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COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP THE BILL BEAUMONT CUP CHAMPIONS 2012UNDER 20’S THE JASON LEONARD TROPHY CHAMPIONS 2012COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP THE BILL BEAUMONT CUP FINALISTS 2011COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD FINALISTS 2009COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP SHIELD CHAMPIONS 2005

Hertfordshire Rugby Football UnionHertfordshire Rugby Football Schools’ UnionHertfordshire Society of Rugby Football Union Referees

Hertfordshire RFUWINTER NEWSLETTER 2014/15www.hertsrugby.co.uk

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DIARY DATES – EVENTS7676

Monday 26 January Countdown To Kick Off Verulamians RFC 7.30pm

Wednesday 4 March Members Annual Dinner Mid-Herts Golf Club 7.00 for

7.30pm

Monday 13 April Forum Meeting Welwyn RFC 7.30pm

Friday 24 April Annual Volunteer Recognition Evening St Albans School Pavilion 7.30pm

Monday 22 June AGM & Forum MeetingWelwyn RFC 7.30pm

Friday 10 July Herts RFU Golf Day East Herts Golf Club 12 noon

13April 2015

10July 2015

22June 2015

26January 2015

4March 2015

24April 2015

Greetings and welcome to a new year. I hope you and yours had a great festive break and are fully recharged to take on the challenges of the second half of the season.

May I take this opportunity to thank those who have invited me to share in their hospitality. It has been a revelation to see how many old adversaries remain involved in the administration of their clubs. It equally has been a great pleasure to see how many clubs have been able to improve their facilities, aided by grants and sponsorship.

I suspect there will be a number of raised eyebrows from those of you struggling through the maze of fund raising. This is one area your

county can help with, either pointing you in the direction of expert help, or putting you together with those who have been there. Don’t be afraid to ask.

After a slow start, there are a good number of Hertfordshire clubs performing well in their leagues. Good to see Welwyn and Fullers topping the Honours Table, with Cuffley, Hatfield and Harpenden hot on their heels.

On the representative front, our Girls U18s are the pick of the crop. Winners of the London and South East Festival, and victors over Hants by 70 points. Well done team. Our U16s and 18s Boys Teams have been disrupted by a rule seemingly barring any academy players from selection. We are working with The RFU and the academies to remedy this, but well done to the coaches and boys who did play, you can be proud of your endeavours.

To Stuart Thomas and all at Weston Homes, thank you for your continued sponsorship. Also thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to physically attend and support County Functions. Very much appreciated.

There is never a year passing without the sad loss of some of our family. One of our giants, Bill Hodges lost a brave fight with illness. He will always be fondly remembered, and his wisdom and advice will be missed. Our love and condolences got Vera and to all of you who have suffered bereavement this year.

My final pre Christmas Presidential task, was the pleasure of presenting Old Merchant Taylor’s with the winners trophy following their final victory over Welwyn at The Returning Students Festival. Over 100 young men, representing eight clubs competed for this trophy. Good competition and good craic. Look after those mini and junior players, who, for a time spread their wings. Many of them could, should and would come back home to play for the clubs they grew up in.

Play up and enjoy your games. Yes League status and winning are important, but I have noticed success can be measured in satisfaction and enjoyment, win lose or draw.

Graham WalkerPresident - Hertfordshire RFU

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HALF TERM REPORT FROM OUR PRESIDENT7676

As we pass the half way mark of the season and enter Rugby World Cup Year I take this opportunity to wish all the Players, Coaches, Managers, Volunteers and Supporters a Healthy, Injury-free and Fulfilling 2015.I also take

this opportunity to thank Bob Weston and Stuart Thomas of Weston Homes Plc for their continued generous support of Rugby throughout Hertfordshire.

Huge thanks also go to my Colleagues on the HRFU Executive Committee and the 100 or so Volunteers throughout Hertfordshire who contribute so much of their time to help run various aspects of rugby in the County from the Minis & Youth sections to the Girls & Women to our Stags & Senior Teams. Thank you all.

It is good to see that a number of our Hertfordshire Clubs are currently faring well in their respective Leagues with Bishop’s Stortford ending 2014 in 4th place in National League 2 South, Hertford in 5th place in National 3 London & South East, Letchworth Garden City in 3rd place in London 1 North, Harpenden in 2nd place in London 2 North West, Fullerians taking over top spot from Welwyn just before Christmas in London 3 North West, Verulamians, Cheshunt & Barnet Elizabethans all chasing hard in Herts/Mddx 1. Also, with four Herts Teams in the last eight of the South East National Senior Vase, namely Welwyn, Fullerians, Hitchin & Stevenage Town and with Cheshunt in the last sixteen of the South East National Junior Vase along with Cuffley, Hatfield, Black Horse, Watford, Datchworth and Weston all showing some very good results in their respective Leagues, rugby in Hertfordshire appears in rude health. Good luck to you all for the rest of the season and, of course, every good wish to those Clubs who are finding the going tough this term … may your results

improve in 2015.The County Cups are all well under way with Old Albanian Romans the first to make the Hertfordshire Cups’ Finals’ Day at Allianz Park on Sunday 26 April by just “pipping” Hertford’s 2nd XV in the first semi-final of the Presidents’ Cup by the closest of scores 12-11. Bishop’s Stortford Blues take on the current Presidents’ Cup holders, Letchworth Garden City, in the other semi-final on the weekend of the 14th/15th February. The semi-finals of the Presidents’ Tankard are between Stevenage Town & Hitchin and Welwyn & Hemel Hempstead Camelot and also take place on the weekend of the 14th/15th February, as are the semi-finals of the Presidents’ Trophy between Watford & Cheshunt and Chess Valley & Royston. Good luck to all Teams. Please mark your diaries now for what will surely be a feast of Hertfordshire rugby with the Finals of all three County Competitions taking place on Sunday 26 April 2015 at Allianz Park, home of Saracens. A great day out awaits !

The County Colts Cup & Shield Competitions will shortly be under way with the Finals scheduled for Sunday 19 April at Fullerians. Another date for your diaries is Saturday 8 August when both the Herts 7’s and Colts 7’s Finals will be hosted by Harpenden RFC.A number of our Junior Teams start their campaigns in February and March with (as I write) certain dates and venues still to be determined. For confirmation of these dates and venues, please check with our new Official Herts Rugby Website which is, at last, going live any day now ! Bigger & Better we hope !

Our Hertfordshire Schools’ Competitions started back in November with Harry Harrison and Richard Hope organising yet another fabulous afternoon with the Girls’ Development Festival for U13 & U15 Girls at Hertford RFC. Then, just before Christmas on 9 December at Old Albanian RFC, Harry, Richard and Mel organised the U14 and U18 Boys’ Cup Finals with Berkhamsted School U14’s taking the honours against St George’s Harpenden U14’s in a hard fought 19-7 win. In the U18 Boys’ Final Bishop’s Stortford High School just edged

MESSAGE FROM OUR CHAIRMAN

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MESSAGE FROM OUR CHAIRMAN7676

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out Michael Owen’s Haileybury School in an extremely exciting contest, with the last kick of the game, by 20-17.

Yet another evening of highly entertaining rugby, again organised by Harry, Richard and Mel, saw 12 Teams compete in the Annual Returning Students’ Festival at Old Albanian RFC on 22 December with OMT’s Returning Students winning the Cup for the third season in a row.

Many more Schools’ Competitions are lined up in the New Year with Datchworth and Hemel Hempstead hosting U14 & U15 Boys’ Trophy semi-finals on 18 March, followed by U12 & U13 Boys’ Shield & Trophy Finals taking place at St Albans School on 20 March. On 25 March the U14, 15 & 18 Boys’ Shield Finals take place at Old Albanian RFC followed by the U14, 15 & 18 Boys’ Trophy Finals at the same venue one week later on 1 April. The U13 & U15 Girls’ Festival will be held at Hertford RFC on 27 March. All organised by Harry, Richard and Mel. A feast of young Hertfordshire rugby to behold !

When the dust settles and the Club season comes to a close with the Herts County Competition Finals, the eagerly awaited,

& oldest rugby competition in the Country, the RFU County Championship swings into action with Hertfordshire taking on Kent, Gloucestershire and Cornwall for the right to go to Twickenham to compete once again for The Bill Beaumont Cup. We play Kent on 9 May at Canterbury RFC, Gloucestershire on 16 May on one of our home grounds and Cornwall on 23 May down at Redruth RFC, the home of “Hellfire Corner” ! Last time we were at Twickenham (2012) we came away with the Cup ! … fingers tightly crossed !

Four more important dates for your diaries : 4 March County Members’ Annual Dinner, 24 April Annual Volunteer Recognition Evening, 22 June AGM and last, but certainly by no means least, 10 July the extremely enjoyable social occasion the Herts RFU Golf Day at East Herts Golf Club, Buntingford. Please do join us.

Looking forward greatly to watching some more wonderful rugby being played throughout the County at all levels of the game and to meeting old friends and new. Richard MilnesChairman - Hertfordshire RFU

A MUST For All ClubsDuring a 1st XV match in December at Bishop’s Stortford a long established supporter collapsed by the touchline. Immediately it became apparent that this was a serious incident. The club physio and a qualified nurse along with others managed to keep him alive with the help of the club’s defibrillator until the paramedics and ambulance arrived approximately 20 minutes later.

There is no doubt that if the club hadn’t obtained this life saving equipment then the gentleman concerned would not be with us today. Amazingly he is now recovering from a triple heart bypass operation and is now back home and doing well.

PLEASE SERIOUSLY LOOK AT YOUR CLUB OBTAINING A DEFIBRILLATOR IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY GOT ONE. HOPEFULLY THERE WILL NEVER BE A NEED TO USE IT HOWEVER IF YOU DO NEED ONE AND DON’T HAVE ONE THEN IT IS MORE LIKELY THAT A TRAGEDY MAY OCCUR.

Planning ahead!!As an RFU Constituent Body (CB) the role of Hertfordshire RFU is to promote and develop rugby at the community level and to provide opportunities for players to take part in representative games against the other CB teams. At the start of season 2013/14 we, within the CB, spent a lot of time developing and agreeing a plan to ensure that these goals where achieved and that maximum benefit is obtained for the clubs and the CB. This is achieved by using an approach which has been developed in conjunction with the RFU which is called the Planning, Finance and Reporting documents (PFR). One year on, many of the initiatives introduced are delivering benefits. These

include the support of the CB to the clubs in applying for social spaces funding, the clear development plan for our players to take part in representative games, and this was evidenced by the fact that over 50 % of last season’s senior squad came through the younger age groups. In its second year the plan sets out further projects including the introduction of sevens and touch games and competitions designed to retain our under 23 players. Further activities include financial support of clubs introducing the Kids First programme. The programme is funded by grants of £55,000 from the RFU, and the use of Herts own income. The executive committee review the progress of the plan to ensure that we stay on track with the plan and where necessary they provide additional support or redirect our efforts to achieve greater benefit. A copy of the CB Strategy plan and the actual plan itself is obtainable via the web-site.

RWC 2015 – An updateWith just over nine months to go before the Rugby World Cup (RWC) kicks off, the activities that will ensure this world cup is going to be the best yet are starting to be seen by everyone. Clubs within Herts are seeing the extra investment being put into them to ensure that they are the places for everyone within the community to see the World Cup being played. This investment is not only in club houses but also improvements to floodlights and pitches. In the New Year the volunteers, who will be the rugby “games makers”. The lucky volunteer’s names will be announced in the New Year, and hopefully we within Herts will have some volunteers. The training bases have been announced and we within Herts are hosting the USA and Argentina squads at Halierbury School. As part of the Lead up and Legacy strand, we have secured sponsorship to a touch competition at Allianz Park that will directly fund more activities within the schools as part of the RFU “All schools” programme. Also clubs have their own cup champions who are the focus within the clubs for all Rugby World Cup activities. These clubs have been provided with a club readiness assessment which is intended to help them in assessing their state of readiness to take in the new players, volunteers and hopefully club members. All the clubs inputs will be collected and then an overall assessment made in terms of our readiness to host the RWC. The assessment will help inform future investment activities. Ticket sales are going well and certainly from the new year more TV and press articles will be published leading up to kick off. On the 25th January we will be hosting an event for all clubs to attend concerning the RWC. If you have any questions about the RWC please contact David Roberts via 07734 059295 or d.roberts837@btinternet.com.

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OUR SECRETARY WRITES

Herts RFU Xmas Lunch at RAF Club 2014

With the season now nearly half way through it’s encouraging to see the clubs being well established in their leagues and some clubs already being touted as champions! However we still have issues within the game fielding some second and third team games and some sides pulling out of leagues completely. This is an issue which we as an executive committee take very seriously and we have asked our club reps to work with us to identify some of the reasons for this issue, we do ask clubs that if they are cancelling fixates they do it early in the week to allow clubs to use the fixture exchange service to ensure we try and keep sides playing rugby. As the Rugby World Cup is fast approaching it’s great to see some of our club houses receiving RFU funding and support to improve them, together with installing new floodlights will make our clubs the place to watch the RWC if we can’t get any tickets!!

County Junior Rugby has commenced now with the under 18’s and under 16’s playing all their games from a boys perspective, while the under 15 and under 18 girls have played all their matches and were unbeaten for the second season running! There are some very talented players representing the CB which augers well for the future of our clubs and CB sides. The playing programme for the under20’s, under 15’s and under 14’s start in late Jan, we hope to see these sides being well supported. The new Developing Player Programme (DPP) has started in Herts using Halierbury School as the host; this is a great programme and venue. The DPP aims to further develop players in the under 13, 14 and 15 age groups and is delivered by our county coaches in conjunction with our academy partners of Saracens.Good luck to all our clubs and sides in future matches!Thanks for all your support of Herts Rugby

David Roberts Honorary Secretary - Hertfordshire RFU

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Close to 50 members and guests attended the AnnualChristmas Lunch held at the RAF Club, Piccadilly on Friday 12th December 2014.

Once again the ‘Deck Chairs’ were in abundance from Letchworth and Bishop’s Stortford and along with all were duly fed with the traditional Xmas dish along with fine wine with beers prior to and following in this wonderful venue.

The event was MC’d by V President Martyn Kirk with The President Graham Walker following along with many stories from all tables ending up with the voice of Peter Baines singing from on high to close yet another great get together. Many thanks must go to Jon Clapham ably assisted by John Vain for the organisation.

As I write this, we are frantically preparing our home for the Christmas and New Year festivities and it brought to mind the efforts clubs around Hertfordshire are putting in to get their rugby experience ready for Rugby World Cup 2015. It has been great to visit the clubs that have invested in their clubhouse facilities using the Social Spaces grants to help make the whole appearance and feel of their club different. It is amazing how a little thought and investment can make the clubhouse roomier, brighter and more family friendly. Barnet Elizabethans, Hitchin, Tabard and others have done great things but the change that really had the ‘wow’ factor for me was Letchworth. The bar has moved, the furniture has changed, the whole ambience is warmer and more welcoming – tremendous work by the club and its volunteers – money very well spent.

And it is not just on the facilities side that clubs are making improvements. Coaching courses, safeguarding courses and first aid courses are well supported as clubs train volunteers to cope with the anticipated influx of players inspired by the World Cup’s festival of rugby to give the game a try or come back to the game they have loved themselves or with their children. At the moment most of the effort is aimed at Mini and Youth sections as that is where the biggest growth is expected. However, it will be important to remember that working to retain players and teams at adult level is essential too. We are less than 12 months away from the Final and adult 15-a-side rugby is a cause for concern in many clubs with cancelled fixtures and numbers of lower level sides dwindling. There are success stories at Cuffley, Black Horse and Weston that other clubs that are struggling could learn from. Melanie Liley the Rugby Development Officer and her team and the CB Executive can help to build Community Rugby clubs at all levels – you only need to ask. New ideas have included Friday night games, a match-day crèche for player children and pre and post match events to encourage whole family involvement. The CB Executive want to help clubs take a long hard look at themselves and their rugby product and help them to try new ideas and innovations to attract players and improve the all-round rugby experience.

That is why we are going to be holding a Development conference for all clubs in the New Year on the theme of Countdown to Kick Off. This will be on Monday 26th January 2015 at a rugby club near you (probably Verulamians RFC). We will present ideas from clubs in Hertfordshire and from elsewhere. We will give you a chance to learn from what has worked and see how it could fit in your club. We will help you avoid mistakes or false starts – not all bright ideas work. Above all, we want to inspire people to work smarter not necessarily harder to make the rugby experience for everyone that comes to their club during and after the Rugby World Cup 2015 the best it can be.

Look out for news of events on the new Herts RFU website – let’s make 2015 a Happy New Year for Rugby in Hertfordshire.

Tim BonnettChair, Community Rugby, Hertfordshire RFU

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BILL HODGES7676

Bill Hodges, President of Hertfordshire RFU from 1984 to 1986, passed away in November at the age of 88 after a period of failing health. Bill was a rugby man through and through, making a formidable contribution as a player and administrator throughout his long life to Club, County and Country.

Born in County Durham, his family moved to Hertford when he was 12. It was then, when he started to attend Hertford Grammar School, that he first came across rugby, football in the north being the round ball game. But it was not until he returned to Hertford after three years army service that he played his first adult game. He was asked to turn out for Old Hertfordians and Bill said “That game was my first experience of club rugby and I took to it like a duck to water. It was not just the appeal of the game itself; it was the whole social environment in which it was played.”

Before long work took Bill to Newark, where for three years he played for Newark Rugby Club. Much more importantly it was in Newark that he met Vera and they married in 1950 - the start of a long and happy partnership.

On returning to Hertford, Bill was soon heavily involved with Old Hertfordians, where he swiftly gained a reputation as a formidable second row lineout jumper in the days before lifting. He was elected captain in 1955 and continued in the role until his retirement some six years later. During that time the charismatic skipper, who dominated the lines out and took all the goal kicks, made OHRFC one of the best Old Boys sides in the London region and set firm foundations for the much respected club that Hertford RFC is today.

His prowess was soon noticed by the Hertfordshire selectors and he made his County Championship debut in 1953 during which season he played in the County’s first quarter final, against Gloucestershire, playing in the second row alongside a young David Marques, of England and British Lions fame. In all Bill won 11 Championship caps.

Off the field Bill was just as involved. As early as

1953 he became of Secretary of OHRFC, a post he continued in until 1968. Then on his retirement from playing the County asked Bill to become their Team Secretary in 1961 and for the next 15 years,

for much of the time with Vera as his assistant team secretary, he made sure Hertfordshire fielded competitive Championship sides. During this period he also found the time to serve two years as President of Hertford RFC, as it had now become from 1976.

In 1971 Bill was elected Hertfordshire’s representative on the RFU Council, as it is now called, serving with distinction for 21 years, during which time he was involved in the evolvement of formalized coaching and, using his professional experience, the development of new stands etc. at Twickenham. This distinguished service was recognized by his election as a Privileged Member of the RFU.

The County too recognised his service by electing him President in 1984 for two years and after that his sage advice was always welcomed at the annual gatherings of the Past Presidents. Meanwhile, his soulmate Vera’s service was also recognised when she was elected a Life Member of Hertfordshire RFU in 1977.

Bill continued to be a great supporter of Club and County until the last year or so, travelling to away games as well as watching at Hoe Lane, Croxley Green and other home County venues. Until travelling became too difficult, he and Vera were regular visitors to Twickenham for Internationals and more close to home thoroughly enjoyed Hertford’s Intermediate Cup win and Hertfordshire’s County Shield win. He and Vera also were strong supporters of the various County events including the Cup finals and Members Dinner etc. One recent highlight which Bill much enjoyed was the 75th Anniversary County Players reunion held at Hoe Lane.

There was a tremendous turn out for his funeral in Hertford Heath and afterwards many memories were shared at Hoe Lane with Vera and their many friends. Bill, a great rugby man, is sorely missed.

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7676JOHN ATKINSON BEM

Hertfordshire RFU Past President and stalwart Hertford RFC member, John Atkinson, has been awarded the BEM in the Queen’s New Year Honours list for services to Rugby in Hertfordshire.

John first played for Old Hertfordians, as Hertford RFC then was, at the age of 15 when still a schoolboy at Hertford Grammar School some 60 years ago and he has been an active member of the Club ever since. Playing mainly in the second row, John was in the 1st XV for most of the next 20 years, although early in his career he did have a very successful spell with Richmond. He was Captain of Old Hertfordians for nine years and before finally retiring he skippered the Ex 1st XV for a season in 1974-5.

Whilst at Richmond, John caught the eye of the Hertfordshire selectors and made his County Championship debut in 1959, going on to win 23 Championship caps.

As his playing career wound down both Club and County made full use of his talents as an administrator etc. John was soon serving on Hertford’s General, House and Ground and Fund Raising Committees. In 1973 he was elected a Life Vice President of his club and in 1980 was elected president of Hertford for a three year term. Meanwhile he joined the Hertfordshire selection committee in 1976 for four years, acting as team Secretary for a couple of those years. Around this period he also found time to referee for the Hertfordshire Referees Society.

John has continued to serve on various Committees for Hertford ever since most notably as Chairman of the Club, 1983-93 and Fixture Secretary from 1998 to the present. In addition John often serves behind the bar, helps organise the lunches and dinners and in another unsung capacity, he marks the pitches every week.

John was elected a Life Member of Hertfordshire RFU in 1998 for his services to Hertfordshire rugby and in 2002 he was elected President of the County for two years. He continues to help the County – most particularly in the organisation of the County Members Dinner as a member of the Marketing Committee.

On being informed of his award, the ever modest John said “When I got the letter I was a little embarrassed by it. I can think of quite a few people who are equally or even more deserving of recognition in Hertfordshire. However, it’s a great honour and I’m extremely flattered. I must thank everybody in Hertfordshire Rugby with whom I have worked and become good friends with over the years”

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Rugby & American Football Partnership Emerges in HertfordshireHertfordshire Cheetahs are moving into St Albans Rugby Club in Smallford Hertfordshire’s only competitive American Football Club, the Hertfordshire Cheetahs, continues to develop and grow thanks to a new relationship with St Albans Rugby Club (near Smallford) bringing the Cheetahs to one of the finest floodlit venues in the county.

St Albans’ approach to promoting and growing their club has taken a slightly skewed approach, after speaking to the Cheetahs staff at a Herts Sports Partnership funding St Albans Rugby Club has been able to create an agreement between both the teams regarding the utilisation of the clubhouse and pitches to be mutually beneficial for both teams. Chris Pike from St Albans said: “With all the changes we have seen in Rugby, not just in St Albans, but across the county we felt that key things for us for the remainder of this season and looking forward into next and the coming seasons were to increase the amount of people that are coming to the club, not just in the winter when the Rugby is on, but all through the year and to increase our presence and involvement with our community. The Cheetahs represent a big step in the right direction for us as the facilities will be utilised for 12 months of the year (American Football in the UK being a Summer Sport) combined with the fact that with the Cheetahs move to the club we have doubled our membership size overnight. These factors combined will also give us additional freedoms to explore additional ways to promote Sport, Activity and ultimately Rugby. Part of our long term development plan includes multiple sports and activities taking place at the club to help promote us in and around St Albans and into wider Hertfordshire community and give our local residents and community the opportunity to use the facilities for a range of different activities”

Al Tepper Chairman of the Cheetahs was delighted with the move, saying “We’ve worked so hard as a club to build a solid infrastructure; to create a platform for inclusion, growth, funding, sponsorship, events, community outreach and of course sporting and athletic excellence. St Albans Rugby Club have welcomed us in a way we’ve not experienced before and our combined resources allows us both to move forwards with our development plans. We’re looking forward to growing alongside them and bringing greater health, fitness and community spirit to Hertfordshire.”

For more information on the Cheetahs visit www.hertfordshirecheetahs.com For more information about St Albans Rugby Club visit www.stalbansrugby.com or email christopher.spike@gmail.com

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HARPENDEN RFC’S ENGLAND ACCREDITATION

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Harpenden RFC’s festive celebrations at completing England Rugby AccreditationHow do rugby clubs celebrate Christmas? Well, in the case of Harpenden RFC, in Hertfordshire, it includes the tug-o-war, inflatable turkeys and waiting for a shire horse to relieve itself on the pitch, all in the name of festive fundraising! It’s been a busy six months at Harpenden RFC, which has included the annual Pub 7s competition, starting a new girls section and the preparation for a Lead Up and Legacy Transforming Social Spaces project that gets underway in January 2015. With so many things on the go, the club felt that completing England Rugby Club Accreditation was essential in showing the members of the club how much effort was going in behind the scenes. Darren Francey, Club Chairman, has really driven the changes that have been seen in the club recently, particularly in terms of emphasising the importance of the core values and pitch side behaviour. Darren, pictured in the elf costume with Mel Liley, Hertfordshire Rugby Development Officer, and his team of committed volunteers, were delighted to accept their new Accreditation plaque, which will go in pride of place once the Social Spaces project is complete in the New Year!

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In order to mark one year to go before the IRB World Cup Final 2015, we invited Sky Sports News to visit Barnet Elizabethans RFC to showcase a community rugby club demonstrating a real drive to improve facilities in order to capitalise on the legacy of the tournament. Joining over 60 mini and youth players under the floodlights were Steve Grainger, RFU Direct of Rugby Delivery, and Jason Leonard, Vice President of the RFU and 2003 IRB Rugby World Cup Winner.

As part of the RFU’s commitment to investing in grassroots rugby in the lead up to the IRB Rugby World Cup 2015, Barnet Elizabethans RFC has achieved a huge amount in upgrading its facilities over the last 18 months. By working closely with Melanie Liley, Hertfordshire Rugby Development Officer, and Jason Bowers, Area Facilities Manager, Barnet Elizabethans has successfully installed a new set of floodlights and overhauled its Social Space through Lead Up and Legacy funding opportunities. On top of this, the club has also successfully applied for funding to improve its pitches. This places the club in a great position to welcome existing and new members to the club, and will hopefully be the place to go to watch the international matches come 2015. To reinforce the core values of the club, and its great working relationship with England Rugby, Barnet Elizabethans RFC had also completed its Club Accreditation, which was awarded by Jason Leonard.

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Bishops Stortford RFC were invited by the producers of the BT Rugby Tonight TV programme to provide the audience for the edition broadcast live on Monday 6th October. The Club saw this as an ideal opportunity to show their appreciation of their Volunteers and so organised transport for the evening from the club to the studios in Stratford East London. 83 volunteers representing every section of the club from Minis to 1st XV, Committee members, Coaches, Club referees, & County representatives accepted the invite and the studio was awash with the clubs distinctive ‘deckchair’ blazer. 20 of those attending were current players who travelled in playing kit so that they could assist the presenters, Ex-England stars Martin Bayfield, Ben Kay & Austin Healy, who of course made two fleeting appearances for the Stortford First XV about 5 seasons ago, with their skills demonstration Club President Russell Cattell was interviewed live by another member of the Presentation team Sarra Elgan and he gave her a club blazer. The intention was that it would be added to the studio memorabilia ‘wall of fame’ but Ben and Austin had other ideas & decided instead to don the blazer for the rest of the evening! Thankfully we’ve established from watching subsequent editions of the programme that it has now found its way onto the wall. All the Volunteers thoroughly enjoyed the evening & the production team later wrote to the club saying that “ It was an absolute delight having Bishop’s Stortford on the show “ adding “ You were a fantastic addition to that episode” From a club perspective not only was it a great opportunity to say thank you to those who help make the club a success but also proved to be very good PR evidenced by the positive response on social media from those who had viewed the programme.

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University of Hertfordshire Students talk Social Media & StrategyIn September, 80 students from the University of Hertfordshire Business School were split into 16 groups, each assigned a Hertfordshire rugby club to work with. The collaboration intended to support young people in their studying, in a subject that a number of rugby clubs do not usually prioritise, and provide the clubs with marketing approach in line with the RFU strategic plan. The students were given 6 weeks to contact their clubs and work with them to establish what the RFU strategic plan is, how the clubs implement that, what their target market is and also their existing social media platforms. The groups then presented their findings to their tutors, the RFU Local Delivery Team (Melanie Liley & Harry Harrison) and a number of club volunteers. The presentations themselves took place in December, and were hugely eye opening in terms of how students spend their time. This is a vital demographic for us in our rugby recruitment for players, supporters and volunteers. We saw a huge emphasis on jobs, going to the gym, socialising (big nights out rather than beers in the pub) and also the amount of time they spend interacting via social media. These are all areas that impact why 16-25 year olds might not be in our clubs, and definitely gave us ideas on how to reach these people better. All the clubs involved will receive a copy of their students’ reports and presentations. On behalf of the University of Hertfordshire and Hertfordshire Rugby, we would like to thank all the volunteers that took the time to speak to the students and help them with their work, and we hope the reports you receive are of use.

We are aiming to invite two of these groups to present at the Club Development Count Down to Kick-Off Evening on Monday the 26th January 2015.

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RETURNING STUDENTS FESTIVAL 20147676

This year saw 8 teams compete in the Hertfordshire Rugby Returning Students Festival, held at Old Albanian on the 23rd December. This festival is a firm favourite in the calendar, and offers Hertfordshire’s rugby clubs the chance to bring back students and players that may not be able to commit to Saturday fixtures, into an under 23s squad for an evening of tens played under lights. With the weather staying dry for the first time in living memory, the evening was a showcase for champagne rugby, and Herts Rugby were delighted for Welwyn in reaching the final, but once again saw Old Merchant Taylors show off superior speed on the night to be crowned champions for another year. Many thanks to Richard Hope, Community Rugby for Hertfordshire, for pulling it all together, the staff of Old Albanian RFC for looking after us, Robin Hardwick for compering, and the Hertfordshire Referee Society for providing a great team of officials who made sure we ran to time. It’s also important to mention the club volunteers who spend months keeping track of the students in order to pull them back together for this event – it’s a tough job and we hope that your efforts see these guys return to your clubs on a more regular basis once they returning from university. We’ve been asked by a number of clubs as to how we expand this offer – there is clearly a demand for these one off events that get friends together to play rugby, so we will be looking at these opportunities as the weather gets warmer and students come back from April... Got a bright idea? Get in touch! WinnersOld Merchant Taylors RFC (middle)Runners UpWelwyn RFC Player of the TournamentJoe Cokanasiga, Old Merchant Taylors Biggest HitJoe Little, Old Merchant Taylors (top)Try of the TournamentLaurence Carson, Welwyn RFC (bottom)

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HERTS SCHOOLS FINALS7676

The finals of the Herts Schools u14 and u18 Cup took place at Old Albanian RFC on Tuesday 9th December. The Cup competition is run for private schools and traditional rugby playing schools. In atrocious weather conditions, some fine rugby was played, and both games were extremely well contested with the result in question right up to the end. There was a fantastic crowd of over 500 watching the u18 final, with several coaches transporting pupils of each school to give support to their team. Berkhamsted won the u14 Cup beating St George’s 19-7. This game saw resolute defence and expert game management by Berkhamsted, which resulted in just one score by St George’s despite a lot of pressure. Berkhamsted took their chances well and fully deserved their victory. The u18 Cup was a nail-biting affair which was decided by the last kick of the game with a penalty being awarded to Bishops Stortford High School right in front of the posts. This was the last kick of the game and gave Stortford a 20-17 win over Haileybury who were runners up for the second year in a row.

Berkhamsted Under 14’s

Bishop’s Stortford High School Under 18’s

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WOMEN AND GIRLS RUGBY

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The 2014/15 season has seen new teams emerging within the Hertfordshire Women & Girls scene, with Harpenden RFC & Tring RUFC now both offering girls provision on a Sunday morning, whilst Hertford RFC are working hard to pull a women’s side together. We continue to have girls playing at Hertford, Welwyn, Hitchin and Old Albanian, and these established sides are continuing to guide the county programme successfully – with a Hertfordshire win at the triangular tournament in September.

At senior level, Hitchin and Tabard continue to play together as Hit’ard (perhaps the best name for a team ever?), and are enjoying a run of relative good fortune as a combined team in RFU NC South West East 2. Meanwhile, Old Albanian Saints were top of RFU Women’s Championship South East 2 at the end of November and find themselves in line for promotion.

Hertfordshire Rugby Girls Festival continues to draw club teams from across the country to Old Merchant Taylors ground for the first Sunday of the autumn half term. With teams travelling down from Worcester, across from Kent and up from Basingstoke, they joined representation from Hertfordshire clubs including Welwyn, Hitchin, Hertford, Old Albanian and Saracens Amateurs. This year we decided to run the festival in a 10s format, giving smaller teams the chance to run out against some of the more established sides, which gave a number of girls their first chance to play. Richard Hope, Community Rugby Coach, also looked after the under 13 players in a pitch up and play style session. At under 15 level, Welwyn finished victorious, in a very terse final against Worcester, decided by a successful conversion from Welwyn in the dying seconds to see the score 7-5. Meanwhile, a strong EC Swans team from Surrey beat their competition to win the under 18 title.

Harry Harrison, Community Rugby Coach, continues to deliver hugely successful tournaments for the county, and the recent school girls’ festival at Hertford RFC demonstrated just how many girls we can get playing rugby in the county if the offer is good enough. Over 400 girls competed at under 15 and under 13 level on Wednesday 12th November 2014. These events only happen thanks to the support of RFU staff, club volunteers and young referees from local schools. Paul Freestone continues to work hard on growing the Young Referees Academy, and Kings Langley and Richard Hale School were both able to provide young refs for the afternoon. We’d like to thank everyone that lent us a hand at Hertford, particularly John Atkinson, who continues to spend hours of his time making events like this possible at the club. The next festival will take place at Hertford RFC on March 29th, and will see the winners nominate to an Area tournament.

Upcoming fixtures at performance level for England Women: England Women Six Nations

Date Teams Venue Kick Off

Sun Feb 8 2015 Wales vs England Swansea RFC 2.30pmSun Feb 15 2015 England vs Italy Twickenham Stoop 2pm Adults £10, U16s £5Fri Feb 27,2015 Ireland vs England Ashbourne RFC 7.30pmFri Mar 13 2015 England vs Scotland Darlington Mowden Park, 7.35pm The Northern Echo Arena after England men’s U20 vs Scotland. Adult £10 under 16s £5 Family £25 Armed Forces & Emergency Services £7 Sat Mar 21 2015 England vs France Twickenham Stadium, 7.20pm Free entry after England Men v France (after England men v France, kick-off 5pm)

WOMEN AND GIRLS RUGBY

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Herts U18 Girls maintained their unbeaten run for a third consecutive season in 2014.

The season started with the London & South East CB festival in October at Old Reigatians RFC. Apart from the cold and rainy conditions the girls enjoyed a fantastic day of rugby. The Herts girls kicked it off with a comprehensive 61 – 0 win over Middlesex with tries from seven different players showing the strength in depth of the team. The second match against Kent was a much tighter affair but Herts kept to the game plans the coaching team put together for them and came out with a 14-10 win. The third pool match against Essex saw three Herts players lining up for Essex, who had to borrow players, but still resulted in a 26-5 victory to Herts. This set up a final against old rivals Surrey for the third year in succession. The quality of the total rugby the Herts girls played both defensively and offensively to win the final 20-0 was exceptional.

The rest of the girls’ CB season comprises of just two matches – one at home and one away. This season the home match was against Surrey. Surrey are usually a strong side and this is normally billed as one of the toughest encounters of the season – the last time the Herts girls lost a match was in November 2011, to Surrey. It was a hard fought game with the girls continued persistence paying off as the game went on. Strong forward play and quick plays off the ball allowed Herts to utilise their back line to the maximum effect. The girls really played well, keeping their shape and scoring a number of total team tries. The coaching team were pleased to see the girls used a number of training ground moves, with the blitz defence very evident throughout the game.

The final match of the season was against Hampshire at Petersfield. This was a great end to the season for the girls with another fantastic squad performance and a 70-5 win to Herts. Nevertheless, Hampshire stood up and made Herts work for every point. Again there was some fantastic total team rugby with the forwards supplying some great ball and the backs utilising their set plays and employing a kicking game for the first time this season. The coaches thought the girls were unbelievable in their game play, especially given the short amount of time they had had together this season.

So yet another fantastic season for Herts U18s and neatly summed up by lead coach John Harrison: “At the end of another undefeated season, the girls can be very proud of their achievements both in terms of their on-field play and their personal development through the county programme. They have been an absolute pleasure to coach and they fully deserve their success. The coaching team hope these achievements and the manner in which they were achieved will stay with the girls forever and give them confidence to achieve success in all aspects of their lives.”

WOMEN AND GIRLS RUGBY

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7676REPRESENTATIVE FIXTURES NEW HERTS RUGBY WEBSITE

COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP 2015 The Bill Beaumont Cup Saturday 9 May 2015 Kent v HERTFORDSHIRE @ Canterbury RFC kick-off 3:00pm

Saturday 16 May 2015HERTFORDSHIRE v Gloucestershire @ Hertford RFC kick-off 3:00pm

Saturday 23 May 2015 Cornwall v HERTFORDSHIRE @ Redruth RFC kick-off 3:00pm

Sunday 31 May 2015 The Bill Beaumont Cup Final @ Twickenham kick-off 12:15pm

Under 20’s STAGSSunday 25th JanuaryBerkshire v Hertfordshire @ venue tba

Juniors – Boys U15 Sunday, 15 February 2015Hertfordshire v Essex, @ Old Albanian RFC kick off 2.30pm

Sunday, 1 March 2015Kent v Hertfordshire tba

Sunday, 19 April 2015Opposition TBA v Hertfordshire tba

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REPRESENTATIVE FIXTURES NEW HERTS RUGBY WEBSITE

In the last few weeks we have changed server and management for the Hertfordshire RFU website. This has caused a few hiccups in that you are unable to connect to the new site by using just Hertsrugby through your favourites or through Google (it still goes to the old site). However at the moment you need to use www. first then you should go direct to our new site … www.hertsrugby.co.uk through Pitchero.

We may still have the odd gremlin to overcome and do apologize for this but we do believe that they will be sorted out very shortly and are confident that we will have a website that is user friendly and current.

Please change your favourites to this site so that you can keep up to date on what’s going on around the county regarding the game of rugby.Colin HaslamChairman of Marketing

www.hertsrugby.co.uk

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Now Club Name L'gue P W D L For Ag'n % Ratio Were PRIZE1 Welwyn L3NW 11 10 0 1 372 188 90.91% 1.98 1 Away v Stevenage Town Won 48 - 29 £7002 Fullerians L3NW 11 9 0 2 279 144 81.82% 1.94 2 Away v Wasps Won 36 - 7 £4003 Cuffley * HMMT3 8 6 0 2 224 110 75.00% 2.04 4 Away v Cheshunt II Won 27 -13 £3004 Hatfield HMMT4 8 6 0 2 122 114 75.00% 1.07 5 Away v Saracen Amateurs II Lost 10 - 46 £2005 Harpenden L2NW 11 8 0 3 286 236 72.73% 1.21 3 Away v Harrow Lost 8 - 42 £1006 Hertford Nat3L&SE 13 9 0 4 371 275 69.23% 1.35 7 Home v Tring Won 51 - 7 £1007 Black Horse HMMT6 11 7 0 4 275 254 63.64% 1.08 10 Away v Berkhansted Won 26 - 15 £1008 Letchworth L1N 13 8 0 5 411 221 61.54% 1.86 6 Away v Brentwood Lost 15 - 16 £1009 Bishop's Stortford Nat2S 15 9 0 6 425 325 60.00% 1.31 14 Home v Southend Saxons Won 40 - 11

10 Watford HEM2 10 6 0 4 237 204 60.00% 1.16 9 Home v Uxbridge Won 58 - 011 Verulamians HEM1 11 6 1 4 295 193 59.09% 1.53 15 Away v Feltham Won 36 - 712 Datchworth L3NW 11 6 0 5 236 229 54.55% 1.03 13 Home v Grasshoppers Lost 6 - 1313 Weston * HMMT5 10 5 0 5 189 94 50.00% 2.01 8 Away v Hackney III Won 33 - 814 Cheshunt HEM1 11 5 0 6 186 148 45.45% 1.26 11 Home v London Nigerians Lost 3 - 2215 Barnet Elizabethan HEM1 11 5 0 6 172 159 45.45% 1.08 12 Home v Old Actonians Lost 3 - 1016 Old Albanian Nat1 15 6 0 9 300 361 40.00% 0.83 17 Home v Darlington Mowden Park Won 29 - 2117 Stevenage Town L3NW 11 4 0 7 258 255 36.36% 1.01 16 Home v Welwyn Lost 29 - 4818 The Mount * HMMT4 9 3 0 6 149 165 33.33% 0.90 18 Home v Welwyn III Won 14 - 1219 Chess Valley HEM2 10 3 0 7 219 282 30.00% 0.78 20 Away v London French Lost 12 - 5820 Hitchin L3NW 11 3 0 8 192 304 27.27% 0.63 21 Away v Hackney Lost 25 - 4421 Royston HEM1 11 3 0 8 105 253 27.27% 0.42 23 Away v Old Millhillians Lost 5 - 1222 Tring Nat3L&SE 13 3 1 9 217 375 26.92% 0.58 19 Away v Hertford Lost 7 - 5123 Tabard L1N 11 2 0 9 212 319 18.18% 0.66 27 Away v HAC Won 24 - 1724 St Albans L2NW 11 2 0 9 165 339 18.18% 0.49 22 Away v Chiswick Lost 24 - 3625 Old Ashmolean * HMMT4 8 1 0 7 247 261 12.50% 0.95 24 Away v Hatfield Lost 7 - 2526 Berhamsted HMMT6 9 1 0 8 129 235 11.11% 0.55 25 Home v Black Horse Lost 15 - 2627 HH (Camelot) L2NW 11 0 0 11 173 418 0.00% 0.41 26 Home v Staines Lost 0 - 6628 South Oxhey * HMMT4 3 0 0 3 11 195 0.00% 0.06 28 Home v Saracen Amateurs II Lost 3 - 50

The John Macfarlane Bowl is the prize for winning the Jack Marshall Honours Table. The Jimmy Little Trophy is awarded to the team with the best points ratio. *Onlygames played qualify for the table, walkover wins and losses and agreed draws are excluded. †Expunged league matches included.

Organiser: John Gregory, 4 Caldecote, Near Stilton, Cambs., PE7 3SG. Tel: 01733-246209 e-mail:johngregory326@talktalk.netOriginal concept by Jack Marshall

The Jimmy Little Trophy: Cuffley now have the best points ratio, marginally ahead of Weston.

Hertfordshire RFU Jack Marshall Honours Table

Table 4 - Weekend of:- 13 December 2014Last Result

The John Macfarlane Bowl: Welwyn consolidate their lead, still ahead of Fullerians.

WILLOWS GROVE, NAPSBURY

76762014/15 HONOURS TABLESPONSORED BY WESTON HOMES

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Hertfordshire RFU Annual Dinner 2015WEDNESDAY 4th March - Mid-Herts Golf Club

GuestsJason Leonard, Vice President RFU,

England and British Irish Lions

Jed Stone Entertainer

Dress Lounge Suits/Blazers

7.00pm for 7.30pm

Cost £40 per person

RSVP John Atkinson, 86, Winterscroft Road, Hoddesdon, Herts, EN11 8RJTel (H) 01992 462206 e-mailadmin@hertfordrfc.co.uk

2014/15 HONOURS TABLE

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