Will Britten moves on after more than two decades at Newark Rugby Club
Newark’s longest serving rugby captain Will Britten is moving on after over two decades at the club.
Britten is now living outside of the area and working near Birmingham which is the reason he has decided to leave his boyhood club.
He made his debut for the 1sts team at the age of 17 and became captain of the side when he was 24 after studying at Loughborough University.
Britten has been known for his calm, lead by example captaincy style since he took the reins and has been a fantastic servant for his club.
Rugby runs in the Britten family with Will's father Graeme and his uncle Glynn both also previously playing for the Newark club.
Britten predominantly plays in the centres but has had to fill the fly-half position due to former teammates moving on and previously played on the wing.
“Originally the plan was to step down as captain but to keep playing for the club,” said Britten.
“Now that I have moved away, that plan has changed.
“Around Christmas time I applied for a job and was ultimately successful so I made the difficult call.
“I will miss my mates there, some of us have been playing for a long time.
“We have a lot of good, young players come up to and it is time to give a few of them a chance.
“It has been a pleasure playing with these lads.
“While it is a difficult decision, it is the right one because I still have a few years worth of playing left in me I think.
“I am 30 now but I still love the game and I want to keep playing.”
Britten said he hasn’t selected a new club yet and is still looking around Leicester, close to where he now lives.
“I wanted to finish the season at Newark and focus on that.
“I want to make a call in the off-season and decide then.
“The thought of not playing is awful, rugby has been a huge part of my life.
“So I will continue on but the distance from home, work and Newark is too far now for me.
“All of my mates, all of my skills and exercise are centered around rugby.”
Britten said that he had many fond memories playing for Newark Rugby Club.
“My first season in 2011 was one of my greatest memories, we had just come down from the league above and we had an amazing side.
“As a 17-year-old it was fantastic, we won all of our games and got promoted back up.
“To be playing in that side as such a young guy and scoring a lot of tries was a surreal experience.
“I don’t think there will be another undefeated team in Newark like that for quite a long time, it is a rare thing.
“The last few seasons have been great as well, the club has been playing a good standard of rugby and we have put in some outstanding performances.
“Unfortunately we have been a bit inconsistent.
“We will have games where we put 50 points on teams but then we will also play games where we become a bit stranded.”
Britten has been consistent for his club rarely missing games when he has been available.
He said he plans on being around the club in some capacity for many more years to come.
“I can not list everyone who I need to thank, there are too many to mention.
“I am very grateful to my parents for transporting me around and my partner Sally who has never complained to me for being committed to the club.
“The whole time we have been together I have been captain.
“All of my mates have made it a lot of fun and all of the coaches, volunteers and the people that are around it make it an outstanding club.
“It really is a special place and the facilities are all top notch.
“We have a really nice playing group and the dynamics are great.
“I’ve been really passionate about ensuring those standards are kept up while I have been captain.
“The lads are an amazing bunch and are great on the pitch, as well as off it.”
