The Abingdonian 2019

24 The Abingdonian Rugby Two captains, one at the beginning and one at the end of their Abingdon rugby careers, reflect: I knew when I came to Abingdon that rugby was a sport that the school excelled at and when I started my first training session, I wasn’t in any doubt. We had around two weeks to get to know all the boys in our squad and then we would play our first match against Cokethorpe. With two or three training sessions each week led by awesome staff, we were ready and raring to go against Cokethorpe. It was a tight game with few scoring opportunities but after 40 minutes we came out 15-10 winners. It was a great result for our first game for the school and it propelled us onto wins against Caldicott and Bedford Modern. Next, on Open Day and on centre stage on Waste Court, we faced the Prep School. This would be a reality check and a learning curve for us all. However, we picked ourselves up and trained harder. I had never been in such a determined team. Into October we first had Oratory Prep School away in horrible conditions. It was a close game for much of the contest but the odd error here and there is what arguably lost us the game. It was a quick turnaround and we then played Lord Wlliam’s four days later. This was the game where we rediscovered the confidence and belief we had at the start of the season. Everything was working and tries were frequently being scored. We were back to our best. Then it was half term and a rest, but after the break, we were back at it again with training for a week to get our skills back into the groove. A tough match against the Dragon was next, and we arrived with the sun shining, but two minutes before the match the conditions drastically changed and rain poured down on us. The match got started and we went down early with missed tackles being a big part of that. However, we fought back and got ourselves back into the game and we were hungry for more. Sadly, we couldn’t quite find the line and lost 25-10. Moving on we then had a rematch against the Prep School and we were hungry for revenge. We got an early lead but failed to capitalise and it stayed two tries apiece for a long time. However, a sudden line burst from the Prep meant that they would win 15-10. Although disappointed with the result, we bounced back in the next match against Royal Latin School. Tries flowed freely again as they struggled to get through our strong defensive line. It was a solid win to pick ourselves up from the disappointment of the Prep School game. A loss at the hands of RGS Guildford halted our progress but on 1 December we played our best match yet. A total of eight tries were scored and only three conceded. It was a match with fast flowing passing moves and crunching tackles and a great win in the penultimate match of the season. With confidence at a new high, we travelled to Moulsford for the last match of the season. We came up against a well drilled side but some great passages of play kept us in the game. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be as we were defeated 25- 10 on the day. On the whole, there were lots of positives to take from a great first season at the school and the team will be properly ready to face many more challenges in the coming years. Jack Veal, 1PCWM Rugby has played a central role in my time at Abingdon. It has led to lots of great friendships (importantly not just within but across year groups), strengthened characters and created sentimental bonds that will stay with me