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South of England showcase historic ‘Golden Dragon’ badge ahead of clash with Red Dragons of Wales
The South of England Men’s Team took time out from training on Sunday to showcase the side’s distinctive new badge – a specially designed crest that pays tribute to early English history.
The squad posed for pictures with a flag featuring the South of England representative side’s brand-new badge, a distinctive crest whose history can be traced back over 1,700 years.
Created for the representative side by the game’s governing body, the Rugby Football League, the badge boasts a yellow dragon known as a Wyvern – a symbol reportedly first used on battle standards by the armies of the Kingdom of West Saxons, popularly known as Wessex, for almost 500 years.
From around 519 until 927, Wessex covered much of Southern Britain, from Cornwall in the deep South-West, to Berkshire and Oxfordshire in the North and Essex and Kent in the East. The kingdom’s symbol, a golden ‘Wyvern’ dragon on a deep red background, was carried into battle in wars with Saxons from Mercia and invading Vikings and Normans.
Historians believe that it may also have been used as the first unified flag of England, too, with accounts of it appearing at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The distinctive symbol fell from favour in the years afterwards, though it later inspired the name and badge of community Rugby League club Wiltshire Wyverns early last decade.
On the South of England Rugby League badge, introduced this year and worn for the first time against Australia and New Zealand Exiles earlier this month, the golden wyvern is accompanied by the date 1895 – the year that the Northern Union broke away from the Rugby Football Union and what became the sport of Rugby League was born.
This weekend, the ‘golden dragons’ of the South of England will head across the Severn Bridge to face the ‘red dragons’ of Wales ‘A’ at Merthyr RFC. Kicking off at 12.30pm as a curtain-raiser for the Celtic Cup decider between Wales and Ireland, the game will be the greatest challenge yet for the South of England.
Heading into the clash on the back of a dramatic late win over Scotland Bravehearts, the South of England will be looking to notch up their second win over a representative side from Wales following last year’s famous victory against the Dragonhearts, a side representing the community game in the principality.
This time, the South face an even tougher test, with Wales ‘A’ likely to feature players from professional club academies and those on their national performance pathway.
Wales ‘A’ v South of England takes place on Saturday 31st October at Merthyr RFC. For tickets, click here
