Our Story
How dutch rugby league came to be
2009
The Netherlands Rugby League Bond became an official legal entity on April 29th 2009, albeit with limited jurisdiction because the founding had not been ratified by a notary.
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President: Jason Bruygoms
Head Coach: Dave van Zeijst
Treasurer: Ieneke van Zeijst
Secretary: Marjolein Brouwer
2012
During the 2012 AGM Timo Meinders was appointed as Technical/Development Officer and Misa Vakadranu as Match Official Coordinator. The previous board remained in office and worked hard to get recognition from the RLEF (known today as ERL); they created excellent structures and proper development and communication strategies. Their hard work was rewarded when Richard Lewis, chairman of the RLEF, granted the NRLB with Observatory Member Status on February 28th 2012.
2013
The first ever Match Officials and Coachings Courses in April were held on Dutch soil, under the supervision of Steve Davis of the RLEF and London Broncos Rugby. As a result of this, the NRLB has been able to train and educate their own Match Officials and Coaches since. Timo Meinders and Jason Bruygoms switched roles within the board; Timo Meinders became President and Jason Bruygoms took on the role of Head of Development. Thijs van der Zouwen joined the Board as Media Officer and became responsible for the communications strategy. After serving on the board for over two years Ieneke and Dave van Zeijst withdrew and Justin Stook was appointed as the new Treasurer whereas the head coaching responsibilities were taken on by Jason Bruygoms as well.
2014
On May 30th 2014 Kane Krlic was appointed as new Head Coach for the National Team. Krlic came from the UK and worked for the RFL and Sheffield Eagles RLFC as a Community Officer for a number of years. During this time, he coached Sheffield Eagles u20s and Scholarship, coached on the Midlands RFL Pathway and University of Derby Head Coach as well as coaching numerous community teams. This would turn out to be an incredible signing that would greatly influence and shape the progress with and winning streak of the Dutch Lions XIII.
Timo Meinders and Thijs van der Zouwen made sure the NRLB was ratified by a notary; on July 21st 2014 they visited 010 Notaris located at Jan Leentvaarlaan 2 in Rotterdam. It was necessary in order to be recognized as an organization with full legal capacity since the NRLB was founded in 2009 with limited jurisdiction. Marjolein Brouwer withdrew the board after serving on the board since 2011 and her responsibilities were taken on by Justin Stook who already served as Treasurer.
2015
The first competition that was played under the NRLB was the BNRL in 2015. It was a joint venture with the Belgians, our neighbors to the south. The competition was made up by four teams; three teams from the Netherlands in the Amsterdam Cobras, the Den Haag Knights and Rotterdam Pitbulls. The North-Brussel Gorillas took part in the competition on behalf of the Belgians. The match for the 3rd place was ultimately between the Rotterdam Pitbulls and the Amsterdam Cobras, whereas the battle for the championship was between the Den Haag Knights and the North-Brussels Gorillas.
2016
n December 2016 progress was made regarding the pathways for up and coming talented players, when Joe Storm, Daniel van Waas, Joe Collins, Matthew Rigby and Daan van Rossum partook in an open trial with the South-Wales Ironmen. They tried out on Saturday 3rd December at the Wern, in Merthyr, Wales.
In 2016 the NRLB championship was launched which consisted of only Dutch clubs. The Grand Final was hosted at Dordrecht, where the Rotterdam Pitbulls and the Den Haag Knights fought for victory. Ultimately the Rotterdam Pitbulls triumphed with a 42-16 win. The great efforts in developing a new club in Harderwijk paid off when the Harderwijk Dolphins played the Amsterdam Cobras as a curtain raiser before the 2016 Grand Final. The newcomers even managed to upset the Amsterdam Cobras with a 32-28 win.
2017
In June 2017 the RAF Regiment 75 toured the Netherlands and played two friendlies against a collaboration of Dutch Clubs and a friendly match was scheduled against a Dutch Select XIII. Harderwijk. Even though all three games showed the huge gap in the level of play between the RAF & the Dutch sides, the Dutch players enjoyed the chance to play a top quality side. The NRLB thanks Shaun Griffin, his staff & the RAF Regiment Rugby League team for making the tour happen.
In 2017 James Geurtjens who played prop for the Coventry Bears in Betfred League One, came over to the Netherlands to play against Germany. Geurtjens was eligible because his grandfather was of Dutch heritage. His knowledge and communicative skills inspired and improved many of our domestic players. On October 27th Shadan Lavia, one of the promising players of the Rotterdam Pitbulls headed to Coventry to try out for the Bears.
The Harderwijk Dolphins were able to officially join the 2017 competition. The Amsterdam Cobras and the Harderwijk Dolphins played for the bronze medal in a match that was a real nailbiter. The score was tied 16-16 before the Harderwijk Dolphins scored the winning try, resulting in a final score of 16-20. The Rotterdam Pitbulls claimed their second consecutive win over the Den Haag Knights in the game for the title. The game was just as tight as the one before with the clubs being evenly matched. Four minutes before the whistle the Den Haag Knights lead 24-20, but Rotterdam Pitbulls Joe Collins managed to score a converted try in the dying minutes of the game. Final score 24-26 to the Rotterdam Pitbulls.
2018
2018 was a big year for Rugby League in the Netherlands. The kind people tasked with promotion of the 2021 Rugby League World Cup gave a two-day seminar in Rotterdam on October 6th and 7th on how to govern and promote a Rugby League Club; they also brought the World Cup to put on display. The seminar saw a high number of attendees and many pictures were pictures taken with the Paul Barrière Trophy. On October the 8th members and staff of the National Team headed to the British Ambassador’s Residence in the Hague for another promotional event. The event saw key influencers from the world of business, the public sector and Rugby League coming together to hear details about the Rugby League World Cup, which will take place in 2021 in England.
Thijs van der Zouwen was replaced by Benjamin Cueni as President. Leslie Herons first term expired but he stayed on for another term. After dedicating almost a decade of his life to the development of Rugby League in the Netherlands Jason Bruygoms withdrew from the Board; Daan van Rossum was assigned as the new Development Officer. The position of Media Officer which had been vacant since 2016 was filled with the appointing of James Cavell.
Following the RLEF’s 15th annual congress held in Belgrade, the Nederlandse Rugby League Bond was elevated from observer to affiliate member status.
The competition in 2018 was composed of the same components as the former years. The Amsterdam Cobras took there revenge on finishing 4th for the last years and beat the Den Haag Knights in the Grand Final with scoring a drop goal in golden point when the score was 28 – 28 at the 80 minute whistle. Although the Knights were not triumphant it it notably that they managed to play every Grand Final since the resurrection of the competition. The match for the bronze medal between the Rotterdam Pitbulls and the Harderwijk Dolphins was won by the former by 40-28.
The Grand Final Cup was renamed the Jason Bruygoms Tropy on November 24th 2018 in honor of Jason Bruygoms, who served on the NRLB Board and was instrumental in setting up the structure and community that we now have.
2019
2019 Saw domestic turmoil coupled with international success for the NRLB. The Netherlands beat a strong Germany team at home while Daan van Rossum was bombarded to interim-president, and suddenly the board only consisted of three members with only Thijs van der Zouwen and Leslie Heron remaining. Thijs van der Zouwen withdrew formally as well at the 2019 AGM, after being a vital part of the board since 2013. Stephanie van Diepen was assigned as Secretary, and Hannes Bavius took on the role of Development Officer. Matthew Rigby got elected as National Teams and Competition Manager and Leslie Heron remained Treasurer, a position he fulfilled since 2016.
With the Dordrecht Griffins still as a developing team, the same four battled it out for the silverware again. The Den Haag Knights broke the drought and finally got their first Grand Final win, after four losses. They beat the Amsterdam Cobras in another tight match, 20-18. The Den Haag Knights were also the first ones to lift the Jason Bruygoms Trophy, named to honor our former Development Officer Jason Bruygoms. The game for third place was won by the Harderwijk Dolphins
2020
There was not much possible in 2020 due to Covid-19 but the Netherlands Rugby League Board provided three consecutive clinics for over sixty students of the Alfrink College in Zoetermeer in October. Hopefully this will be our stepping stone to launch more of these clinics at schools in the future.
Daan van Rossum was officially voted in as President at the 2020 AGM and Stephanie van Diepen replaced Leslie Heron, who had resigned as Treasurer. Sjoerd Botterblom was assigned the role of Secretary.
The current board structure is as follows:
President: Daan van Rossum
Development Officer: Hannes Bavius
National Team and Competition Manager: Matthew Rigby
Secretary: Sjoerd Botterblom
Treasurer: Stephanie van Diepen
There were big plans for 2020 with the addition of the Zwolle Wolves as a fifth team, but due to Covid-19 the season had to be cancelled
2021
A regular competition proved to risky due to the uncertain Covid regulations but the NRLB managed to put on a 3 round 9s competition. The first round was hosted in Dordrecht, the second in Den Haag and the last round in Zaandijk. All five clubs participated. Unfortunately the Dordrecht Griffins were unable to join the 2nd and 3rd round after making their debut in the first round. Ultimately the Den Haag Knights were crowned 9s champions.
The national team on an away trip to Turkey secured the Euro D trophy propelling them into the top 20 in the world rankings and stamping the Netherlands firmly into the world rugby league map.
2022
The Zwolle Wolves were now finally able to make their NRLB Competition debut. They proved a force to be reckoned with, claiming victory over the Den Haag Knights in a thrilling but divisive Grand Final in the Hague. Rotterdam Pitbulls took the third place beating the Amsterdam Cobras.
2023
In 2023 the Cobras beat the Wolves convincingly in the final to be crowned NRLB champions after a hard and very competetive season. The men beat Norway, Germany, Serbia and Albania to go undefeated and win back the Griffin Cup.
All of this positivity however was overshadowed by 2 the foundation of the womens team and their first ever game and victory.
In December 2023 the Dutch Lionesses A and B teams played their first ever fixutre, away in Athens, Greece. This landmark victory heralds in a new era for the NRLB as league continues to grow exponentially in this small country.
2024
This year saw the NRLB boom domestically and internationally, with the Mens team taking the scalps of Scotland and Serbia, narrowly losing to Ireland and inching past a formidable World XIII. While the ladies dominated Italy away to enter into the group stage of the WK qualification, but then lost narrowly to ireland away, and to wales at home. The Ladies then came good by beating the RAF on aggregate 114-8 over two legs.
At home the newest All-Brabant team, the Brabant Bears proved a handful on the pitch and a hit with fans and soaring to steal the championship in their first year.
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At the 2024 AGM the Board was significantly reshuffled with several new faces coming in. Bonne Wilce took over as Interim President as part of a larger shake up in order to better cope with the demands of larger, more developed governing body.
