1899 River Plate Rugby Union Championship


The 1899 River Plate Rugby Union Championship was the inaugural season of the first rugby union club championship held in Argentina, organised by the "River Plate Rugby Union". It was contested by the five founding members of the RPRU: Belgrano, Rosario, Lomas, Buenos Aires, and Flores.
Uruguayan club Montevideo C.C. was invited to take part of the competition but they declined to participate due to the long travel time to Argentina by ship.
In the inaugural game, Lomas defeated Buenos Aires by 11-4. Lomas would be the first Argentine champion, winning the title at the end of the season.

Teams

Results

List of matches played in the season. Some results are missed. Rosario A.C. entered directly in the semifinals. Buenos Aires FC played its home matches at Lomas.

First round

DateHomeRes.AwayVenue
21 MayLomasw–lBelgranoLomas
28 MayBuenos Aires24–0FloresFlores
1 JuneBuenos Aires3–5BelgranoBelgrano
4 JuneFloresl–wLomasLomas
11 JuneBuenos Aires24–3LomasLomas
18 JuneFloresl–wBelgranoBelgrano
24 JuneBuenos Airesw–lFloresLomas
25 JuneBelgrano3–0LomasBelgrano
2 JulyBuenos Aires3–0BelgranoLomas
9 JulyFloresl–wLomasFlores

Semifinals

DateHomeRes.AwayVenue
16 or 23 JulyRosario11–0Buenos AiresPlaza Jewell

DateHomeRes.AwayVenue
?Lomas16–0Belgrano

Final

The final was played at Flores Old Ground in Caballito, Buenos Aires. All proceeds were donated to the British Hospital of Buenos Aires. In a match where both teams showed to be equalled in strength of play, Lomas won the game when they were awarded a free-kick that captain F.H. Jacobs scored for a 3–0 win.

Aftermath

It was the first and only championship contested by Flores A.C. A pioneer in several sports disciplines in Argentina, Flores A.C. had played its first match on 19 July 1896, against Buenos Aires F.C.. In 1907 Flores Athletic sold some of its facilities to neighbor Club Ferro Carril Oeste, for m$n 700. It is believed that the club was dissolved after this transaction.
Before disspearing, Flores had also took part in the first Primera División championship in 1891. The polo team of the institution also won the fourth edition of Abierto de Polo in 1894.