This weekend sees Ipswich and Sedbergh meet in a contest that pits two of the very best in the country head to head.
Both have started the season fantastically and meet at Ipswich School in a 1pm kick off that will be LIVE streamed here on NextGenXV. The game will be available on the NextGenXV YouTube Channel and through the embedded video below.
It will be a double-header live stream, with the U16s starting the live action off at 11am, followed by that almighty 1st XV clash.
Already in these opening weeks both sides have made big statements. Sedbergh, since what feels like the dawn of schools rugby, have always been one of schools rugby’s greatest sides and have started the season as such, with a brilliant 47-20 victory at Whitgift followed by 38-12 and 38-21 home victories over Denstone College and Dollar Academy respectively.
It should come as little surprise that they have started so strongly, last season they only saw defeat against Millfield and Denstone College, while their U16s, this year’s L6th, only saw it once in thirteen games, a classic against Wellington College. This is an exceptional group.
So too are Ipswich. The last few years have seen them rise up the schools rugby ranks, to the point where now they are a firmly established top side. Last season saw promising signs, silverware at the Esher President’s Cup and the Merchiston Festival, a strong in season record and a strong U16 season as well, but this year they seem to have gone up another level altogether.
They started with a stunning 52-10 victory over Northampton School for Boys, which was live streamed here on NextGenXV (see below), and they followed it with another brilliant victory last time out, 27-0 over Denstone College. Now, having played both of those at neutral grounds, they head to home turf and will look to take the biggest scalp in the school’s history.
The Denstone College results are interesting, does Ipswich shutting them out suggest a tighter defence, does Sedbergh’s greater points scored suggest a more sharpened attack? The reality, two very different games, but the one lesson is; this is on a knife edge.
At U18 level these sides have met just once, a 33-19 victory for Sedbergh last year, though the season before Ipswich did take on and beat a Sedbergh U17 side and win a close one 22-19.
They also met at U16 level last year, Sedbergh taking that one 36-5, so in terms of memories against one another, maybe Sedbergh will arrive with the more confidence. That being said, they have never travelled to Ipswich before.
Sedbergh’s history probably starts them as favourites, but this game is so tight, so exciting, one of the biggest of the season to date. Should Ipswich win, it would be one of the most significant on the school circuit for years. Even travelling backwards in time you get a sense of how tight it could be, both groups Lower 6th’s as U15s in 2021 were knocked out of the Cup by QEGS Wakefield by the most slender of margins in what were superb overall seasons for both.
The great thing about both of these sides though is that the outcome is a mere moment in time, the joy, quality, and excitement of what they do is what makes them both so compelling to watch. Two sides with exceptional players, hugely exciting talents, and a style that sees those players given license to play wide, play fast, and show off all of that skill. It’s going to be fantastic.
U16s
The U16 game should be a great game too, Ipswich have had a varied start to the year at U16 level, giving Wellington College and Northampton School for Boys good games, and winning their opener in a great fixture against Uppingham 14-12.
Sedbergh have started with a real bang in the U16s, winning three on the trot and in fairly comfortable fashion, this will likely be a step up though, and a taster for them, and indeed their hosts, of what the feel, buzz, and challenges of 1st XV rugby are like as they take to the same field as the 1st XVs and also appear on the live streams for the first time.
Younger age groups sometimes do not get to experience the variety of opposition that the senior sides do, which should add to what is already going to be a very special occasion at Ipswich School.
Neither game is one to miss!
Ipswich v Sedbergh – Live on NextGenXV – Saturday 30th September, 1st XVs 1pm Kick Off, U16s 11am Kick Off
