Perhaps the best way for English rugby fans to get over the Rugby World Cup disappointment is to focus elsewhere, and where better than on schools rugby.
Schools rugby is rugby is its purest form, more strictly analysed than in the past perhaps, but still a place where mistakes can be made, risks can be taken, deeply serious but when it is all over that’s it. It is what sport is supposed to be, it is fun.
Fun and competitive, and this week’s results certainly show that. There were some huge victories, some shocks, and some very well fought contests.
5 Key Fixtures
Dulwich College got back to winning ways with a well-contested 15-12 victory over Brighton College, a game never fails to disappoint.
Oundle backed up our words of praise for them in our preview with a terrific 20-9 victory over Stowe, who are not short of quality themselves.
QEGS Wakefield and St Peter’s York had a superb contest, which QEGS came out on top of, with a 20-10 victory.
Arguably the game, and indeed the result, of the weekend was Wellington College’s stunning 40-12 victory over Millfield. Wellington were slight favourites, but few could possibly have expected such a dominant result.
At the other end of the spectrum was Whitgift’s 21-19 victory over Warwick, a tight game that was expected to be tight. The winner was always going to feel that they had made a significant statement to onlookers, and Whitgift have indeed done so.
5 Previews
Abingdon performed well to beat Cheltenham College 15-8, a game that looked set to be a well fought contest, and so it proved.
One of the results of the day was Barnard Castle’s 55-17 hammering of Scottish giants Merchiston Castle, a hugely impressive scoreline from Barnard Castle.
Tonbridge impressed with a 34-10 victory over Radley College, who were playing their third game in 8 days.
Kirkham Grammar School beat RGS Lancaster 29-12, but the score does not tell the full story, it was 13-12 at half time and remained close for much of the game, however a couple of Kirkham tries tied the game up.
Stamford maintained their 4 year unbeaten run at home by beating a good Bedford Modern side 31-10, an impressive win after a tricky start to the season.
Elsewhere
Cranleigh’s impressive winning run continued with a 34-0 win over Skinners’, while Espom College and Felsted impressed enormously, matching each other with 61-0 victories over RGS Guildford and Gresham’s respectively.
Arguably the scoreline of the day though was Durham’s stunning 84-0 effort over Hymers College.
Monmouth won a tight game at King’s Worcester 21-19, and Bedford really put the hammer down at Oakham, winning 40-14. Oakham’s near neighbours Uppingham were beaten 25-9 by Rugby.
Do you have any photos, videos, or reports from yesterday’s school rugby? You can send them in to writers@fifteenrugby.com
Schools Rugby Results:
5 Key Fixtures:
Dulwich College 15-12 Brighton College
Oundle 20-9 Stowe
St Peter’s, York 10-20 QEGS Wakefield
Wellington College 40-12 Millfield
Whitgift 21-19 Warwick
5 Previewed Fixtures:
Abingdon 15-8 Cheltenham College
Barnard Castle 55-17 Merchiston Castle
Radley College 10-34 Tonbridge
RGS Lancaster 12-29 Kirkham Grammar School
Stamford 31-10 Bedford Modern
Other Key School Games:
Adams GS 20-14 Loughborough GS
Ampleforth College 19-31 Sedbergh
Bablake 5-49 Leicester GS
Bishop Wordsworth’s 31-14 Canford
Blundell’s 26-12 Truro School
Caterham 29-25 Christ’s Hospital
Churcher’s College 17-31 Lord Wandsworth College
Clifton College 25-13 Sir Thomas Rich’s
Cranleigh 34-0 Skinners’
Durham 84-0 Hymers College
Epsom College 61-0 RGS Guildford
Feslted 61-0 Gresham’s
Hurstpierpoint 24-31 St John’s, Leatherhead
John Cleveland 18-0 Princethorpe College
Judd 20-7 Langley Park
KES Birmingham 14-38 Bloxham
King’s College Taunton 27-37 Colston’s
King’s Worcester 19-21 Monmouth
London Oratory 40-0 Gunnersbury
Lymm HS 0-5 Wilmslow HS
Malvern College 5-29 Hereford Cathedral School
Merchant Taylors 6-12 Magdalen College
New Hall 10-60 Trinity
Nottingham HS 15-52 Bradford GS
Oakham 14-40 Bedford
Pangbourne College 62-3 Mill Hill
Perse 15-56 Royal Hospital School
QES Barnet 0-41 Campion
Reading Blue Coat 13-3 Aylesbury GS
Reed’s 27-22 The Oratory
RGS Newcastle 34-7 Grammar School at Leeds
RGS Worcester 10-20 Bristol GS
Sandbach 43-5 Cheadle Hulme
Seaford College 24-6 Portsmouth GS
Shiplake College 7-24 St Edward’s, Oxford
Solihull 11-21 Bromsgrove
St Albans 0-26 Berkhamsted
St Ambrose College 12-15 Stockport GS (NatWest Cup)
St George’s College, Weybridge 6-12 KCS Wimbledon
St Paul’s 24-7 Tiffin
Sutton Valence 0-47 Eastbourne College
Uppingham 9-25 Rugby
Wallington CGS 24-29 Dartford GS
Wimbledon College 3-34 John Fisher
Woodhouse Grove 32-12 King’s Macclesfield
Worksop 22-7 Welbeck
Worth 10-25 Reigate GS
Yarm 57-0 King’s Priory
Still to come:
Bishop’s Stortford HS v St Olave’s GS
Chislehurst & Sidcup GS v Cranbrook
Eltham College v Sevenoaks
Giggleswick v Ashville College
Mount St Mary’s College v Ratcliffe College
Northampton School for Boys v St Joseph’s College
Norwich v Bishop’s Stortford College
Old Swinford Hospital v Trent College
Pate’s GS v The Crypt
Prior Park v Kingswood
