Wikipedia

West Wales Raiders

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The West Wales Raiders were a semi-professional rugby league club based in Llanelli, Wales. They competed in League 1, the third tier of the British rugby league system, from 2018 until 2022.

West Wales Raiders
Club information
Full nameWest Wales Raiders Rugby League
Colours
Founded2014; 12 years ago (2014)
Exited2022; 4 years ago (2022)
Websiteraidersrugbyleague.co.uk
Former details
Ground
CEOPeter Tiffin
ChairmanAndrew Thorne
CoachAshley Bateman
CaptainMorgan Evans
CompetitionLeague 1
2022 season11th
Uniforms
Home colours
Away colours

The club was founded in 2014 as an amateur club, Gwendraeth Valley Raiders, who competed in the Welsh Conference Premier. In 2015, the team joined the Conference League South and dropped Gwendraeth Valley from their name.

In July 2017, owner Andrew Thorne bought League 1 club South Wales Ironmen, relocating them to Stebonheath Park in Llanelli. The Ironmen were renamed West Wales Raiders in 2018 and continued to play at Stebonheath Park. The club withdrew from the league at the end of the 2022 season.

History

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West Wales Raiders Rugby League Football Club

The club was founded in 2014 as an amateur club, Gwendraeth Valley Raiders, who competed in the Welsh Conference Premier in the 2014 season.[1][2] In 2015, the team joined the Conference League South, and entering an 'A' team in the Welsh competition. The club also dropped Gwendraeth Valley from their name at this time.[1][3][4] In December 2016, the RFL announced that the Conference League South would be discontinued for the 2017 season.[5]

In July 2017, West Wales Raiders owner Andrew Thorne bought League 1 club South Wales Ironmen. The Ironmen moved to Llanelli's Stebonheath Park effective immediately. The club was rebranded the West Wales Raiders in 2018 and remained in League 1 and, as such, the Raiders can be regarded as a continuation of the Ironmen club, and their previous incarnation the South Wales Scorpions.[6]

In April 2018, the club were on the receiving end of a record score and losing margin when they lost 0–144 to York. The previous highest scoring game was in November 1994 when Huddersfield beat Blackpool by 142–4; the losing margin was also equalled the next day in 1994 by Barrow who beat Nottingham City 138–0. An Australian news article after the York defeat suggested the team as "the world's worst rugby league team ever".[7]

The West Wales Raiders finished the 2018 Betfred League 1 season winless and on negative points. The Rugby Football League imposed a four-point, retrospective deduction after the club pleaded guilty to breaching a number of Operational Rules regarding the fielding of ineligible players.[8]

The 2019 season saw the West Wales Raiders again finish at the foot of the table but a win was registered in a home match against Coventry Bears. In 2019 they played 20 league matches and won 1, lost 19, scoring a total of 222 points and conceding 1091.[9][10]

In 2020 former Wales rugby union international Gavin Henson briefly came out of retirement and signed for the Raiders.[11]

In the 2021 League 1 season, West Wales finished bottom of the table failing to win a single game for the entire year. In the 2022 League 1 season, West Wales finished last on the table winning only one game for the entire year and losing their other 19 matches conceding 1196 points.[12]

On 22 December 2022 the joint owners of the club, Andrew Thorne and Peter Tiffin, announced that the club had withdrawn from League One and the Challenge Cup for 2023.[13]

Seasons

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Season League Challenge Cup Other competitions Refs
DivisionPWDLFAPtsPosPlay-offs
2015 Conference League South 16100663440220 3rd Lost in semi-finals N/a [14][15]
2016 Conference League South 145093785159 5th Did not qualify N/a [16]
2017 N/a
2018 League 1 2600261762106−4 14th Did not qualify R3 [17][18]
2019 League 1 20101922210912 11th Did not qualify R3 1895 CupR1 [10][19][20]
2020 League 1 League abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic R3 [21]
2021 League 1 1801172389421 10th Did not qualify R3[a] 1895 CupR1[b] [23][24]
2022 League 1 20101914011962 11th Did not qualify R2 [25][26]

Records

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OverallPWDLFAPts
84218177653351
League 1 only

Notes

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  1. ↑ Officially round 1 due to the competitions temporary restructure in 2021.
  2. ↑ In 2021, the early rounds of the Challenge Cup doubled as 1895 Cup ties[22]

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 "South Wales Clubs History". Wales Rugby League. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  2. ↑ "Welsh Conference Rugby League: Wins for Torfaen Tigers, Bridgend Blue Bulls and Newport Titans". Wales Online. 22 June 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  3. ↑ "Torfaen Tigers makes the step up to the Conference South". South Wales Argus. 9 December 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  4. ↑ "Raiders qualify for the play-offs". RFL. 16 August 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  5. ↑ Hodgson, Phil (15 December 2016). "Goodbye to the Conference League South?". Total Rugby League. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  6. ↑ "New owners for South Wales Ironmen". Wales Rugby League. 13 July 2017. Archived from the original on 19 July 2017.
  7. ↑ "World's worst rugby league team?". wwos.nine.com.au. 8 May 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  8. ↑ "West Wales Raiders Deducted Four Points". www.rugby-league.com. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
  9. ↑ "West Wales Raiders beat Coventry for first League One win". RFL. 21 July 2019. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  10. 1 2 "2019 Betfred League 1". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  11. ↑ Orders, Mark (19 September 2020). "Gavin Henson explains cross-code switch to rugby league". WalesOnline. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  12. ↑ "Ben Flower to stay involved in rugby league as a coach". www.loverugbyleague.com. 9 October 2021.
  13. ↑ Walker, Callum (22 December 2022). "West Wales Raiders owners release heartfelt statement following withdrawal of club from League One". TotalRL.com. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  14. ↑ "Conference League South: League table: 2016". Conference League South. Archived from the original on 17 November 2015.
  15. ↑ "No all Welsh Final as Raiders are beaten". RFL. 13 September 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  16. ↑ "Conference League South: League table: 2016". RFL. Archived from the original on 9 November 2016.
  17. ↑ "2018 Betfred League 1". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  18. ↑ "2018 Ladbrokes Challenge Cup: Results". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  19. ↑ "2019 Coral Challenge Cup: Results". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  20. ↑ "2019 1895 Cup: Results". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  21. ↑ "2020 Coral Challenge Cup: Results". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  22. ↑ "RFL outlines Challenge Cup, Championship and League One structures for 2021". BBC Sport. 23 December 2020. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  23. ↑ "2021 Betfred League 1". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  24. ↑ "2021 Betfred Challenge Cup: Results". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  25. ↑ "2022 Betfred League One". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  26. ↑ "2022 Betfred Challenge Cup: Results". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  27. ↑ "Rampant Raiders run riot". RFL. 18 August 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
  28. ↑ "York City Knights: League One club secure biggest-ever winning margin of 144–0". BBC Sport. 29 April 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2026.
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