Following Sunday’s Regional Festival, the ISRFC Lambs have named their National Squad for the 2017 season.

Sunday took on a different format to previous years, with a round robin festival between the four regions, North, Midlands, South East and South West, rather than the previous method of selection that saw a combined South East/South West side take on the combined North/Midlands side for the final round of selection.

The sides met at Wisbech Grammar School for the Festival have played some warm-up games before Christmas. The North had lost 35-24 to a very strong Woodhouse Grove side, 35-24, while the Midlands had beaten The Perse 32-30. London Scottish had beaten the South East 28-20 in a really good game, while the South West had comfortably seen off Somerset.

Sunday’s Festival was a chance for all four sides to play against each other, meaning that each player would play against their direct competition for their position from each region.

The North, Mildlands, and South West sides each won two of their three games, while the South East were unfortunate to finish the day without a win.

The North squad beat the South East and Midlands, while the Midlands beat the South East and South West, with the South West side in turn beating the North and the South East.

Those games the formed the basis for selection to the 2017 ISRFC Lambs National Squad. A thirty-eight man squad was selected and players were notified on Monday evening, with 21 forwards and seventeen backs selected.

Royal Hospital School are the most represented school in the squad with three players selected, Cedric Hoskyns-Abrahall in the pack, and Tobias Allday and Toby Buckland in the backs.

Millfield have two players selected, Ben Mallett and Tom Wood, both in the pack, so too fellow Daily Mail Trophy high-flyers Woodhouse Grove, with two forwards of their own, Louis Fraser and Ben Waddington.

NatWest Cup semi finalists, Felsted, also have two players chosen, again both in the pack, Hugo Brown and Jack Rye. Berkhamsted also have two forwards in the squad, Matt Harris and George Carter. Hymers College’s two representatives are also both forwards, Guy Whittaker and Oscar Hardman.

Pocklington also have two players in the squad, but both of there are in the backline, Jack Garvin and Elliot Adamson. The Perse’s players are also both backs, Louis McManus and Will Tyrell.

Denstone College have one forward, Tommie Collingwood, and one back, Joshua Hart, as do King’s College Taunton, Charlie Agbo and Tom Pittman.

Speaking about the Festival and subsequent National Squad selection, Lambs National Director Alex Laybourne said:

“The standard on Sunday was absolutely fantastic and it has been a real struggle to reduce the squad down to what it is now. The quality of rugby and competition on show is a real testament to the boys, their schools and their regions. I believe we have a very strong squad for this season and look forward to another exciting fixture list and tour.”

The squad’s first game will take place on Sunday 22^nd January when they face Irish Exiles U18. They then play on every weekend in February, facing Crawshay’s Welsh on the 5^th, Yorkshire on the 12^th, and Boys Club of Wales on the 19^th, with Northampton Saints on Tuesday 28^th. It is another academy side next up on Monday 6^th March as they face Saracens.

The Lambs next date after those six fixtures is their annual tour. This year the Lambs will be touring Canada for what promises to be one of their most exciting tours to date.

The tour party departs on Thursday 30^th March, returning on Tuesday 11^th April. They will play four games on tour, starting with Caplilano RFC in Vancouver on the 1^st. It is then a quick trip to the USA to play the Pacific Loggers in Seattle on Monday 3^rd, before a return to Canada to play a British Columbia Select XV in Vancouver on Thursday 6^th. The final game of the tour is set to be one of the Lambs most exciting fixtures ever as they take on Canada U18 in Victoria on Sunday 9^th April.

Following their return the Lambs will play one more fixture, against Worcester Warriors U17 on Saturday 29^th April ahead of their end of season dinner at Loughborough University.

It looks set to be a fantastic season of ‘Fast and Free’ rugby from this latest group of players lucky enough to wear the ISRFC Lambs’ famous pink shirt!

2017 ISRFC Lambs Schedule:

Sunday 22nd January – Irish Exiles

Sunday 5th February – Crawshays Welsh

Sunday 12th February – Yorkshire

Sunday 19th February – Boys Club of Wales

Tuesday 28th February – Northampton Saints

Monday 6th March – Saracens

Thursday 30th March to Tuesday 11th April 2017 – Canada Tour

Saturday 1st April – Match Day 1 v Caplilano RFC, Vancouver

Monday 3rd April – Match Day 2 v Pacific Loggers, Seattle

Thursday 6th April – Match Day 3 v British Columbia Select XV, Vancouver

Sunday 9th April – Match Day 4 v Canada U18, Victoria

Saturday 29th April –Worcester U17, plus dinner. (Loughborough University)