The 2026 edition of the Seaford Southern Tens takes place this Sunday, the 25th of January, and represents the first major schools rugby event of the 7s and 10s season. After last season’s tournament was cancelled due to wet weather, the excitement for this year’s edition of the Seaford 10s has reached fever-pitch
The Seaford Southern Tens has become one of the most important dates in the school’s rugby calendar – the starting gun in many ways for this term of rugby, and that is reflected in the quality of teams in the draw. Ipswich School and Trinity School have won the last three between them, and in each year they were regarded as among the very best in the country. The line-up this season includes Daily Mail Trophy high-flyers Clifton College and Continental Tyres Schools Cup semi-finalists Epsom College, as well as the hosts themselves, who have had a strong season.
As has been the case in recent years, NextGenLive will be streaming two pitches, Oval 1 and Oval 2, which will host group games through the morning and both the Cup and Plate semi-finals and finals in the afternoon. You can take in all the action LIVE from 9.45 am on both pitches via the NextGenLive Youtube Channel and through www.seaford10s.tv
Live Stream:
Pitch 1
Pitch 2
Seaford Southern 10s Groups
| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | Group 4 |
| Seaford College | St Josephs College | Felsted | Abingdon |
| Henley College | Solihull | Gordon’s | Epsom College |
| RGS High Wycombe | Marlborough College | Hurstpierpoint | Canford |
| Dulwich College | Clifton College | Ipswich | Trinity |
Group 1
Let’s take this tournament group by group and try to predict the runners and riders. Group 1 has ended up being a group that Seaford should fancy themselves as favourites in, although this would not be the case traditionally. Dulwich are having a rare season of poor form, while RGS High Wycombe are finally starting to slow down after a few golden campaigns. Henley are a good side, with a close connection to Gloucester Rugby and will be a serious challenger, but Seaford will be expected to top this one. High Wycombe might not be the force they were a year or two ago, but they are still packed with quality. They have racked up 9 wins across their 16 games this season, although they were beaten comfortably by Seaford in XV’s a few months ago
NextGenLive’s Pick of the Group
- Seaford
- RGS High Wycombe
- Henley College
- Dulwich College
Group 2
Clifton College are the headline here, and the newcomers will be confident of running deep at their first Seaford 10s. Clifton have been awesome on the circuit this campaign, losing just 4 games, and these came at the hands of Blackrock College, Harrow, Sedbergh and Millfield, so…fair enough. They have beaten the hosts, Seaford, this season and will be the heavy favourites in this group. St Joseph’s College may well be the second best side in the group, with their exciting but youthful back-line lighting up their home festival this season, on the way to a semi-final – the school’s highest finish in years. Malborough College have won just twice this year, including a heavy defeat to group-mates and tournament debutants St Joseph’s, although they are the defending plate champions. Solihull, meanwhile, are a slight unknown in comparison. Their fixture list is a mix of national powerhouses and Midlands rivals, and they sit just above the average in that category, going 10-7 this season.
NextGenLive’s Pick of the Group
- Clifton College
- St Josephs College
- Solihull
- Marlborough College
Group 3
Perhaps the most competitive group, as there is a lot of quality on show. Defending champions Ipswich cannot be ignored, although that title came in 2024, and they are a different side. Back then, they came into the competition as hot favourites; now they are one of the few front-runners, even if they remain undefeated since November. Gordon’s finished the ACE season strongly, ending in 3rd place overall after a tough start to the season, and they backed up their league performance with a win over Wellington College at the Cage a few weeks ago. They will be desperate to take another few independent school scalps on Sunday. Hurstpierpoint are a great side on their day, although results have not been as strong as expected this season, and Essex side Felstead have already been beaten by county compatriots Ipswich and St Joe’s this season. Hitting top spot in this pool will be no cake-walk for whoever heads into the semi-finals.
NextGenLive’s Pick of the Group
- Ipswich
- Gordon’s
- Hurstpierpoint
- Felstead
Group 4
Another tough group to call, but let’s give it a crack anyway. Abingdon had an historic year in 2025, finishing the 25/26 XV’s season undefeated at home, with some really impressive results on the way to one of their best campaigns in recent years. They have already drawn with Seaford and beaten tournament competitors Marlborough and Solihull. But then there is Epsom, who have had a fine season themselves. A ridiculously impressive record of 13-2, they need as much running in the legs as possible ahead of their National Cup semi-final against Whitgift in March. They have seen off the hosts this season, which groupmates Abingdon were unable to do, and are a top side. Trinity were champions at Seaford, not long ago, but their best players reside in the pack, and they have been drawn in a difficult group. Canford love the 10s, and picked up a famous win against Sherborne before Christmas, but have not had a lot of competitive rugby since then.
NextGenLive’s Pick of the Group
- Epsom
- Abingdon
- Trinity
- Canford
Now these are just predictions, and with short 9-minute halves, 5-man scrums and 7-style drop kicks, each game is likely to be tight, so points difference, and then head-to-head, will all play a factor. After the group stages, the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th placed sides in each pool will all head into semi-finals, in the Cup, Plate, Vase and Bowl respectively.
With the predictions we have attempted to make, that would leave two cup semi-finals between Clifton, Ipswich, Epsom and the hosts Seaford – what an afternoon of rugby that would be! Much like the groups, tight knockout games would be no surprise either. If things are level at the final whistle, it goes to 12 minutes of extra time, with golden point in effect!
It should be a fantastic day of 10s – and all live from 9.45 am!
Keep up to date with the games on the competition micro-site – and be sure to watch every second of the action on NextGenLive!
Seaford Southern 10s Schedule:
Oval 1 (Live)
10.00 Seaford College v Henley College
10.25 Ipswich v Felsted
10.50 Seaford College v RGS High Wycombe
11.15 Epsom College v Trinity
11.40 Seaford College v Dulwich College
12.05 Ipswich v Gordon’s
13.10 Plate Semi Final 1
13.40 Cup Semi Final 1
14.40 Cup Final
Oval 2 (Live)
10.00 Marlborough College v Clifton College
10.25 Trinity v Abingdon
10.50 St Joseph’s College v Marlborough College
11.15 Canford v Abingdon
11.40 St Joseph’s College v Clifton College
12.05 Felsted v Hurstpierpoint College
13.10 Plate Semi Final 2
13.40 Cup Semi Final 2
14.10 Plate Final
Slopes 1
10.00 RGS High Wycombe v Dulwich College
10.25 Epsom College v Trinity
10.50 Henley College v Dulwich College
11.15 Ipswich v Hurstpierpoint College
11.40 Solihull v Marlborough college
12.05 Epsom College v Abingdon
13.10 Vase Semi Final 1
13.40 Bowl Semi Final 1
14.10 Vase Final
Slopes 2
10.00 St Joseph’s College v Solihull
10.25 Hurstpierpoint College v Gordon’s
10.50 Solihull v Clifton College
11.15 Felsted v Gordon’s
11.40 Henley College v RGS High Wycombe
12.05 Canford v Trinity
13.10 Vase Semi Final 2
13.40 Bowl Semi Final 2
14.10 Bowl Final
