Cheltenham Rugby Festival


GRL Cheltenham Rugby Festival is a rugby league nines event held in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. It is organised by the Gloucestershire County Rugby League in partnership with Cheltenham Borough Council and the Tourist Board.
It will take place on Friday 2 May at the Prince of Wales stadium in Cheltenham. The event is intended to dovetail with the Rugby Football League’s Millennium Magic event in Cardiff on the weekend of 3–4 May.
It comprises two main elements: the All Golds Cup and the 1908 Cup.

All Golds Cup

The All Golds Cup is the festival’s main event. This is a rugby league nines event for eight senior teams.
The Cup is named in honour of the famous New Zealand team that defeated England at Cheltenham’s Athletic Ground on 15 February 1908 to win the first international rugby league series.
This is awarded to the player of the tournament and is named in honour of the New Zealand forward who scored the winning try for the All Golds in the last minutes of the game to secure an 8 - 5 victory.
This is a rugby league nines event for eight local schools at year 8.
The 1908 Cup commemorates the year of the All Golds match.
The Arthur Smith Award is presented to the player of the tournament and is named in honour of the Gloucestershire rugby player who joined Oldham and represented England. He played in the All Golds test in Cheltenham in 1908.
The 2009 event took place on Friday 24 April 2009 at Newlands Park, With the Royal Navy winning the event. The winners of the event will qualify to play in the 2009 Carnegie Floodlit Nines