Bromsgrove continued their formidable 7s form on Wednesday as they claimed the Solihull 7s title.
Just a week on from claiming the Shakespeare 7s title at KES Stratford, they bounced back from a difficult start to the day at this wonderful tournament at Solihull School to eventually claim the title.
The day began slowly for Bromsgrove, losing 17-10 to RGS Worcester in the very first game of the day, a result that would mean they would finish in second in Group A after victories against St Peter’s Gloucester and the hosts, Solihull, behind RGS Worcester, who won all three group games to top Group A.
There were four groups in total, but the tournament format meant the top two from each would go through to the Cup knockouts, starting with the quarter finals, with the bottom two heading to the Plate.
That meant Bromsgrove were into the Cup, where they would meet the hosts of last week’s tournament, KES Stratford, who had topped Group B ahead of Trent College, whom RGS Worcester would meet, Loughborough Grammar, and KES Birmingham.
Over in Group C Monmouth started the day with a bang, beating Warwick 40-12 to set the tone towards them topping the group, Warwick would still qualify though, ahead of King’s Macclesfield and Stourport High School.
Warwick would face Denstone College in the quarter finals, they had topped Group D in style after reaching the final of Sunday’s North of England 7s tournament (though they were without three England U17 stars). Behind them Old Swinford Hospital, Coleg Llandrillo, and Bishop Vesey’s all finished level, but it was Old Swinford Hospital that progressed to the Cup quarters against Monmouth thanks to a superior points difference.
The quarter finals though saw Warwick put in an excellent display against Denstone College, beating them 15-7 and setting up a semi finals against their group stage rivals, Monmouth, who had been on fire in a 38-0 victory over Old Swinford Hospital.
The same was to happen on the other side of the draw with Bromsgrove and RGS Worcester pitted together again after Bromsgrove had beaten KES Stratford by a hugely impressive 43-7 margin and RGS Worcester won a thriller with Trent College 33-26.
It was in that semi final that Bromsgrove made a huge step, having gone down to RGS Worcester in the group, they turned that game around entirely for an utterly dominant 31-0 victory, it was the tale of the knockouts for Bromsgrove in truth, who had kicked into top gear. Monmouth had too though, in a repeat from their performance in their opening game against Warwick, they saw the same opponents and this tie won 41-5 to seal their place in the final.
It pitted two top sides in the final, Bromsgrove and Monmouth, a game that had all the makings of a classic. However such was the dominance and confidence that Bromsgrove were playing with, they were simply irresistible as they stormed away to an incredible 41-12 victory and the Solihull 7s title.
Over in the Plate Stourport High claimed the title. They saw off Coleg Llandrillo and King’s Macclesfield in the quarter and semi finals respectively, before facing the hosts, Solihull, in the final. Solihull impressed through the day, including a strong 42-17 semi final win over St Peter’s in the Plate semi final, however in the final they just missed out as a close game went the way of Stourport High.
It was another glorious day of 7s at Solihull, capped by the brilliance of Bromsgrove who must now be looking ahead to the Rosslyn Park HSBC National School 7s with a real sense of anticipation, although they have entered themselves into the lower tier Vase, missing out on the opportunity to compete with the best.
Solihull 7s Champions – Bromsgrove
Final: Bromsgrove 41-12 Monmouth
Semi Finals: Bromsgrove 31-0 RGS Worcester, Monmouth 41-5 Warwick
Quarter Finals: RGS Worcester 33-26 Trent College, Bromsgrove 43-7 KES Stratford, Monmouth 38-0 Old Swinford Hospital, Warwick 15-7 Denstone College
Plate Winners – Stourport High
Final: Stourport High 26-19 Solihull
Semi Finals: Solihull 42-17 St Peter’s Gloucester, Stourport 17-5 King’s Macclesfield
Quarter Finals: Solihull 21-12 KES Birmingham, St Peter’s 33-24 Loughborough GS, King’s Macclesfield 38-5 Bishop Vesey’s, Stourport 33-25 Coleg Llandrillo
Solihull 7s – Final Group Standings:
| Pos | Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D |
| 1 | RGS Worcester | KES Stratford | Monmouth | Denstone College |
| 2 | Bromsgrove | Trent College | Warwick | Old Swinford Hospital |
| 3 | Solihull | Loughborough Grammar | King’s Macclesfield | Coleg Llandrillo |
| 4 | St Peter’s, Gloucester | KES Birmingham | Stourport High | Bishop Vesey’s Grammar |
Images by NickB Images
