They were the team that kept on giving.

They gave to the senior teams at Cheltenham Rugby Club, they gave to Gloucester and they even gave to England.

The team in question are Cheltenham Colts, the upwardly mobile arm of Cheltenham RFC for the best part of four decades at the back end of the 20th century.

They went toe to toe with the biggest and best clubs in the land – Leicester, Northampton, Bath and the like – never taking a backward step and giving many a team more than just a bloody nose.

In those days victories against the elite of English rugby were almost as commonplace as renditions today of ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’ in the pubs and bars around Twickenham before an England international.

It’s not surprising that the Colts enjoyed such success when you consider some of the names that came through their ranks – Phil Blakeway, John Fidler, Bernard Capaldi, Stuart Russell and Pat Lavery to name just a few.

The remarkable story of the rise and rise – and eventual demise – of Cheltenham Colts began in 1960.

They were founded by rugby-mad Welshman Norman Rees and Pat Todd in the days when the average price for a house in the UK was about £2,500 and you could get a pint of beer for 8p.

Club historian John Woodward – Cheltenham Tigers’ answer to David Starkey – played for and later managed the Colts and was one of the pivotal figures in what was a ground-breaking set-up back in the day.

He told The Local Answer: “The very first match for the Colts was held at the old Athletic Ground in Albion Street, the home of Cheltenham Rugby Club, in September 1960.

“It was against Gloucester and the visitors won 16-0 due to Cheltenham’s ‘clumsy handling and inefficient covering’.”

So why did Rees, a one-time Cheltenham flanker, and Todd, a winger for the club, establish an under-19 team?

“As a sports teacher at All Saints School, Norman was concerned that boys leaving school at the age of 16 had little option but to join local clubs in order to continue playing rugby,” explained Woodward.

“He believed this was unsafe, particularly for front five forwards who were being pitted against much older and stronger men.

“In order to bridge this gap between school and club rugby, boys were recruited to play for the Colts until they reached the age of 19.”

The irony is, of course, that some 57 years later, many boys leaving school today find themselves with the same dilemma as that faced by their forefathers.

“While universities and academies look after school-leavers very well, other 18-year-olds have little choice but to enter senior rugby if they want to continue playing the sport,” said Woodward.

“This subjects them to the same unequal contests when playing in the forwards. Clubs who run Colts teams regularly are very few and far between.”

Back in the Swinging Sixties, the founders of Cheltenham Colts decided to register them as an independent club within the Rugby Football Union.

“They were worried that if the young players came under the umbrella of the senior Town XV then they might be rushed too quickly into men’s rugby,” explained Woodward.

The first decade of the Colts was one of almost unparallelled success.

“There was a great thirst for this age group sport,” said Woodward. “Many boys were leaving school, learning trades and taking up apprenticeships which meant they were remaining in the town area.”

They certainly were and Saturday 14th October 1967 is one of those red letter days in Cheltenham Colts history, because on that afternoon they fielded three teams.

But it wasn’t all about rugby. “In 1962, prior to RFU Colts, they were registered as a Boys’ Club and excelled in athletics, cross-county, tennis and swimming,” said Woodward.

There were other spin-offs as well and their positive impact is still being felt by many today.

“In 1970 Cheltenham Colts Old Boys were formed,” said Woodward, “and were organised in tandem with the Colts.

“They used All Saints School for changing accommodation and played matches at the lush Prestbury Road playing fields.

“They ran very successfully until 1975 when they broke away to form Cheltenham Saracens RFC playing at King George V. They were welcomed by Saracens club secretary Bob Attwood and used their club facilities at St George’s Road for post-match hospitality. Today Saracens have their own clubhouse in Brooklyn Road.”

Remarkably, considering the success of Cheltenham Colts, they disbanded for five years from 1976.

They were resurrected by Woodward, who acted as team manager, and fixture secretary Mike Edwards when Cheltenham moved to the purpose-built premises at the Prince of Wales Stadium, a place that the club called home for more than 30 years.

Others played a big part in the Colts’ second coming as well, including Roger Long and Dave Townsend, who is the current president of Cheltenham Tigers.

For the best part of the next 20 years, the Colts took on some of the very best teams in England and Wales while producing a high number of players who went on to enjoy stellar careers.

In addition to prop Blakeway (British Lions, England and Barbarians), second row Fidler (England and Barbarians), flanker Capaldi (England reserves and Barbarians), second row Russell (Wales and Barbarians) and centre Lavery (Ireland), the likes of Peter Buxton, Neil Matthews and Laurie Beck all came through the Colts set-up before going on to play for Gloucester. All three also won representative honours at various levels for England.

The roll of honour also includes Pete Mitchell and Ben Hyde, who also played for England Colts, and their shirts along with those of Matthews and Beck are now proudly displayed in Cheltenham’s clubhouse at The Newlands.

The late Dan Vickerman, who won more than 60 caps for Australia in the noughties, was another to sample all that life as a Cheltenham Colt could offer, a beneficiary of the reciprocal international player exchange that was set up with South Africa, New Zealand and Australia.

It’s not just on the playing side that the Colts helped produce people who went on to achieve great things in the world of rugby.

One-time Colts centre Chris White developed into one of the outstanding referees in the game in the 90s and noughties, officiating in three World Cups, while Phil Watters is currently taking charge of matches at Championship level.

Another to have benefitted from the unique journey that was Cheltenham Colts is Rory Teague, nephew of Gloucester great Mike Teague. He is currently coaching in France having been part of Eddie Jones’ England set-up, and remains the only Colt to have won a County Cup fixture by dropping three goals in the same match.

There were so, so many success stories but sadly, like too many good things, the story could not go on forever.

Woodward explained: “In early 2000, with many boys going directly to universities or being recruited into the professional game via academies, the death knell sounded for rugby at the age group. Even local clubs were avidly signing young players for league rugby.

“This forced many traditional clubs to abandon the Colts age group. Obtaining inter-club fixtures became very difficult and still suffers today with the RFU authorities appearing impotent to prevent this from happening.”

And while the Colts are no more, their incredible achievements will live forever – 56 players representing England Boys’ Clubs (NABC) against Wales, winning more than 100 caps and providing seven captains; more than 100 players wearing the Gloucester Colts jersey; 37 playing for Gloucestershire Under-18s, helping them to a Twickenham final and victory in the National Colts 7s at Castlecroft.

Other representative honours included 13 Colts playing for British Army juniors, RAF and Royal Navy Colts, and the Combined Services.

Closer to home no fewer than 120 Colts graduated to Cheltenham’s 1st XV when they were playing at national league level and there was another red letter day in their proud history on Saturday 14th October 2000 when 12 ex-Colts all featured in the same senior league squad for a National League Three match against Penzance/Newlyn.

That season 21 ex-Colts played for the 1st XV, who were coached by Pete Curtis, another ex-Colt.

That was all a long way from those early days, of course, when the Colts received a grant of £20 from the Cheltenham Youth Committee – chaired by Major Gurney and Vic Baynham – which was used to buy a set of red jerseys.

Great days and great memories for so many. The final word should go to John Woodward, who spends so much of his time supporting the club and researching their history.

“Since their visionary inception in 1960, the story of the success of Cheltenham Colts is one of superlatives,” he said. “They have been described as the ‘jewel in the crown’ in the club’s 128-year history. The club’s Colts remain unsurpassed in their many outstanding achievements.

“For 40 years Cheltenham Colts provided a valuable community service to the town with over 500 boys having been trained through their ranks.

“Norman Rees, who died nine years ago at the age of 80, became a trusted mentor to many of these lads nearly 60 years ago. To some he was a second father, to others a first.

“Through rugby he helped prevent them from following a less healthier lifestyle.

“Like others in the town from a variety of sports – Jasper Cook, Bob Attwood, Ted Hughes, Peter Cruyws – Norman was one of a rare breed of selfless volunteers who cared about others.”