Development
N.S.R.B. & N.S.T.
Long before any records were kept, Ascrum was already a regular provider of players for the national student team, historically alongside DSR-C, RSRC, USRS, and LSRG. These five clubs formed the backbone of Dutch student rugby, and they still do today.
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Dutch Student Rugby Association
The Official Purveyor to the Dutch Student Team
Student rugby is very well organised in the Netherlands. Founded in Delft in 1966, the Dutch Student Rugby Union (NSRB) is the governing body for student rugby in the country. Today, the union has seventeen member clubs spread across all major university cities.
At the very top of that pyramid is the NST—the Dutch Student Team. This is a select squad of the very best student rugby players in the country. It is no easy feat to get selected: you must play for an NSRB-affiliated club, be a student, and either hold Dutch nationality or have lived in the Netherlands for at least three years. It is the absolute pinnacle for any student rugby player.
And Ascrum has been feeding into this team for decades. Long before official records were even kept, Ascrum was already a key supplier to the student national team, historically alongside DSR-C, RSRC, USRS, and LSRG. These five clubs formed the backbone of Dutch student rugby, and they still do today.
When the Dutch Student Team made a fresh start in 2019, that story remained unchanged. Since the restart, no fewer than 27 Ascrum players have been called up, earning a total of 66 caps between them. This puts us right at the top of the national leaderboard year after year. And no club produces bigger names than we do: the most capped player in NST history comes from Ascrum—Stijn Albers, with nine caps, which he earned as captain.
Our secret? True grit. At Ascrum, we play with courage. We pack down into the scrum like we own it, and we carry the ball like the pitch belongs to us. Our players bring that exact attitude when they pull on the pink NST jersey, and selectors have known for years where to find that kind of determination.
And it’s not just about players who arrived with a reputation. Most of our guys who ultimately wore the NST jersey joined us with absolutely no prior experience. Students can join as beginners and make it all the way to the best student team in the country.
A detail that perfectly sums it up: the Dutch Student XV kit features a light pink jersey with a black collar and black shorts, but players wear their own club socks. You can bet that every single season, quite a few pairs of Ascrum socks are running out onto that pitch.
What this says about us
You don’t remain the main purveyor to the highest student team in the Netherlands for decades, producing the most capped player in history, by playing it safe. You do it with character, with guts, and with a club that develops players to their full potential. Anyone who joins us with ambition is given the platform to be noticed. The pink jerseys and the Ascrum socks prove it year after year.
A proud supplier. Then, now, and always.
Van IJzer.