In the early decades of the school, sport was very limited. On Thursday's, students had a half-day holiday for games, which would have been held in the Forth.

This would have included sports like archery - in 1541, King Henry VIII passed an ordinance that children aged 7-17 should be taught to use a long bow. 

The school was later given its first dedicated playground by the Corporation in 1755: a green called the Spital Croft. The area was described as a place of conflict, as other boys in the town fought for its use, much to the consternation of the grammar school students. Fights regularly broke out between 'town' and 'school' boys. 

It was at the Rye Hill site (1870-1906) that sport became established as a regular RGS activity. Though still fairly basic, Rye Hill students eventually gained access to a gymnasium, Fives courts, and playing fields on ‘The Flat’. Cricket and rugby teams were established, we held our first ever Sports Day; and school ‘colours’ began to be awarded. 

Once we moved to Jesmond in 1906 and had access to a quality field at the centre of the school site, sport continued to develop from strength to strength. School houses for inter-house competitions were established, new facilities were added like the Sutherland Baths and gymnasium, and clubs for all kinds of sports were inaugurated.  

Our current Sports Centre, completed in 2015, provides state-of-the-art facilities for students playing a huge range of sports. Many Old Novocastrians have gone on to excel in their chosen sport, competing at national and international level. Current students are inspired by them daily on their way to the Dining Hall, where their pictures are displayed on our Sports Hall of Fame.