyable and its good to catch up with those who you played with, but sadly the numbers from my era are dwindling.”
John went on: “Things were very different then—most of the people who played were from Taunton we didn’t get paid; we paid to play. The clubhouse at Priory Park was burnt down in a fire in the early 1960s and replaced by one that was probably one of the best in the south west.
“Back in those days there were no leagues and we played against Bath, Plymouth Albion, Exeter, Saracens and several Northern clubs who were on tour, so we played some very good sides.”
John added: “The remarkable thing about Taunton Rugby Club is the number of youngsters who are accommodated on Sunday mornings. The youth section here at Taunton is absolutely fantastic.”
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