The School 7s season kicked off in fine style on Sunday at the Seaford College 7s.

The tournament was, in part, live streamed by Cheers Mate Productions, making it more accessible than ever for players and supporters form all around the country, and for those from other schools looking to gain an insight.

The tournament proved to be a huge success, with Bedford taking the Cup home. They beat Haileybury 33-12 in the final, having topped Group 1, which included Hurstpierpoint College, Lord Wandsworth College, and Reading Blue Coat. They then beat Epsom College, the Group 2 winners, 19-12 in the semi finals, with Haileybury, Group 3 winners, having beaten Portsmouth Grammar 31-26 to reach the final.

The set up of the tournament meant that all losing semi finalists then met in a minor final after that. So following their Cup semi finals defeats, Epsom College and Portsmouth Grammar met in the Plate final, with Portsmouth Grammar winning 19-0.

Those finished second in the groups reached the Shield semi finals. St Benedict’s were to lift the shield, they finished second in Group 4 before beating New Hall 21-10 in the semi finals and Seaford College 12-5 in the final.

The Bowl was the target for the Shield semi final losers, Hurstpierpoint College lifted that particular piece of silverware, beating New Hall 22-5.

Third place finishers competed for the Trophy, and it was Dulwich College who were to be the winners in that competition. They beat Lord Wandsworth College 21-10 in the final, following a 30-17 win over Churcher’s College in the semi finals. Churcher’s semi final defeat put them in the 11^th/12^th play off, but they could not secure that place as Emanuel won that game 26-17.

Those finishing in bottom place in their groups competed for the Vase. Reading Blue Coat were the winners of that gong, they beat Ardingly College 12-7 in the final, following a 39-0 win over last minute entrants Bognor RFC in the semi final. The losers competed for 15^th/16^th place, with Merchant Taylors’ securing 15^th with a 28-0 win over Bognor.

All of the credit must go to Bedford and Seaford College though. Seaford for putting on such a fantastic tournament to kick off the school season, and Bedford for performing so brilliantly in this first tournament of the year, and setting themselves up early as a side to keep an eye on through this School 7s season.

Seaford 7s Results:

Cup/Plate

Cup Final

Bedford 33-12 Haileybury

Plate Final

Portsmouth Grammar 19-0 Epsom College

Semi Finals

Bedford 19-12 Epsom College

Haileybury 31-26 Portsmouth Grammar

Shield/Bowl

Shield Final

St Benedict’s 12-5 Seaford College

Bowl Final

Hurstpierpoint College 22-5 New Hall

Semi Finals

New Hall 10-21 St Benedict’s

Hurstpierpoint College 12-22 Seaford College

Trophy

Trophy Final

Dulwich College 21-10 Lord Wandsworth College

11^th/12^th

Emanuel 26-17 Churcher’s College

Semi Finals

Dulwich College 30-17 Churcher’s College

Lord Wandsworth College 33-7 Emanuel

Vase

Vase Final

Reading Blue Coat 12-7 Ardingly College

15^th/16^th

Merchant Taylors’ 28-0 Bognor RFC

Semi Finals

Reading Blue Coat 39-0 Bognor RFC
Ardingly 19-5 Merchant Taylors’