Thanks guys!

It does need to be completed as a Vector. I feel I'm pretty good with the pen tool and having been using it for a few years now to do line drawings etc. That's the route that I started to go down with multiple custom brushes it just seemed to take a huge amount of time to do a certain percentage of what I need. Also, using custom pattern brushes doesn't always give you that random messy/distressed/vintage looks.

I'll continue to play around with it and see what I can discover. I'll post findings! Thanks for your help anyway guys.

On with the Rugby!