The opening day of the 2025 Merchiston Castle School U18 Rugby Festival saw some thrilling rugby played throughout, sending us into a second day that is sure to be packed with excitement as the silverware looms.
All sixteen sides remain in the hunt for silverware, the top two from each group have progressed to the Trophy Quarter Finals, while the bottom two head to the Bowl Quarter Finals. Winners of those progress to the semi finals of each respective competition, while losers head to the Plate and Bowl Semi Finals. All semi final losing sides will head to a third place play off, which means every side will finish Day 2 with a final placing from 1-16.
Every single game will be available LIVE and On Demand here on NextGenLive, through www.merchistonrugbyfestival.tv and Pitch 1 will also be available through the NextGenLive YouTube Channel and through the embedded video below. All games will be available to subscribers on demand as well, so if you missed any games you can watch again.
Hosts and holders Merchiston Castle made it through to the Trophy once again, playing some magnificent rugby on the opening day. The almost came unstuck again Durham, finishing up in an epic 19-19 draw, but Durham finish off as arguably the most unlucky side of all, pushing the hosts hard but ending up in the Bowl after RGS Newcastle showed incredible resilience to bounce back from a tough start to the season and earn a place in the Trophy quarters after victories over Durham and Sherborne, Sherborne must also count themselves incredibly unlucky. Do not be surprised to see challengers across all of tomorrow’s competitions from this squad.
Over in Pool 2 things were wide open, and early draw between Finborough and Marr College blowing it wide open right from the off. Ampleforth College drew attention with a victory over George Watson’s College, but ultimately Finborough had too much for either and finished top of the log, while strong performances from Marr College saw them join the Suffolk side in the Trophy.
Pool 3 was an epic, and the tightness of the pool was apparent in the early stages of the day when Barnard Castle only just squeaked past Oakham, 3-0. Barney would go on to win all three games, sealing a place in the Trophy quarter finals for the very first time. Oakham would join them after excellent performances against Boroughmuir and Scarborough College, but do not count Boroughmuir or Scarborough out when it comes to tomorrow’s Bowl competition either – both look strong.
Pool 4 saw Strathallan confirmed as one of the fastest sides into the Trophy quarter finals, they didn’t concede a point all day in a hugely impressive display. They are going to be among the favourites on Sunday after that performances – and with huge challenges like the St Joseph’s Festival and NextGen Global Schools Challenge to come, they are laying down a marker. So too Dame Allan’s, who were excellent at times, including a gritty win over St Peter’s York, who will be gutted to have missed the Trophy but will be a major Bowl contender. Dulwich College, meanwhile, had flashes of excellence that if they can piece together they could seriously challenge too.
The action on Sunday begins at 10am, with live coverage from 9.45am, the Bowl Quarter Finals will lead things off before the Trophy Quarter Finals at 10.30. At 11 it’s Bowl and Shield semi finals, ahead of Trophy and Plate semis at 11.30, the from midday onwards it’s placing games – with the Bowl Final at 12pm on Pitch 4, the Shield at 12pm on Pitch 2, followed on the same pitch by the Plate final at 12.30pm, while the Trophy final will stand alone at 1pm on Pitch 1.
A huge day awaits, and you can catch it all LIVE and On Demand on www.merchistonrugbyfestival.tv
Day 2 Fixtures
| Time | Pitch 1 (Live, Free to Air) | Pitch 2 (Live, Subscription) | Pitch 3 (Live, Subscription) | Pitch 4 (Live, Subscription) |
| 10.00 | Bowl QF1 Durham v George Watson’s | Bowl QF2 Ampleforth v Sherborne | Bowl QF3 Boroughmuir v Dulwich College | Bowl QF4 St Peter’s, York v Scarborough |
| 10.30 | Trophy QF1 Merchiston Castle v Marr College | Trophy QF2 Finborough v RGS Newcastle | Trophy QF3 Barnard Castle v Dame Allan’s | Trophy QF4 Strathallan v Oakham |
| 11.00 | Bowl SF1 W BQF1 v W BQF3 | Shield SF1 L BQF1 v L BQF3 | Shield SF2 L BQF2 v L BQF4 | Bowl SF2 W BQF2 v W BQF4 |
| 11.30 | Trophy SF1 W TQF1 v W TQF3 | Plate SF1 L TQF1 v L TQF3 | Plate SF2 L TQF2 v L TQF4 | Trophy SF2 W TQF2 v W TQF4 |
| 12.00 | 15th Place Play Off | Shield Final | 11th Place Play Off | Bowl Final |
| 12.30 | 3rd Place Play Off | Plate Final | 7th Place Play Off | |
| 13.00 | Trophy Final |
Day 1 Final Standings
| Pos | Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | Group 4 |
| 1 | Merchiston Castle | Finborough | Barnard Castle | Strathallan |
| 2 | RGS Newcastle | Marr College | Oakham | Dame Allan’s |
| 3 | Durham | Ampleforth College | Boroughmuir | St Peter’s York |
| 4 | Sherborne | George Watson’s | Scarborough | Dulwich College |
