Newcastle Thunder

The Newcastle Thunder is a professional rugby league club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Founded in 1999 as Gateshead Thunder after the merger of the original Gateshead Thunder with Hull F.C. the club played in the Championship and League 1 competitions, the second and third tier of rugby league in the United Kingdom. In 2015 the club changed its name to Newcastle Thunder. They played their home matches at Kingston Park, also home to rugby union side Newcastle Falcons. In October 2023 the club announced that it was withdrawing from the Rugby Football League. History The club was formerly known as Gateshead Thunder, and played their home games at Gateshead International Stadium in Gateshead. The club was formed by the Thunder 2000 working group, supporters of the original Gateshead Thunder after that organisation made the decision to merge with Hull Sharks at the end of the 1999 season. The new club entered the Northern Ford Premiership for the 2001 season, however they struggled to compete, and eventually finished 17th out of the 19 clubs. Gateshead continued to struggle in the following season, finishing bottom of the league in 2002. When the Northern Ford Premiership was split into two divisions for the 2003 season the club joined National League Two, and again finished in the bottom two, being kept off the bottom only by new entrants London Skolars. The club's fortunes began to improve in 2005, a seventh-place finish being enough to gain a first ever place in the play-offs, before losing to Workington Town in their first ever play-off game. The club again finished seventh in 2006, but went on to lose 46–18 to Featherstone Rovers in the play-offs. In 2008 the club won its first silverware, finishing the season as League 1 champions. As champions, the club were promoted to the Championship, and avoided on-field relegation by finishing seventh under coach Steve McCormack Thunder's joy at securing a second season in the second tier was however short-lived, as the club was wound up following a dispute between the directors. A new company was formed to continue the club, however the club had to restart as a Championship 1 side, effectively being relegated for the 2010 season.