This week we have been treated to some absolutely spectacular rugby as the school season inches towards the end, with the Daily Mail Trophy coming towards a dramatic conclusion, the Schools Cup quarter finals taking place, and so many sides playing in huge final games of the year.
For so many this week represented a final chance to wear their famous school shirt in anger, and the rugby reflected that, with pride and determination the defining factor for so many.
It bodes well for the weekend too, which sees just about every school wrap up their season. It’s sure to be an emotional weekend, and one with so much at stake for so many, you can check out our preview here: Schools Rugby Weekend Preview – The Season Finale.
Tuesday
The midweek action began on Tuesday, and there was Schools Bowl action as West Buckland and Wycliffe College went head to head in a catch up fixture, playing out the South West B Regional Final. West Buckland took the spoils and will now head to the national Quarter Finals, where they will be hosting Eastbourne College, that fixture takes place on Wednesday.
Meanwhile in Bury St Edmund’s Culford finished their season off in superb fashion with a 24-12 defeat of King’s Ely. Over in Leicestershire it was Stamford celebrating, bouncing back for a tough couple of weeks to finish off their season on a real high with a 17-8 victory at Leicester Grammar School.
Eton College meanwhile showed a glimpse of what might be to come next season, their U17s were hosting Windsor Boys’ and they performed superbly for a 38-5 victory.
Wednesday
The talk of school rugby for the last week had all been about the massive head to head at Sedbergh on Wednesday, where they hosted Millfield. A win for Sedbergh would seal the Daily Mail Trophy, while a big win for Millfield would keep them in the hunt, and a win of any sort would ensure an incredible unbeaten season to go along with the St Joseph’s Festival title. In effect, the winner would, in the eyes of most observers, be seen as the very best schools rugby side in the country.
It was a tough ask for Millfield, for as long as Head Coach John Mallett could remember they had not won at Sedbergh – and he had been a pupil at Millfield too. However his charges did him proud, with tries from Archie McKibbin, George Timmins, and Aaron Molnar taking Millfield to a 20-14 victory, an achievement that even those great teams of the mid part of the last decade and the late part of the 2000s had not managed. It give Millfield an incredible unbeaten season a stunning achievement, especially given their circuit.
Sedbergh remain in the hunt for the Daily Mail Trophy though, but it is all going to come down to Berkhamsted’s game against Dulwich College on Saturday. Berkhamsted are in the driving seat, a win for them will seal the title – and an unbeaten season – but any slip up and Sedbergh will take the crown.
Elsewhere our live cameras were at the U18 Schools Vase Quarter Final between Reading Blue Coat and Wallington County Grammar, which you can watch below, and what a stunning game it was. Blue Coat led 17-0 but Wallington came roaring back to take the lead, only for a late Joe Smart try to seal the victory for Reading Blue Coat, who now head to the semi finals.
Also through in the Vase were Sutton Valence, who once again showed their star quality in this competition as they beat Bristol Grammar School 24-10 to seal their place in the semi finals, while Mount St Mary’s College will also be joining Sutton Valence and Reading Blue Coat after they enjoyed a brilliant 36-10 victory over St Anselm’s College. Those three will be joined by either Coventry College or Ipswich, who meet on Wednesday.
Over in the Schools Plate KCS Wimbledon showed their credentials with an impressive away win at Marlborough College, right from the moment they moved into the Plate KCS were seen as having a good chance, but a trip to Marlborough was always going to be tough. So it proved, but it was to be heartbreak for the hosts and joy for KCS as they won a close one 17-12.
Our live cameras were at Henley College v Caterham, which you can watch below, and Henley College were on fire the whole way through. They have been impressive all year but really put their qualities on show on Wednesday night as they sealed a 31-16 victory to join KCS in the semi finals of the Schools Plate. Stockport Grammar and Norwich’s game was sadly postponed, while Grammar School at Leeds and Stowe would meet on Thursday.
The Schools Bowl Quarter Finals saw some great action this week too, Glyn won a thriller at Lord Wandsworth college 34-23, while Hill Road continue to perform exceptionally well and sealed a 21-15 victory against Nottingham High School to reach the quarters. Glyn and Hills Road now await next week when they will find out the other Semi Finalists as RGS Colchester v Prince Henry’s Grammar and West Bucklands v Eastbourne College both take place.
Of course though, the national schools knockout tournament is the U18 Schools Cup and the quarter finals of that competition began on Wednesday too as former champions Oakham travelled up to Cup legends Barnard Castle. Everything about this said blockbuster, from their tournament history to the excellence of both side’s performances this year, and in the context of just how outstanding Oakham have been this year, Barnard Castle’s 28-5 victory looks utterly outstanding. Sending them through to the semi finals and putting them in with a huge chance of a first every Schools Cup title after so many near misses over the years.
They have some waiting to do to find out who is joining them though, Sherborne and Harrow met on our live stream on Thursday, while Kirkham Grammar and Bedford meet on Friday night, before out live cameras head to Trinity on Tuesday for the last of the quarter finals, they take on Berkhamsted, who by then might well have the Daily Mail Trophy wrapped up too.
Elsewhere the massive fixtures kept on coming, Whitgift welcomed the rapidly rising Ipswich but gave an impressive show of strength for a 31-14 victory over Ipswich, who are really challenging themselves at the moment – they take on Wellington College on Saturday.
Elsewhere in and around London, Hayes put in a strong shift to defeat Eltham College 19-12, meanwhile Tiffin were on form, a 36-5 victory over Saint Cecilia’s, Haberdashers’ were at QES Barnet and secured a 15-10 victory, while Claire’s Court put in a stormer, beating Furze Platt 57-7.
The South West and Wales had some epic action, at the Cardiff Arms Park Christ College and The Oratory went head to head in the most brilliant of evening’s of schoolboy rugby. Christ College won 22-0, but it was an incredible experience for all involved. Meanwhile it was Cathedral School Llandaff that won the battle of the Cathedral Schools, beating Hereford Cathedral School 12-10, while in a great contest Monmouth just held off Crawshays Welsh XV, 15-14.
Mount Kelly were in stunning form for a 44-0 victory over Devonport High, while Balcarras beat St Edward’s Cheltenham 36-17 and Piggott won 29-7 at Sir William Borlase’s. The Crypt were, as they have been often this season, utterly sensational at Cokethorpe, storming to a stunning 72-5 victory.
In the Midlands KES Lichfield had a good 27-5 victory over Newcastle-Under-Lyme, while Queen Mary’s Grammar sealed a 24-12 victory over KES Camp Hill’s 2nd XV.
Woodhouse Grove have proved themselves to be among the best around this season and they did so again against Ripon Grammar, performing brilliantly for a 52-0 victory. Meanwhile Durham were on form too, 24-10 at home to Dame Allan’s, and Manchester Grammar enjoyed a strong 17-0 victory at AKS Lytham.
Thursday
Thursday saw some seriously top end contests, and chief among them was the U18 Schools Cup quarter final between Sherborne and Harrow, which our live cameras were at and you can watch below. In horrible conditions the game became a real battle of wills, and in front of a loud and ever growing home crowd, Sherborne were utterly inspired.
At 0-0 after 34 minutes, the sublime Will Parry broke the deadlock for the hosts and with the conditions and the nature of the game, that try, converted by Oli Carr-Smith, was to prove vital as Sherborne won 7-3 to return to the semi finals. They reached them back in 2020, the last time this competition was held, and will be desperate to go one further this time. It was a tough one for Harrow, who were short of some top players, but they have had a magnificent year. For Sherborne the year continues, they join Barnard Castle in the semi finals and now sit patiently to learn the outcome of Kirkham Grammar School v Bedford on Friday night, and Trinity v Berkhamsted in front of our live cameras on Tuesday.
Over in the Schools Plate there was an epic quarter final as Stowe travelled up to Grammar School at Leeds. Stowe have been utterly brilliant this year, but GSAL is one of the toughest places to go and so it proved as both sides went at it in a compelling game of rugby. GSAL gave it absolutely everything, but this superb Stowe side held firm for a 20-15 victory. It sends them into the semi finals, where they join KCS Wimbledon and Henley College, all they have to do now is await the outcome of the postponed Stockport Grammar v Norwich game.
Elsewhere on Thursday there were some epic standalone games, including a really special occasion at Rugby School as one of Scotland’s oldest schools, Fettes College came down for a real celebration of the game. Both sides mixed their sides up a bit to prioritise giving U6th players a run out for the last time, but this brilliant Rugby School side marched on as they have throughout an outstanding season, striding out to an impressive 40-5 victory.
Things were much closer over in Oxford, where Teddies and Cheltenham College met for a blockbuster end of season finale. It could scarcely have gone better, a cracking game, and even contest that could have gone either way. It was Cheltenham that ended the year celebrating though, as they claimed a 25-22 victory, a spectacular end to the season.
If you have any photos, video, reports, or any other content from the week’s school rugby then please do send it in via our social media channels or admin@nextgenxv.com and if you are interested in us live streaming one of your games or an event then please do get in touch!
Don’t forget our Talent Hub is now live! Whether you are looking for talent or are a talent looking to be noticed sign up by clicking here.
Tuesday 7th December
Culford 24-12 King’s Ely
Eton College U17 38-5 Windsor Boys’
Leicester Grammar 8-17 Stamford
West Buckland 20-7 Wycliffe College (Schools Bowl) – South West B Regional Final
Wednesday 8th December
AKS Lytham 0-17 Manchester Grammar
Barnard Castle 28-5 Oakham (Schools Cup QF)
Cathedral School, Llandaff 12-10 Hereford Cathedral School
Christ College 22-0 The Oratory
Claires Court 57-7 Furze Platt
Cokethorpe 5-72 The Crypt
Crawshay’s Welsh 14-15 Monmouth
Durham 24-10 Dame Allan’s
Eltham College 12-19 Hayes
Henley College 31-6 Caterham (Schools Plate QF)
Hills Road 21-15 Nottingham High (Schools Bowl QF)
KES Camp Hill 2nd XV 12-24 Queen Mary’s Grammar
KES Lichfield 27-5 Newcastle-Under-Lyme
Lord Wandsworth College 24-34 Glyn (Schools Bowl QF)
Marlborough College 12-17 KCS Wimbledon (Schools Plate QF)
Mount Kelly 44-0 Devonport High
Mount St Mary’s College 36-10 St Anselm’s College (Schools Vase QF)
QES Barnet 10-15 Haberdashers’
Reading Blue Coat 32-24 Wallington County Grammar (Schools Vase QF)
Sedbergh 14-20 Millfield
Sir William Borlase’s Grammar 7-29 Piggott
St Edward’s, Cheltenham 17-36 Balcarras
Sutton Valence 24-10 Bristol Grammar (Schools Vase QF)
Tiffin 36-5 Saint Cecilia’s
Whitgift 31-14 Ipswich
Woodhouse Grove 52-0 Ripon Grammar
Thursday 9th December
Grammar School at Leeds 15-20 Stowe (Schools Plate QF)
Rugby 40-5 Fettes College
Sherborne 7-3 Harrow (Schools Cup QF)
St Edward’s, Oxford 22-25 Cheltenham College
Still to Come:
Adams Grammar v Old Swinford Hospital
Framlingham College v Gresham’s
Langley v Wymondham College
St Albans v Watford Grammar