The annual U15 Rugby Festival at Langley School, Norfolk, was another huge success for our boys with a third-place finish.
Winners in 2017, and off the back of some excellent results in block fixtures, the team set off on the last Friday of term in high spirits. After a long journey the boys had some food, settled into their rooms at Langley School and met in the Sports Hall for a light technical training session which set the tone for a brilliant weekend. All 20 boys in the squad worked hard, absorbed information and improved technically game-by-game.
On the first day, Hurst won all three games – beating St Benedicts Ealing 21-0, Dean Close Cheltenham 22-12 and hosts Langley School 34-0 – to top their pool and earn a place in the cup competition the following day. After food and recovery, the whole squad donned their England shirts and settled into a room with projector to watch England defeat Australia in the Rugby World Cup quarter-final.
Confidence was high going into the second day and with all 20 players fit the squad had a real chance to win again. A slow start against local rivals Brighton plus a couple of technical errors with high tackles and late to breakdowns meant Hurst were 15-0 down after five minutes. For the rest of the game the team dominated and in a nail-biting second half narrowly lost out 15-12. After that the boys ran out of steam a little and despite scoring two great tries, lost out to Trinity in the final game of the tournament. A third-place finish in a competition full of top-class rugby schools was an excellent outcome and an indication of the team’s potential if they keep working hard.
“Thanks to Mr Fanthorpe, Josh Petty from Player Welfare, the school drivers and all the parents who made the journey to Norfolk to support. Well done to all the boys for being professional, respectful and great sporting ambassadors for the college. Roll on 2020!”, Simon Lilley, Coach.