OFFICIALS at Forest rugby clubs have warned that player numbers will reduce unless the county falls in line with others in the South West.

Gloucestershire RFU is one of few county administrative bodies in the region that do not allow reserve sides to enter the league set-up.

This leaves sides such as Cinderford Stags and Drybrook United, the two club’s third and second teams respectively, to play in dedicated leagues.

Barry Holmes, Cinderford’s treasurer,

“It’s going back to the 1970s and 1980s when teams from Gloucester and Cheltenham were happy to travel to the Forest and go home defeated.

“But now, because the strength of the sides here, they don’t want to travel here if they’re going to get beaten.

“Because Drybrook seconds and Cinderford thirds are so strong we can’t get any competitive rugby locally.

“We’re in the South West Pilot League which is designed to give us more rugby but at the back end of last season, teams dropped out and so we ended up playing Bournemouth and Exmouth thanks to the draw of a hat to make up for it.

“Third team players don’t get paid and it takes away a whole day from them having to travel that far.

“If they were playing locally, they could do a shift in the morning at work and then play.

“As it is, we’re at risk of seeing players leave to play locally.

“We have Gloucester, Hartpury and hopefully Cinderford soon all playing at a high level so we risk players giving up playing and just watching a high standard of rugby.

“On top of that, there are clubs in Bristol who are looking at leaving the Gloucestershire RFU to affiliate with Somerset.”

Drybrook chairman Chris Rawlings admitted that the club hoped to enter their United XV into the league set-up.

“As a club, it’d be great for our United side to have competitive local rugby,” he said.

“You’d think there were enough sides in the county for a second team league.

“The trouble as well in the Pilot League is that you have second teams from Taunton and Clifton, whose firsts are at the same standard as Cinderford.

“But I can see it from the other side of the argument and maybe the answer is to have a league above the merit tables.”