Barnstaple RFC Barnstaple RFC Barnstaple Rugby Football Club was established in 1877 and is a rugby union club based in Barnstaple, Devon. The club's first team play in South West Premier, the fourth tier of the English rugby union league system, following relegation from National League 2 South at the end of the 2017-18 season. The club colours are red and white and their nickname is Barum. The first team are called the Chiefs, and there are also 2nd and 3rd teams (Athletic and Buccaneers), a number of youth teams from under-7s to under-18s (colts), and a girls side. The clubs rivals
Barnstaple Bay. The name is first recorded in the 10th century and is believed to derive from the Old English "bearde", meaning "battle-axe", and "stapol", meaning "pillar", referring to a post or pillar set up to mark a religious or administrative meeting place. The belief that the name derives from "staple" meaning "market", indicating that there was a market here from the foundation of the settlement, is incorrect, because the use of "staple" in that sense is not recorded in England before 1423. Barnstaple was formerly referred to as "Barum", from a contraction of the Latin form of the name (ad