Northolt RFC started life as CAV – a work team based near the Polish War Memorial on the A40. After the club’s player base grew to include more and more from the community, the name Northolt RFC was adopted to better represent the local roots and, when given the chance to grab a ground of their own, the club snapped up the old municipal sports ground at Cayton Green Park.
Despite the move, the club never lost its rivalry with historic local enemy, Hayes RFC.
Northolt’s minimalistic and somewhat enigmatic emblem actually pays homage to this old battle, depicting a diving Northolt player (wearing the club’s famous blue) making a try-saving tackle on a red-shirted Hayes player.
The design came from a competition run by Les Williams an old boy of the club and teacher, who challenged his students to come up with the new logo for NRFC. The winner was chosen due to its subtle link to the club’s fearsome foe as well as the never-say-die attitude embodied by the last-ditch effort represented by the figures. Keen-eyed viewers may even notice a dolphin-like quality to the players: this is a nod to Northolt’s first home ground, ‘Dolphin Road’.
It’s worth mentioning that the rivalry between Northolt and Hayes was legendary, with the conflict even spilling off the pitch and onto the streets of west London. If you’ve got a strong stomach, pop down and ask some of the old boys about their stories. Today, though, the two clubs work closely together, with Northolt being a regular invitee to Hayes’s Ash 7’s tournament, in memory of a former Hayes player known well by Northolt.
If you want to add your name to the club’s historic line-up, get in touch at Northoltrugby@gmail.com .