Today, London Irish and Brentford FC confirmed their agreement that will see London Irish play their professional matches at the new Brentford Community Stadium from Autumn 2020.

This will end a professional association with the club and the Madejski Stadium since 2000.

The London Irish Supporters Club has had several conversations with London Irish regarding the potential for a move back to the capital. After so many years playing in Reading, the London Irish supporter base has naturally fragmented with many people following the club from London, Berkshire, Hampshire, along the South Coast and all points in-between.

Ultimately there is a range of feelings throughout our membership. Some will see this as a homecoming and some will see this as the end of their ability to actively support the club on a regular basis.

The London Irish Supporters Club is not privy to the details of the agreement between Brentford FC and London Irish, however, we firmly believe that any stadium deal that represents a better on-the-field future for London Irish is to be supported.

Hopefully by relocating to a venue much closer to the original Sunbury fan base, but which is also easily accessible to supporters in the Thames Valley, the club can grow to become a serious competitor in the top tier of English rugby once more.

We will continue to represent our supporters in discussions with London Irish and aim to engage the club in meaningful discussions to facilitate transportation and parking options for travelling supporters.

Finally our thanks to the Madejski Stadium and Reading FC, without which who knows where our club would have played their professional matches. A lot of memories have been made there and hopefully some more positive ones will be made over the coming season and a half.