Breif History of Moorends-Thorne Marauders
The Moorends RL Club are bringing together the two cultures of amateur Rugby League, Moorends Marauders ARLFC (Winter) & Thorne Moor Marauders RLFC (Summer).
Moorends started its life in the 1977/78 season playing in the West Yorkshire Sunday League gaining promotion in its first season in the runners up spot behind the now defunct Sailors Home Club from Knottingley, in its first season Moorends also managed to reach the Doncaster cup Final loosing out to a then very strong Rossington Hornets.
Moorends enjoyed league success over the next few seasons and gradually reached the West Yorkshire second division, during this time the club gain one or two big cup scalps along the way (Bison Sports, Thornhill Lees & INL York) but where always the bridesmaid when it came to the local cups and top 4 play-offs,
Season 1982/83 saw a mass exodus of experienced players (including some of the founder members) going to the newly formed Thorne Youth, this resulted in the clubs first ever relegation back to the West Yorkshire third division.
Re-grouped season 1983/84 saw the Moorends club straight back into the Second division under their first ever out of town coach Bill Kenny. Then came the first league switch brought on because the club felt it was not being treated fairly at disciplinary meeting so Moorends went to the highly competitive Humberside League.
Moorends enjoyed their first cup success in 1984/85 under the coaching of Hull FC hooker Ronnie Wileman winning the James Noonen Trophy and just missing out on the double by one point after having two points de-ducted for playing an un-registered player in their 26-0 win against Crows Nest, the following season saw the club come a very respectable fifth in the Humberside Premier Division,
Again Moorends suffered a major set back loosing seven players to Her Majesties Pleasure as well as suffering the clubs first major injury (Ernie Lake broken neck).
Over the next two season the Moorends and Marshland Rangers clubs amalgamated to form one club under the Moorends banner, over the following two seasons Moorends flirted with the Yorkshire league on a Saturday before settling down back in the West Yorkshire Sunday League and going on to have its most successful period to date winning the :
Premier Division five time on the trot, Yorkshire Sunday Cup twice and the top four play-offs twice, Doncaster cup five times and also playing in the Rugby League Challenge Cup in 1993/94 season going out to Barrow Island from the National Conference League and again in 1994/95 this time becoming the only Sunday League team to reach the third round after beating Askam from the National Conference League 10-15, Thatto Heath North West Counties Premier Division Champions 12-10 before going out to the top of the National One Whitehaven 64-12.
With all this success Moorends decided to try their hand back in the Yorkshire League on a Saturday and over the next five years have won the Yorkshire Senior division and been relegated back the club in 2003/04 saw a mass decline in its player strength and had to forfeit a few away games, this decline kicked into gear a new local initiative.
This brought together people who cared about the amateur game locally to form Doncaster's first ever Rugby Leaguer Conference team the Thorne Moor Marauders RLFC, the Marauders drew on its past amateur experience and the guidance of the RLC, with a backbone of nine players with Rugby League experience and more than thirty who had come along to play rugby for the first time the coaching staff of Chris Allen and Howard Roberts pushed, pulled and built Thorne Moor Marauders into a side that went on to win the Yorkshire Shield 34-6 against South Wakefield Sharks and become beaten finalists in the National Shield 29-20 against Cardiff Demons after coming back from being 26-0 down with 56 minutes gone.
Winter season 2004/05 has seen the Moorends club with a large influx of summer players in their squad fulfilling all their fixtures with players to spare, this combination of both clubs sharing players brought about the formation of one club with the production of new players its priority and already between them have a under 15s playing with under 13s & 7s training.
2005 saw the Marauders move South to join the North Midlands division during the summer and after coming runners up in the championship they went on to beat the minor champions Derby City 28 - 16 to become champions and progress into the National competition, in the quarter-finals the Marauders saw off the much fancied North West Champions Rochdale Spotland Rangers 22 - 20 before going out 30 - 0 to the eventual winners Wetherby Bulldogs.
In the following winter season Moorends-Thorne Marauders really hit form after an early season dog fight that saw Leeds outfit Queens open up a comfort zone at the top of the table it was the Marauders who emerged comfortably into the second placed spot and open up a five point gap between themselves and the third placed team.
After reaching the top four play-off the Marauders were told by the Yorkshire league that they would not be competing for the honour of becoming the top four champions because the League had said that the Hunslet Old Boys and Queens semi-final would now become the Final with no reason given the Marauders once again fell foul to the administrators.
Summer 2006 saw the Marauders going through the domestic season un-beaten with only Sheffield Hillsborough Hawks taking league points with two draws, the Marauders went on to add the South Yorkshire & North Midlands championship to the minor champions tag before moving on to the National competition, Bedford Tigers did not show for the quarter-final but a trip down to Hemel Hempstead to play Gloucestershire Warriors saw the Marauders progressed to the final of the Rugby League Conference Championship after a comfortable 26-14 win over a battling warriors side.
In the best regional final in the RLC?s summer history, Liverpool Buccaneers hung on to defeat the brave Marauders in a real thriller.
Both sides had heroes in abundance; the winners indebted to the industry of Mark Webster, invention of skipper Steve Brown and driving runs of hooker Phil Asson.
For the losers, Cliffton Richardson posed a huge threat, Steve Allen was everywhere and warhorse Ernie Lake an inspiration to his side. In the end it took two late tries and some sensational defence on their own line to take the trophy to Merseyside. 36 - 30
Moorends started its life in the 1977/78 season playing in the West Yorkshire Sunday League gaining promotion in its first season in the runners up spot behind the now defunct Sailors Home Club from Knottingley, in its first season Moorends also managed to reach the Doncaster cup Final loosing out to a then very strong Rossington Hornets.
Moorends enjoyed league success over the next few seasons and gradually reached the West Yorkshire second division, during this time the club gain one or two big cup scalps along the way (Bison Sports, Thornhill Lees & INL York) but where always the bridesmaid when it came to the local cups and top 4 play-offs,
Season 1982/83 saw a mass exodus of experienced players (including some of the founder members) going to the newly formed Thorne Youth, this resulted in the clubs first ever relegation back to the West Yorkshire third division.
Re-grouped season 1983/84 saw the Moorends club straight back into the Second division under their first ever out of town coach Bill Kenny. Then came the first league switch brought on because the club felt it was not being treated fairly at disciplinary meeting so Moorends went to the highly competitive Humberside League.
Moorends enjoyed their first cup success in 1984/85 under the coaching of Hull FC hooker Ronnie Wileman winning the James Noonen Trophy and just missing out on the double by one point after having two points de-ducted for playing an un-registered player in their 26-0 win against Crows Nest, the following season saw the club come a very respectable fifth in the Humberside Premier Division,
Again Moorends suffered a major set back loosing seven players to Her Majesties Pleasure as well as suffering the clubs first major injury (Ernie Lake broken neck).
Over the next two season the Moorends and Marshland Rangers clubs amalgamated to form one club under the Moorends banner, over the following two seasons Moorends flirted with the Yorkshire league on a Saturday before settling down back in the West Yorkshire Sunday League and going on to have its most successful period to date winning the :
Premier Division five time on the trot, Yorkshire Sunday Cup twice and the top four play-offs twice, Doncaster cup five times and also playing in the Rugby League Challenge Cup in 1993/94 season going out to Barrow Island from the National Conference League and again in 1994/95 this time becoming the only Sunday League team to reach the third round after beating Askam from the National Conference League 10-15, Thatto Heath North West Counties Premier Division Champions 12-10 before going out to the top of the National One Whitehaven 64-12.
With all this success Moorends decided to try their hand back in the Yorkshire League on a Saturday and over the next five years have won the Yorkshire Senior division and been relegated back the club in 2003/04 saw a mass decline in its player strength and had to forfeit a few away games, this decline kicked into gear a new local initiative.
This brought together people who cared about the amateur game locally to form Doncaster's first ever Rugby Leaguer Conference team the Thorne Moor Marauders RLFC, the Marauders drew on its past amateur experience and the guidance of the RLC, with a backbone of nine players with Rugby League experience and more than thirty who had come along to play rugby for the first time the coaching staff of Chris Allen and Howard Roberts pushed, pulled and built Thorne Moor Marauders into a side that went on to win the Yorkshire Shield 34-6 against South Wakefield Sharks and become beaten finalists in the National Shield 29-20 against Cardiff Demons after coming back from being 26-0 down with 56 minutes gone.
Winter season 2004/05 has seen the Moorends club with a large influx of summer players in their squad fulfilling all their fixtures with players to spare, this combination of both clubs sharing players brought about the formation of one club with the production of new players its priority and already between them have a under 15s playing with under 13s & 7s training.
2005 saw the Marauders move South to join the North Midlands division during the summer and after coming runners up in the championship they went on to beat the minor champions Derby City 28 - 16 to become champions and progress into the National competition, in the quarter-finals the Marauders saw off the much fancied North West Champions Rochdale Spotland Rangers 22 - 20 before going out 30 - 0 to the eventual winners Wetherby Bulldogs.
In the following winter season Moorends-Thorne Marauders really hit form after an early season dog fight that saw Leeds outfit Queens open up a comfort zone at the top of the table it was the Marauders who emerged comfortably into the second placed spot and open up a five point gap between themselves and the third placed team.
After reaching the top four play-off the Marauders were told by the Yorkshire league that they would not be competing for the honour of becoming the top four champions because the League had said that the Hunslet Old Boys and Queens semi-final would now become the Final with no reason given the Marauders once again fell foul to the administrators.
Summer 2006 saw the Marauders going through the domestic season un-beaten with only Sheffield Hillsborough Hawks taking league points with two draws, the Marauders went on to add the South Yorkshire & North Midlands championship to the minor champions tag before moving on to the National competition, Bedford Tigers did not show for the quarter-final but a trip down to Hemel Hempstead to play Gloucestershire Warriors saw the Marauders progressed to the final of the Rugby League Conference Championship after a comfortable 26-14 win over a battling warriors side.
In the best regional final in the RLC?s summer history, Liverpool Buccaneers hung on to defeat the brave Marauders in a real thriller.
Both sides had heroes in abundance; the winners indebted to the industry of Mark Webster, invention of skipper Steve Brown and driving runs of hooker Phil Asson.
For the losers, Cliffton Richardson posed a huge threat, Steve Allen was everywhere and warhorse Ernie Lake an inspiration to his side. In the end it took two late tries and some sensational defence on their own line to take the trophy to Merseyside. 36 - 30