Saturday's home fixture against Dudley Kingswinford will mark the end of Kenilworth RFC's 11 year wait to return to the demands of Level Five rugby.

The Mens 1st XV will host their first game in the newly structured Midland 1 Regional (previously Midlands Premier), at Glasshouse Lane this weekend.

Their last appearance at this level was a final day 25-41 home loss to Scunthorpe back in 2011 which resulted in relegation, and the subsequent 11 years have seen both highs and lows at Glasshouse Lane.

A further relegation to Level 7 followed soon after, but the phoenix soon started to rise and promotion back to Level 6, coupled with Midlands and National Intermediate Cup wins (and that unforgettable day at Twickenham), with 2nd XV successes in the Warwickshire Cup and League thrown in for good measure, led to their runners up spot in Midlands 1 last season and elevation to Level 5, where old foes such as Broadstreet and Nuneaton now await.

Head Coach Phil Boulton, who also now joins the playing squad following his retirement from playing professional rugby with Coventry, was buoyant about the coming season.

"We showed great character last season to gain promotion, following the disappointment of the previous curtailed Covid season, where we were in second spot but missed out on promotion due to the way things worked out in the RFU calculations," he said.

"To go one better last season was fantastic, and we've recruited well over the summer, again attracting several exciting young prospects who are eager to continue their rugby journey at Kenilworth, enticed by our successful history of developing players and giving them their chance to shine within a high-performance and demanding environment.

"Those younger players, along with our senior and experienced players, means that we go into the new league and higher level very confident of being competitive and again attempting to make Glasshouse Lane a place that opposition teams don't look forward to visiting.

"Our support has played a huge part in that ever since I arrived at the club, and in particular the home support shown to the guys on the pitch has helped us over the line on more than one occasion." 

Saturday will be no different in the need of that fervent and vocal support for the season kick-off when there will also be an outside bar and BBQ, with a visit from Dudley Kingswinford RFC, who Kens last faced in the 19-20 season, triumphing over their West Midlands rivals and eventual league winners on both occasions, home and away.

Kenilworth vs Dudley Kingswinford RFC:

Glasshouse Lane, Kenilworth

Sat, 3rd September

3.00pm kick off