NESTLE Rowntree RUFC will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the re-founding of the club next week.

To mark the occasion they will be holding a Past v Present match at Mille Crux on Sunday, August 29, starting at 3pm.

Rowntree's current longest serving player, Dave Matthewman, and their longest serving club captain Neil Mcleay are assembling a squad of old faces to play.

Some of the players have moved on to higher level rugby, some are either veterans or have retired from the game.

The squad will include players from Malton & Norton and York RI, who proposed them to the Yorkshire RFU 50 years ago, and York, their first-ever opponents. The game will be refereed by ex-Rowntree players.

The present team will be captained by Dominic O'Sullivan, in his first game as skipper, with Jim Baldwin 'resting' as vice-captain after three seasons in charge.

After the game, refreshments will be taken at their 'clubhouse' - the Flag and Whistle - before a reunion night with buffet and disco at the Health Service Club on Whitecross Road starting at 7pm.

The first Rowntree Rugby club was founded in the 1894-95 season and continued playing until the Second World War.

The first team line-up was photographed for the Cocoa Works Magazine for posterity during the 1894/5 season when the club played under the banner of 'Rowntree Employees Football Club'.

The photograph is reproduced on this page and seldom can a team have looked more sober, stern or studious. These were very serious sportsmen indeed, no possibility of face-pulling here at the photographer, and perhaps it would have been unwise with the line up being completed by several members of the Rowntree family dynasty - besuited, bewhiskered and bowler hatted of course.

The works had both rugby union and rugby league teams. Rugby league blossomed after the war as the state of union at Rowntrees dipped.

However, there was a major revival of union in the 1950s and in 1954 the current club was formed and by the early 1960s was back to running three teams in the Yorkshire Rugby Football Union.

The current club was launched at a meeting convened by Horace Pulleyn, the Rowntree Company Sports and Social officer, on Monday August 23, 1954, with the first committee meeting held three days later with Les Samms as chairman, D S Ward, secretary, and J C L Hey, treasurer.

In October that year Rowntrees were affiliated to the Yorkshire RFU and their colours of scarlet shirts, scarlet and white hooped socks registered.

The club's first captain was S Pierce and his vice-captain G Harrison. George Duncolme was the trainer and Rowntrees played on the pitch opposite the works of Cooke Troughton and Simms.

The maiden season saw J Sykes score over 100 points with Ken Durham scoring 15 tries. Rowntree won 16, lost 11 and drew one game, scoring 378 points and conceding 240.

Jack Rosindale was elected captain in 1957. And two years later Llewellyn McKenzie was elected secretary.

These days Rowntree don't play in the Yorkshire League, preferring instead to play social rugby, but still have a pretty full fixture list.

The club welcome all former players to join them for next Sunday's festivities. For more information contact Dave Matthewman on 07786 003436.

Pictured: PIONEERS: The inaugural Rowntree rugby team and officials of 1895. Back row, from left to right: Benjamin Seeholm Rowntree, John Wilhem Rowntree, Bowes, W Fox, S Peacock, A Taylor, T Holmes, D Davis, Frank Rowntree, W S Laley, J W Osbourne. Middle row, from left to right: H C Bakes, R Kendall, J Banks, W Holmes, Hawksby. Front row, from left to right: P Bolland, Taylor, T H Esham, Pawson, J W Whitehead

Updated: 08:21 Friday, August 20, 2004