With London Welsh and London Scottish having already been formed, a group of Irishmen came together in 1898 to establish their own club and provide a home away from home.

Over 200 years later and London Irish are by far the more successful club of the expatriate community, even if they have had to endure a few highs and lows during the transition from amateur to professional rugby.

In 1990-91 London Irish, or the Exiles as they are also known, were promoted to England's top division, but they struggled to make a major impact in the League and relied heavily on benefactors.

In 1999 the club merged with London Scottish and Richmond to form a team who have since been competitive both on and off the pitch.

It proved a turning point as the Exiles went from strength to strength, winning their first major trophy in 2002 when they beat Northampton to lift the Powergen Cup.

In the 2006-07 season the Exiles finished sixth in the Premiership and qualified for the Heineken Cup.

Their performances in Europe's premier rugby competition proved to be one of the highlights of the decade for the club as they reached the semi-finals, only to be knocked out by Toulouse in a dramatic match at Twickenham.

London Irish are now firmly established among the higher echelons of the Premiership and can boast an academy system which is the envy of most clubs, producing talents like the brothers Delon and Steffon Armitage and Shane Geraghty, who have all gone on to represent England.