Abingdonian 2018

13 www.abingdon.org.uk Michaelmas Term Eton and Radley, both matches were terrific games and big performances. At half term the U14s went on tour to the South West to play King’s Taunton and Blundell’s School. There was success on the pitch, with massive team bonding off it when boys took part in outdoor adventure activities. Our U15 age group had a big season with many boys playing the game. Our B, C & D XVs were extremely strong, winning all their matches and beating many of our opposition schools convincingly. Big wins against the likes of Eton, Radley, Marlborough, and Cheltenham were real highlights of the season. The A XV had wins against Cokethorpe, Cheltenham and Berkhamsted and close matches against Sherborne, St Edward’s, and Rugby. Wonderful wins over Marlborough, RGS Guildford, and Radley meant the season finished strongly for them. Our U16s age group made huge progress over the season. The B & C XVs may well have initially found the step up challenging, however their endeavour and approach to matches were superb. Wins over Cheltenham and St Edward’s were testiment to the effort and close matches against the likes of Radley, Marlborough and RGS Guildford showed where the teams had progressed to. The A team had a wonderful year. They were undefeated and from a performance perspective played some attractive rugby that was built on hard work with magic moments in matches like Cheltenham away and Sherborne at home. We look forward to seeing their progress in the sixth form over the next couple of seasons. Our Senior XVs had a solid year with over 80 boys choosing to represent their school at rugby. There were strong wins in many matches for the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th XV sides against the likes of Radley, RGS Guildford, Marlborough and Cheltenham. Our 1st XV started the season really well off the back of a summer tour to Japan and won away against a strong Berkhamsted side. The season was challenging with many matches close and a fixture list that included strong St Edward’s, Sherborne and Radley sides. There was a terrific away win over RGS Guildford which was built on a lot of hard work by the boys on the training field. Our Touchliners group as ever supports the boys both on and off the field, providing financial help for new training equipment and also starting a new club trip to the London leg of the World Rugby Sevens in the Summer Term. The Club is in an exciting place and we look forward to the 2018 season. Matthew Gold