Chronicle Summer 2024

52 ST EDWARD’S CHRONICLE

Rugby Sevens

Senior Sevens The 1st VII had a wonderful season, having kept up the momentum following the 15-a-side season in the autumn. As in previous seasons Rob Cottrell led the coaching team and was assisted by Sports Graduate Finn Pietersen. They steered the ship magnificently and ensured that the squad improved throughout the season in the lead up to Rosslyn Park. The squad was led by Matt Sell, who was back to full fitness after a leg injury in the XV season, and Charlie Mason who had led the 1st XV admirably in the Autumn Term. The season kicked off at the Pangbourne Festival and whilst we weren’t in a position to field our strongest squad due to Academy fixtures and other sporting commitments, the boys still put in a solid performance, chalking up wins against MCS (15-5) and Pangbourne (35-5), a draw against Gordon’s (10-10) and losing to Stowe (25-5). With a month between Pangbourne and our next tournament at Oakham it gave the squad an opportunity for meaningful practice and to develop some confidence. Oakham is now one of the Premier tournaments of the season and Teddies were drawn into a tough group consisting of Brentwood, Denstone, St Joseph’s and Stamford. The boys performed admirably to finish second in their group, beating Brentwood (36-14) and St Joseph’s (24-12), drawing with Denstone (24-24) and losing to Stamford (28-17). This meant that the boys had qualified for a Plate Semi-Final and set up a match against old foes Stowe. The boys went into the match with huge confidence built from their performances in the group stages and came out of the traps at breakneck speed. They put in a Sevens masterclass, keeping the ball for sustained periods of time and limiting Stowe to one real attack - the game ended with a 33-7 win. Tries were scored by Charlie Ferrett, Matt Sell, Charlie Mason, Will Mowat and Toby Bird with Charlie Mason adding three conversions and Matt Sell adding another. Teddies faced their hosts Oakham in the Plate Final. Oakham were in blistering form and managed to see off the Teddies challenge to come out 28-7 winners. Other than Rosslyn Park, the Surrey Sevens is arguably the most challenging tournament of the season and sees the crème de la crème of school rugby teams descend

Kit Holland and Michael Hirst

coaches were proud of their achievements, not just in the Rosslyn Park tournament but throughout the season. U16 Sevens The U16s kicked off their 7-a-side season at Pangbourne. Whilst Teddies were on the wrong side of the results this provided a useful first hit out for the boys and let them see the areas where they needed to develop in the lead up to Oakham and Rosslyn Park. The Oakham tournament saw Teddies put in hugely improved performances en route to the Shield Final. In a tough group they chalked up a win against Haberdashers’ Abraham Darby and were defeated by Stowe, Oundle and eventual tournament-winners Oakham. This set up a shield semi-final match against Uppingham who had beaten the U16s 66-7 in the XV’s season. It was in this game that Teddies put in their best performance of the season to win 20-10 and set up a Shield Final against Campion School. In a very tight game that could have easily gone either way, it was Campion that came out on top winning 29-19. The results at Oakham provided confidence which our team took into their training sessions in the lead up to Rosslyn Park. When the groups for Rosslyn Park were drawn the U16s were unlucky to have been selected for the toughest group of the competition. They went down to St Peter’s RC High School (43-7), Wellington College (36-5) and The Windsor Boys’ School (47-10). This put an end to their sevens season however it was pleasing to see a number of boys show commitment and determination which will stand them in good stead come next year when they transition into the senior squads.

on Richmond FC to battle it out. Teddies finished top of their group, dispatching Wimbledon College (47-12), Bishop Wordsworth (26-7) and Epsom College (33-14) on their way to the last 16. This set up a game against Eton. Sadly, Eton’s pace and power on the wings proved too much for Teddies and they took the game 45-17. The matches at Pangbourne, Oakham and Surrey had proved a very useful testing ground for the squad to develop their style of play ahead of the big one at Rosslyn Park. Teddies travelled to London full of confidence and they started the first day off with a bang, seeing off Stephen Perse Foundation School (50-0) in their opening game. This fine form continued throughout the day seeing Teddies victorious against King’s School, Bruton (42 14) and Warminster School (35-7). Teddies progressed to the elimination match, the result of which would determine whether or not the team progressed to day two of the tournament. Their opponents were Worth School and Teddies came through the match unscathed, winning 51-7. Day two started with a match against a tough opponent, Christ College Brecon. Christ College had beaten Teddies 1st XV 32-19 in the 2022/23 season however Teddies won this match 40-5. The following matches against Bishop Wordsworth and New Hall saw Teddies play some near-perfect sevens rugby, winning the matches 50-0 and 40-14 respectively and topping their day two group. This set them up for a huge quarter-final match against St Paul’s on the main show pitch. Unfortunately, a 19-12 loss saw Teddies’ dream of national glory come to an end. Whilst there were tears at the final whistle the players and