Kestrel Vale / The club
The club
Maroon and charcoal since 1921. Who runs it, how to find it, when the bar is open, and how to get hold of us.
Our history
Kestrel Vale RFC was formed in 1921 by a group of quarrymen and a schoolmaster who between them owned one ball and half a set of posts. The first pitch was a field on the valley floor that flooded most Novembers; the club moved up the hill to Falcon Park in 1934 and has been there ever since.
The club’s best years came either side of the county cup wins of 1978 and 1983, when Vale supplied four players to the county side in a single season. Two of the 1983 side still run the Thursday night touch session. The 2nd XV — the Hawks — have never been relegated, a fact repeated in the clubhouse with more pride than the honours boards strictly justify.
Falcon Park now has two full pitches, a floodlit training area, and a clubhouse rebuilt by members over the winter of 2025. On a Sunday morning there are 240 children on the grass, which is roughly a third of the valley’s primary school population, and about eighty adults playing across four senior sides.
Milestones
- 1921Club formed by quarrymen and a local schoolmaster
- 1934Move up the hill to Falcon Park
- 1978First county cup win
- 1983County cup again — four players in the county XV
- 2011Women’s XV founded
- 2025Clubhouse rebuilt by members
Officials and volunteers
- Club PresidentHuw Bellamy
- ChairDiane Prentice
- Hon. SecretaryMartin Cobbold
- TreasurerFemi Adekunle
- Director of RugbyStuart Enright
- 1st XV CaptainBen Fenner
- 2nd XV CaptainOwen Doyle
- Women’s XV LeadCerys Lang
- Minis & Juniors ChairPaul Rutherford
- Safeguarding OfficerEmma Halliwell
- Fixtures SecretaryKen Marsh
- Bar ManagerDave Tunnicliffe
The committee meets on the first Monday of the month at Falcon Park. Members are welcome; minutes are posted behind the bar and emailed to anyone on the newsletter list.
Finding Falcon Park
- By car
- Falcon Park is on Quarry Road, a mile east of the village. Parking for 120 cars on the top field, marshalled on big fixtures; please follow the stewards rather than the sat nav once you turn in. Sat nav: KV3 9PT.
- By bus
- The 8 and the 8B stop at Quarry Road bottom, a seven-minute walk uphill. Very limited service on Sundays — a lot of people share lifts from the village car park.
- On foot
- Twenty minutes from the village along the old tramway path, which comes out behind the posts at the far end.
- Accessibility
- Tarmac path from the car park to the clubhouse and a level viewing area at the halfway line with room for eight wheelchairs. Accessible toilet and a Changing Places facility in the new clubhouse.
Opening times
| Monday | Closed |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | Training 7pm – 9pm, bar open |
| Wednesday | Closed |
| Thursday | Training 7pm – 9pm, bar until 11pm, food from 8pm |
| Friday | Bar 6pm – 11pm |
| Saturday | 12pm – midnight on match days |
| Sunday | 9am – 3pm (minis and juniors), bar from 11am |
Hours change in the close season and for private hire. The clubhouse is available to hire for parties and wakes — ask at the bar.
Send us a message
Sponsorship, playing, hiring the clubhouse, or something for the website — it all comes to the same inbox and someone will come back to you within a couple of days.
Come and be part of it
Senior training is Tuesday and Thursday, 7pm at Falcon Park. Minis and juniors are Sunday mornings from 10am, all abilities, and nobody is ever turned away over subs.