Round 6 of the AASE League proved to be a crucial one as the qualifiers for the second phase split began to emerge.
After next week’s fixtures, both the Northern and Southern Conferences will split. The top three sides in the north will play each other once again, with the top four in the south doing the same, while the bottom four in each conference will follow a similar pattern.
This will then mean that each side has a ranking within their conference, and on finals day they will face the side of equivalent ranking from the other conference. So 1st in the North will play 1st in the South and so on.
North
Following the Round 6 fixtures all three qualifiers for the Top 3 in the North have been confirmed, with Oaklands College, Worcester 6th form College and Gosforth Academy all qualifying.
Oaklands beat Myerscough College, the only side who had a realistic shot of breaking in, 31-10 to secure top spot in the conference. It was also Oaklands final game of this 1st phase of the competition.
Behind them Worcester 6th form College are in second after beating Moulton College 36-27 on Wednesday. Worcester are a point ahead of Gosforth Academy, who beat Bishop Burton College 70-0. Both Worcester and Gosforth are through, but whether in second or third is yet to be finalised.
South
Hartpury College were already confirmed as having qualified, but the seven time champions really cemented that position in round 6 after a thumping win against high flyers Beechen Cliff, 51-26. That defeat bumped Beechen Cliff down from second to fourth, leaving them still odds on to qualify but vulnerable to SGS Filton College in fifth place, who have a game in hand and picked up a good 29-21 win away at Truro College.
Exeter College have also qualified, they beat St Paul’s Catholic College 41-28 in round 6, and while their 22 point total is theoretically one short of them definitely being safely through, the fact that Filton College play Henley College next week means that one of them must drop points, which will safely put Exeter through.
Henley College moved into third yesterday after a 26-12 victory over Ivybridge Community College. Like Beechen Cliff they are highly likely to qualify for the top four, but are not yet guaranteed.
Next week sees the final round of games in both conferences, and while things are pretty much wrapped up in the North, the South still has plenty to play for!
If you have any photos, videos, or reports from this week’s AASE league games, please do send them in via email (writers@fifteenrugby.com ), Facebook (www.facebook.com/FifteenRugby ), or via Twitter (@FifteenRugbyXV).
AASE Round 6 Fixtures (predictions in bold):
North
Gosforth Academy 70-0 Bishop Burton College
Moulton College 27-36 Worcester 6th form College
Oaklands College 31-10 Myerscough College
South
Exeter College 41-28 St Paul’s Catholic College
Henley College 26-12 Ivybridge Community College
Truro College 21-29 SGS Filton College
Beechen Cliff 26-51 Hartpury College
Ivy v exe
Fil v hen
St p v bc
| AASE League Table – Northern Conference | |||||||
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | BP | Points |
| 1 | Oaklands College (Q) | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 28 |
| 2 | Worcester 6th form (Q) | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 20 |
| 3 | Gosforth Academy (Q) | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 19 |
| 4 | Myerscough College | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 9 |
| 5 | Moulton College | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 9 |
| 6 | Wyggeston & QEI College | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| 7 | Bishop Burton College | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| AASE League Table – Southern Conference | |||||||
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | BP | Points |
| 1 | Hartpury College (Q) | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 28 |
| 2 | Exeter College (Q) | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 22 |
| 3 | Henley College | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 21 |
| 4 | Beechen Cliff | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 19 |
| 5 | SGS Filton College | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 12 |
| 6 | Truro College | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 8 |
| 7 | Ivybridge Community College | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| 8 | St Paul’s Catholic College | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 6 |