March 28, 2008
Most rugby players never make it to Twickenham. The ones who are gifted enough to grace the most famous turf in the Rugby world can invariably point to countless hours spent on the training pitch and in matches developing and honing their skills.
Matthew Hanson, however, has avoided all that tiresome preparation. When he runs out at Twickenham on Wednesday (April 2) for Calday Grange School from the Wirral against Langley Park School for Boys in the final of the Daily Mail Schools Under 15 Vase competition he will be starting only the tenth game of rugby he has ever played.
The novice tight-head prop has played American football at Middle School in the USA, where his father was stationed, and has also played soccer at Calday Grange.
But until Paul Miller, the coach to the Calday Grange Under15s, suggested earlier this season that he might have the build to do well at rugby, he has never put a toe in the water. Now he is living the dream of countless thousands of players of all ages.
He will probably have benefited more than anyone from being part of a team that will have been as fully prepared any for their day in the spotlight. They were scheduled to go on a three-match tour to Venice the day after their 19-12 semi-final victory over King’s College, Wimbledon, but once they had claimed their place in the final, the match element of the trip was dropped and the excursion turned into a seven-day training camp.
"Being on the beach at Sottomarina training at 7.30am on the first morning was a shock to the system, but they grew to enjoy it and in the end were asking for more. They really worked hard throughout the stay, but also got plenty of rest. We trained at Petrarca Rugby Club four times and also watched them going through a faultless pre-match run. That was a real eye-opener for them. They really enjoyed that.
"I thought they were a pretty tight group before we went, but living and training and eating together has really bonded them even more. We’ll need that because we see ourselves as underdogs against a school that has been through the experience three times and won the competition two seasons ago.
"This is a whole new experience for us, but we’re a good team, so let’s see what happens on the day."
Their opponents from Beckenham in Kent made it through to their second final in three years in the most dramatic fashion when they won a sudden death place kicking competition in the semi-final against Woodlands School, but there will be no repeat on Wednesday. The trophy will be shared if any of the four finals finishes level on tries and goals from tries.
QEGS Penrith aim to maintain Northern dominance
Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School, Penrith are seeking to maintain a proud Northern tradition when they face Sussex Downs College in the final of the Daily Mail Schools RU Under 18 Vase final at Twickenham on Wednesday (April 2, 2008).
The Under 18 Vase has been won by a Northern school for the last five years, with Ermysted’s Grammar School from Skipton winning an all-North final last season by beating Wilmslow High School 3-0.
But the Penrith boys may need to call on all their Cumbrian wrestling skills to get the better of a well-organised Sussex team that applied its very considerable collective physique very effectively.
Both semi-finals at Broadstreet were very physical affairs with fluent, open rugby only provided in glimpses, QEGS qualifying for a dream outing at Twickenham thanks to the only score of the game, a James Ellar penalty, against Reigate Grammar.
Sussex Downs, from Lewes, eventually managed three tries against Marling School from Stroud, but it was their sheer bulk up front that provided the key to success. They had far too much timber for Marling in both attack and defence and it was their ability to apply that physicality so effectively when they were on the back foot that carried them through.
While it was never pretty, the Sussex game plan was effective, measured and disciplined and if they are to return to Cumbria with the prize, QEGS will need to outmanoeuvre their heavyweight opponents. They may need to become involved in a wrestling match, but pace and finesse seems to be their best route to success.
The rugby programme at Sussex Downs has grown from an initial 11 students to the current figure of 45 who study three or four A level subjects and receive six hours rugby coaching and playing a week, funded out of the school’s ordinary curriculum budget.
The school has sent two props on to Premiership club Harlequins – Alex Rogers and current England Under 18 squad member Joe Marler – and are hopeful of many more top players to follow, in addition to all those playing for their local clubs.
Fly half Charlie Terry scored two tries in win over Marling, but No 8 James Streeter was the lynchpin of the team and the sturdy front-row of captain Henry Sandys, hooker Max Drage and Joss Townsend the foundation.
Lessons from the semi-final that QEGS will be keen to pick up on relate mostly to finishing. They defended solidly enough, but when they engineered clear-cut scoring chances they were betrayed by faulty execution. Having survived the pressure of getting to Twickenham, they will be hoping that the open spaces help to bring out their best attacking talents.
