Rugby is Twickenham and Twickenham is rugby. It’s in our blood. So much tradition and history. But that doesn’t mean the game is stuck in the past. Rugby is growing and blossoming as the game becomes more inclusive and much more exciting! One perfect example is the Cabbage Patch pub* – probably the most famous rugby pub in the world. In 2025, in honour of the English women’s rugby team it changed its name to Red Roses Patch.
This commitment to stay current, stay relevant and be at the forefront of sport is what’s made this game (and its supporters) one of the world’s most popular sports (with the best fans).
In honour of this incredible sport, here’s a little spot of history with an explainer about the strange name, The Cabbage Patch. Alllianz Twickenham is the epitome of the modern sports arena. It is hard to imagine, then, the humble beginnings of this hallowed patch of turf, when the only bean-poles present were those used for growing beans.
At the beginning of the last century, England rugby did not have a permanent home. The team was permanently on tour, playing games at such venues as the Kennington Oval and Crystal Palace, Richmond and Bristol and Leeds. However, as the sport grew in popularity, William Cail, treasurer of the RFU, proposed the notion of constructing a dedicated stadium for the England team.
Various locations were considered, including Stamford Bridge until Chelsea Football Club snapped it up. Eventually, in 1907, the RFU spent £5,572, 12 shillings and sixpence to acquire the ten and a quarter acres of muddy market garden at the Fairfield Estate in the London borough of Richmond-upon-Thames. Set on the floodplain of the River Crane and the Duke of Northumberland’s River, where allotments were used to grow fruit and vegetables, it was an unlikely choice.
A stadium took shape. Covered stands were built on the East and West sides for 3,000 spectators each. A concrete terrace was constructed for 7,000 to stand at the South. A parking area was laid down for carriages and the increasingly fashionable motor-cars. Roads were improved and entrances built. Changing rooms, baths, committee and tea rooms were added beneath the West Stand; a press-box and refreshment room to the East.
Local club Harlequins were invited to be tenants and contested the first five games played at the stadium. In the inaugural game, on 2 October 1909, Harlequins beat Richmond 14–10 in front of fewer than 2,000 spectators. The ‘New Ground’ received its first reviews. It was too far from central London. Transport and access were poor. The grass was compared to “the hair of some of our clever friends at the opening performance: a little too artistic in the matter of length.” Twickenham was labelled a “damned great white elephant” and acquired the nickname of Billy Williams’ Cabbage Patch. Today, it remains ‘The Patch’.
Despite the initial bad press, things improved and the reputation grew. It was the start of a golden age for England, on and off the field. The Twickenham roar had found its voice. Captain Stoop referred to the lucky ground as ‘The Good Fairy of Twickenham’, and it was not the last time that England’s players would be carried from the cabbage patch like kings.
So, here’s to Twickenham rugby – past, present and future.
* Twickenham Stadium is a half hour walk from the luxury serviced apartments at 20 The Barons.
