Page 103 - All Shapes & Zebras From Treorchy

So, we finally reach the end of our alphabetical journey through amateur Welsh rugby. Ah, Z. What on earth can we write about for Z? I’d like to think that the entries in this book have been considered and relevant (okay, admittedly, perhaps ‘Q’ may have been pushing it), but ‘Z’ has really got me scratching my head.
How about Z for Zebras? From Treorchy? For those who are not aware, the Treorchy Zebras are a team from the Rhondda Valley in South Wales. Today, they’re a strong and honest amateur side but nothing particularly out of the ordinary. They’re a good, stock representation of a traditional Welsh amateur club – although in the early 90s, through heavy investment, they mixed it with the big guns and gate-crashed the top table of Welsh club rugby and even found themselves qualifying for European competition. Search it on the net - that story in itself is worth reading up on. And of course, Treorchy Rugby Club was famously the venue where Welsh cult-hero Max Boyce recorded arguably his most famous album, the aptly named ‘Max Boyce Live at Treorchy’, in 1973.
Bear with me. The reason they are included here is because of their nickname: ‘The Zebras’. It would be fair to say that for most Welsh supporters with a passing interest in our beloved sport, most would be able to make the link between ‘zebras’ and Treorchy. Both the nickname and the place are synonymous with Welsh rugby.
Good luck to the club. They’ve created somewhat of a brand. Back home at Gwernyfed RFC, on display in one of the glass cabinets are a selection of shirts from the Welsh Division 1 clubs who donated a commemorative shirt to Gwernyfed in 1996, the year the club was officially affiliated into the WRU. It goes without saying, that the Treorchy shirt, complete with its black and white stripes, is a thing of beauty!
“All Welsh rugby clubs. All special, all differe”nt – and yet at their cores, all reassuringly familiar.
ALL SHAPES & ZEBRAS FROM TREORCHY 101