Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: SV Ruwaard (1981-2025)

Sportpark De Bergsche Hoeve, Oss (formerly SV Ruwaard)

Netherlands, province: North Brabant = Noord-Brabant

September 2025 / no match visited

Timeline

1965 / In the new neighbourhood of Ruwaard, on the western outskirts of Oss, close to the border with the village of Geffen, a new football club is founded, Sportvereniging (SV) Ruwaard. The founding fathers of the club are Piet Geurts and Jozef van Lent. P. van Eijck is appointed as the club’s first chairman. Given that no pitch is available in Ruwaard proper, the club plays its first matches on one of the side-pitches of Sportpark De Rusheuvel, home of SV OSS ’20 and RKVV DESO.
1966 / The nascent youth academy of SV Ruwaard finds its home at Sportterrein De Koepel, a piece of fallow land in between industrial complexes in the vicinity of what was then called Bosschestraat, near the railway crossing leading to Lith. It is unclear where SV Ruwaard’s senior teams played in the period leading up to the move to Sportpark De Bergsche Hoeve in the mid-1970s – possibly still as groundsharers of SV OSS ’20 and RKVV DESO at Sportpark De Rusheuvel.
1967 / Clinching the title in Afdeling Noord-Brabant Sunday Division 3, the bottom division of the North Brabant league system below Sunday League 4, SV Ruwaard wins promotion to Afdeling Noord-Brabant Division 2. The successful coach is Ad Timmermans.
1974 / After nine years of being unable to play its football in the Ruwaard neighbourhood, SV Ruwaard is handed the luxury of two pitches on the outskirts of Ruwaard, right on the border with Geffen, in the new sports park later renamed Sportpark De Bergsche Hoeve. Initially, the facilities, put at the club’s disposal by Oss’ municipal authorities, are rather basic, with site canteens serving as dressing rooms.
1975 / Clinching the title in Afdeling Noord-Brabant Sunday Division 2 following a 1-1 away draw at vv SIOL, SV Ruwaard wins promotion to Afdeling Noord-Brabant D1. The successful coach is Leo Verberne. That same year, Sportpark De Bergsche Hoeve is extended with two more pitches, bringing the total up to four.
1976 / SV Ruwaard suffers relegation from Afdeling Noord-Brabant Sunday Division 1 to Division 2.
1977 / A new, first proper clubhouse is inaugurated at Sportpark De Bergsche Hoeve.
1981 / The new main pitch at Sportpark De Bergsche Hoeve is inaugurated with a gala match between a team of former AFC Ajax players and a selection of local non-league players on August 29th, 1981.
1987 / Former SV Ruwaard youth academy player Marc van Hintum makes his professional league debut at Helmond Sport. Van Hintum had joined Ruwaard as a twelve-year-old in 1979 from RKSV Cito, staying with the club for two years, following which he had spells in the academies of TOP and RKSV Margriet. Following his debut at Helmond Sport, the wingback went on to have spells at RKC, Willem II, SBV Vitesse, Hannover 96, and RKC Waalwijk, as well as winning 8 caps for the Netherlands (1998-2001).
1990 / Finishing in the higher reaches of Afdeling Noord-Brabant Sunday Division 2, SV Ruwaard qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club reaches the final – going on to defeat SV Litta in that encounter (1-0). As such, the club accedes to Afdeling Noord-Brabant Sunday Division 1. Also in 1990, former Ruwaard youth player Raymond Beerens, who had moved to PSV’s academy as a thirteen-year-old in 1985, makes his professional league debut at PSV. The midfielder goes on to have spells at RKC, MVV, FC Groningen, FC Volendam, and 1. FC Saarbrücken, before bowing out into non-league in 2002, where he has spells at RKSV Schijndel and vv UNA before hanging up his boots for good.
1994 / A thorough renovation is carried out at Sportpark De Bergsche Hoeve, probably involving the construction of a new clubhouse.
1996 / Clinching the title in Afdeling Noord-Brabant Sunday Division 1, SV Ruwaard wins promotion to KNVB District South I’s Sunday League 4 for the first time. The successful coach is Marcel van de Ven.
2001 / Coached by Wiljo Merks, SV Ruwaard finishes bottom of the table in District South I’s Sunday League 4H, thus descending into Sunday League 5 (which had replaced Afdeling Noord-Brabant Sunday Division 1 in 1996) along with the club in second-last place, BSV Olympia ’18.
2002 / Finishing in fourth place in District South II’s Sunday League 5H, SV Ruwaard goes on to win the promotion play-offs, thus managing an immediate return to Sunday League 4. The successful coach is Marcel van de Ven.
2006 / Coached by Ruud Fleskens, SV Ruwaard finishes bottom of the table in District South II’s Sunday League 4H, thus dropping back into Sunday League 5 along with the club in second-last place, WHV.
2008 / Champions in District South II’s Sunday League 5H, 6 points ahead of runners-up EVVC, SV Ruwaard wins promotion to Sunday League 4 after an absence of two years. The successful coach is Ad Faro.
2011 / Finishing in third place in District South II’s Sunday League 4H, SV Ruwaard qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club reaches the final via successive wins over RKSV Vorstenbossche Boys (5-2 aggr.) and RKSV MULO (3-3 aggr. & penalty shoot-out). In the final, SV Ruwaard has the better of EVVC (2-1), resulting in the club acceding to Sunday League 3 for the first – and only – time in club history. The successful coaches are Henk Damen and Wil Hartogs, who had taken over in the course of the season from Gerrit van Galen.
2012 / In the best season in club history, SV Ruwaard manages an eighth place in District South II’s Sunday League 3D with coach Henk Damen.
2013 / Coached by Carlo van Bergen, SV Ruwaard finishes bottom of the table in District South II’s Sunday League 3D, thus dropping back into Sunday League 4 along with SV Vitesse ’08 and vv MVC.
2014 / Coached by Carlo van Bergen, SV Ruwaard finishes in second-last place in District South II’s Sunday League 4H, thus suffering back-to-back relegations and descending into Sunday League 5.
2024 / Having experienced a decade mostly spent at or near the bottom of Sunday League 5, SV Ruwaard withdraws from first team football following the 2023-24 season, in which the club finished in twelfth and last place in District South II’s Sunday League 5E.
2025 / With the club being left with only three teams in the 2024-25 season, SV Ruwaard’s presidency, chaired by Bjorn van Bergen, takes the decision to cease all activities at the end of the season – after merger talks with RKSV Cito and FC Schadewijk, involving the move of a projected merger club to the side-pitches of SV TOP’s Sportpark Hescheweg, had come to naught. After a closing party in June 2025, the club officially folds after an existence of exactly sixty years on July 1st, 2025.