Kent Cup:  With only 8 clubs entering and a couple of walkovers in the opening round it was Sidcup and Old Elthamians that reached the final with Sidcup hoping to go one better than last year’s runners up spot and Elthamians looking to put their name on the trophy for the first time.

Sidcup had convincingly beaten Medway (44-5) in their semi-final whilst Elthamians did all but shut Canterbury out with a 3-24 win at Merton Lane, so all to play for in the final.  Elthmians held sway in the first half and with the score at 10-20 at the interval Sidcup must have feared a repeat of last season’s final.  However, a converted try and a penalty levelled the scores as OEs were reduced to 14 with a yellow card.  A converted try for OEs with a Sidcup penalty in response took the score to 23-27 when with 5 minutes left on the clock a 15-man Sidcup maul took the score to 28-27 and when they repeated the tactic two minutes later the trophy was secured 33-27.

Kent Shield:  Now in its second season, this competition for teams at Levels 7 & 8 saw only 6 entrants, with the semi-finals ending up with a resurgent Dover inflicting a heavy defeat on Dunstonians. The other semi-final ended up with Aylesford set to face Charlton Pk, with both sides yet to kick a ball and neither getting to do so either as Aylesford reached the final with a walkover.  Aylesford made the early running and pushed out to a 14-0 lead although Dover pulled it back to all square,forcing the match into extra time before taking the trophy in the last minute of added time with a winning margin of 3-points in a 19-22 scoreline.

Kent Plate: Entry into the Plate is for losers of their first fixture in either the Cup or Shield competitions; but with two of the clubs exiting the first round of the Cup through not fulfilling their fixtures, the first round of the Plate became the semi-finals and saw Sheppey fall 0-35 to Westcombe Pk whilst Thanet received a walkover against Blackheath.  Unfortunately the final proved to be somewhat one-sided as Combe ran in 65 unanswered points to take the trophy.

Kent Vase: With 21 entering clubs, it was disappointing that every fixture of the 5 first round matches was decided by walkover. Despite this there was still a full complement of 8 matches in the next round, with only 2 dropouts.  Round three then narrowed things further before the semi-finals clashes between new boys Cliffe and Beccehamians, which predictably went with league standings as Beccs were 17-50 victors.  Cranbrook took the other final berth after a 17-38 win at Greenwich.  In a match that was closely fought in the first half Beccs turned round with a small 14-10 advantage before eventually running away with it in the second half.  Four second half tries and a couple of penalties to just two Cranbrook tries in response saw Beccs complete a league and cup double with a 46-22 scoreline

Kent Salver: With so many 1^st Round walkovers in the Vase there were only 6 sides in the competition and even then only 2 fixtures played as Foots Cray reached the final without taking the field and would face Anchorians, who overcame Southwark 30-33 I the other semi-final.  Footscray opened the scoring with a quick response by Anchorians to level the score at 7-7 before the day’s hosts stretched to a 19-7 HT lead.  Anchorians were first on the scoreboard in the second stanza although Foots Cray’s almost immediate response restored a 12-point margin.  Two further Anchorians tries levelled the scores at 26-26 going into the closing minutes and a converted try in the dying embers of the match saw them take the lead for the first time and hold on to secure the win 26-33.

National 1: The results that mattered all involved clubs in the relegation battle; Fylde, who were already down lost 29-7 at Cambridge and they will be joined by O Albanians who fell to a heavy 55-14 loss at Rosslyn Pk, who themselves needed a win to ensure their own survival.  The last of the club’s to go down is Hull Ionians who had a tough ask to get a positive result at champions Coventry, they gave it a good lash but a 38-21 defeat sealed their fate.  Those results actually rendered Loughborough Student's 17-24 defeat  to DMP academic, although both they and Rosslyn Pk have remaining fixtures against Plymouth Albion. Of the county’s clubs, Blackheath lost 29-5 at Albion and will finish fifth in the table, whilst Elthamians also fell to a last day defeat, being nilled by 30-points by visiting Esher and will end the campaign 7-points behind ‘Club’ in sixth spot.   In the other results, third placed Ampthill beat Moseley 36-5, whilst Caldy lost out 18-28 to visiting Bishops Stortford.

National 2(S):  Champions Cinderford closed out their season with a 34-12 win against tenth placed Canterbury, whilst Chinnor, who shipped 50-points last week scored 50 themselves this week in a 52-14 demolition of Clifton as they now look towards a playoff encounter with a free scoring Sedgley Park from Nat 2(N). Third placed Redingensians also ran in 50-points with a 51-0 result against Henley whilst Taunton secured fourth spot with a tight 21-26 win at relegated Broadstreet. In the relegation battle a key encounter was between Barnstaple and Wimbledon, but in the end a tight 17-14 win for the Devon club wasn’t enough, as with O Redcliffians notching up a critical 34-12 win over Redruth, it was they that escape the jaws of relegation, and that both Barnstaple and Wimbledon are relegated.  In the remaining fixtures, a 38-26 win for Tonbridge Juddians over BSE sees them end the season in sixth spot, whilst Worthing were 19-26 winners at ldn Irish WG.

Ldn Premier/SW Premier Playoff: Visitors Bournemouth got off to a flyer in this playoff contest and must have thought it was going to be their day as they initially stretched to 0-19 lead before the home side got going and had reduced the half-time deficit to just 6-points with a 7-13 scoreline.  However, four converted tries in succession for Guernsey with only a penalty in response put a completely different complexion on the scoreline as they stretched to a 35-16 advantage. Bournemouth did manage another score but a drop goal by Guernsey capped a fine win to secure promotion 38-23.

Ldn 1 South/North Playoff: For the second year in succession Chingford hosted a playoff match and after the disappointment of losing out to Tunbridge wells last term were determined not to let the chance slip again.  An early exchange of penalties saw the score at 3-3 before Chingford crossed to take the score out to 8-3 and a further try and a penalty saw that extended to 16-3 at the interval.  Medway pulled themselves back into the match in the second half with an early converted try although Chingford responded with a try of their own; a further converted Medway try proved too little too late with the Essex club securing promotion with a 21-17 win.

Hants 1/Surrey 1 Playoff: Bognor thought their highly-successful season had come to an end and began to enjoy a well-deserved rest and then found themselves in the playoff for promotion against O Georgians who had finished runner-up to O Whitgiftians in Surrey 1. In the end it was not to be as they fell to a heavy 7-52 defeat and will feature in the new Hampshire Premier Division next season, whilst O Georgians move up to Ldn 3(SW).

It is with great sadness that the club has been informed this week of the passing of Bob Miles; Bob was a longstanding member of the club and player with the Veterans XV where he played in the centres and was gifted with great ball handling skills and a 'wicked sidestep'

Bob remained actively involved in the club on conclusion of his playing days and was an active part of the wider Veterans XV circle, regularly attending lunches and latterly giving his time to assist the club on a volunteer basis.

Bob was genuinely one of life's nice guys, always convivial and with a great sense of humour and those who knew him well are the better for having done so.  His passing is a great loss to his friends and familly and at this sad time in particular, our sympathies and condolences go to his wife Pauline and the family.

Bob's funeral will take place on Wednesday 9th May at Medway Crematorium at 11.45am.

Medway Crematorium, Robin Hood Lane, Blue Bell Hill, ME5 9QU

Dress: Club members are encouraged to wear blazers and club ties although more traditional black attire is not discouraged.

If desired, donations to Kent Air Ambulance or Fire Brigade Widows and Orphans Fund.

The wake will be held at The Village Hotel

National 1: With the title long secured, Coventry found themselves in the unfamiliar situation of recording two consecutive defeats as they fell to a 36-46 loss to second placed DMP. At the bottom relegated Fylde fell to a heavy 33-81 loss to Loughborough St, whilst O Albanians 21-24 loss at home to Plymouth Albion seals their relegation.  The third relegation place is yet to be confirmed with one of Hull Ionians or Rosslyn Pk likely to take the final spot.  Rosslyn Pk went down 34-19 at Moseley whilst Ionians lost 16-42 to Ampthill and with the Hull club facing champions Coventry next week; they look like the bookies favourites to go down.  In the local derby between Blackheath and Elthamians the honours went to the home side, with ‘club’ narrow 28-23 winners to secure fifth place for the season.  In the other fixtures Bishops Stortford lost out 27-33 to visiting Cambridge and Esher were 42-28 victors over Caldy.

National 2(S):  Although the top two positions are sorted there were mixed results for the two sides, with Cinderford narrow 19-24 winners at BSE whilst Chinnor fell to a heavy 52-29 defeat at Canterbury; although without detracting from the city club’s result it may be that with the playoff berth secured they are resting players whilst in Nat 2(N) Sale & Sedgley Pk are still fighting ‘tooth & nail’ for the title.  At the bottom end of the table the relegation issues will remain unresolved until next week; bottom club Broadstreet lost out 36-24 at Redruth whilst Wimbledon posted a big 55-17 result against fellow strugglers O Redcliffians.  Alongside Wimbledon and Redcliffians, Barnstaple are the other side in real relegation danger and their 22-36 loss at home to Worthing hasn’t helped their cause and a lot will ride on their final weekend clash with Wimbledon next Saturday.  In the other fixtures, TJs posted a resounding 26-66 result at fourth placed Taunton and move into sixth spot, whilst Redingensians were 19-29 winners at Clifton.  Ldn Irish WG, who have a very remote chance of relegation posted a 19-36 win at Henley in the last of the fixtures.

London Premier:  Interest at both top and bottom of the division on this final weekend of the campaign, Guernsey having lost top spot last week did all they could against visiting bottom club Towcestrians with a 54-10 result, but Barnes take the title and automatic promotion after they posted a similar 7-52 scoreline at S&E.  At the bottom the interest was in which of three clubs would fill that last relegation place to accompany Towcestrians and Southend for the drop; Sidcup did what they needed against Southend with a 34-17 win, but the other clubs in the mix all had fixtures against top five opposition.  Needing only a single point to ensure their survival, Shelford won 27-10 against fifth place Tunbridge Wells,  Guildford had a tough day against Hertford and whilst they lost out 31-41  the remaining result went their way as Westcombe Pk fell to a 16-35 defeat to a visiting Tring side and will play their rugby in Ldn 1(S) next season.  The remaining result saw Westcliff 35-24 victors over visiting Dorking

London 1(S): With the title already secured CS Rugby’s 52-14 result against Chobham was incidental, the key interest was in who would pick up the playoff berth against Chingford; third placed Havant did all that they could with a 68-33 win against Ldn Cornish but with Medway at home to bottom club Gravesend it predictably was never going to be enough as Medway secured the playoff berth with a 55-14 win.  At the bottom, at the start of the week two of the relegation places had been confirmed with the other to be decided between Colfes and Thurrock although come match day it was all academic as a 5-point deduction for Colfes had put salvation out of reach regardless of the results.  In the end it didn’t matter as whilst on paper the Essex club had the tougher looking proposition travelling to Cobham where they came off second best in a 54-34 scoreline,  Colfes hosted relegated Maidstone looking to reverse the opening weekend 34-21 loss, in the end Maidstone overturned a 14-point deficit to win a nail-biting encounter 27-28 which rendered Colfes points loss academic anyway.  Elsewhere Sevenoaks posted a solid 44-26 win against visiting Chichester whilst Tottonians just lost out to Brighton 43-47 in a high scoring encounter.

Ldn2(SE/SW) Promotion Playoff: Hove will join Dartfordians and Camberley in moving up to Ldn 1 (S) next season after they won a tight battle with O Reigatians, the runners up from Ldn 2(SW) 17-15.

London 2(SE):  A couple of outstanding fixtures from this division that ddn’t affect the promotion and relegation battles, with D&B just edging Charlton Pk 26-25 whilst Dover were 22-17 winners against Beckenham to move up to fifth place in the final standings.

London 3(SE): Despite there being four outstanding fixtures carried over from the regular season, none had any impact on the promotion or relegation situation;  at the top promoted Aylesford and Thanet Wdrs both won, with 19-36 and 8-26 results against Dunstonians and Crowborough respectively.  Bromley were 45-33 winners against visiting H&B whilst relegated clubs Folkestone and Sheppey  were due to lock horns although Sheppey conceded the fixture .

Kent/Sussex Promotion Playoff: Congratulations to Vigo join Beccehamians in promotion from Kent 1 as the ‘villagers’ return to Ldn 3(SE) after a 31-17 win against Sussex club Uckfield in the playoff.

Kent 1:  None of the previously postponed fixtures played today in this division had any bearing on the promotion or relegation issues which were all settled last week.  In the two matches NAG lost out 19-37 to visiting Cranbrook, whilst RBS won 26-42 at Southwark.

National 1: Champions Coventry slipped to a 22-10 loss at Ampthill whilst DMP were 40-7 winners against bottom club Fylde.  At the bottom of the table the relegation places still aren’t sorted with current incumbents O Albanians winning 29-34 at Elthamians to keep their hopes alive, whilst Loughborough St also posted a useful 32-14 result against Bishops Stortford.  Hull Ionians may well have done enough to survive with a tight 36-37 win at Rosslyn Pk, who are by no means safe themselves. Even Cambridge could get pulled into the late season battle after a 22-32 loss to visiting Esher.  In the remaining fixtures, Blackheath went down 42-18 at Caldy, whilst Plymouth Albion were 28-24 winners against Moseley.

National 2(S):  a 41-24 win for Cinderford over Taunton sees them one win from taking the title, whilst Chinnor had a much closer 28-27 win against visiting BSE and look destined to face either Sale or Sedgley Pk in the playoff.  At the foot of the table the bottom two clashed with relegated Broadstreet losing out 29-41 to Wimbledon, a result the keeps the SW London club’s hopes alive, at least for another week.  The third relegation place is currently between three clubs, with Ldn Irish WG currently in the frame after they lost 17-29 to Clifton. Barnstaple and O Redcliffians are the other two protagonists and they faced off against each other with Redcliffians comfortable 46-16 winners. In the remaining fixtures, TJs posted a solid 34-24 win against visiting Redruth, whilst Canterbury lost out 21-14 at Redingensians, the final fixture was a high scoring affair and saw Worthing beat Henley 55-41.

London Premier:  A change at the top of the table as leaders Guernsey slipped to a 22-17 defeat at third placed Tring with Barnes taking over top spot with a5-29 result at relegated Towcestrians. Hertford sit fourth after they were 40-12 winners against Westcliff and sit some 23-points clear of fifth placed Tunbridge Wells who were narrow 24-21 winners against Guildford who find themselves drawn back into the relegation battle.  At the bottom of the table Towcestrians are down as are Southend who lest 41-25 at Westcombe Pk who currently occupy the third relegation place.  Who finally goes down will go to the last day although with away wins for Sidcup and Shelford at Dorking (22-41) and S&E (31-49) they pretty much look to have done enough to survive, leaving it a battle between Combe and Guildford for survival, with both facing top four opposition on the last weekend. 

London 1(S): Leaders CS Rugby were comfortable 19-32 winners at struggling Thurrock, whilst Medway look to have done enough to have secured the playoff spot as they were comprehensive 59-0 winners over relegated Maidstone although Havant’s 31-38 win at Chobham means they can’t afford a final week slip up.  At the bottom Gravesend’s narrow 32-34 loss to Cobham keeps them at the foot of the table with the last of the relegation places still undecided with Colfes losing 37-34 at Chichester and currently occupying the third relegation place; although going into the final week of fixtures, of Colfes and Thurrock it looks on paper that Colfes might have the easier task.  In the other fixtures, Sevenoaks lost out 32-23 at Brighton and Ldn Cornish went down 39-45 to visiting Tottonians.

North of the Thames it looks like current leaders Brentwood will take the division whilst Chingford may well have to settle for the playoff for a second successive season, in what has pretty much been a two horse race for almost the last third of the campaign.

London 2(SE):  Top faced bottom with predictable results as Dartfordians rounded out the season with a 7-73 win at Barking. Hove’s big 54-9 win over D&B sees them secure second spot and a playoff against Ldn 2(SW) runners up O Reigatian.  Charlton Pk will finish third after a 26-36 win at Alleynians and still have one match left to play, whilst Horsham’s 10-36 win at Haywards Heath was enough to secure fourth place from Beckenham who beat relegated Pulborough 26-68.   In the remaining fixture Dover beat H&W 41-13.

London 3(SE):  The top two had been confirmed for a while and whilst Aylesford were already champions, their 17-25 win over visiting Folkestone was still significant as it saw the seaside club relegated to Kent 1 for next season. Runner Up Thanet Wdrs were comfortable 57-12 winners over Dunstonians with O Wills good end of season form seeing them end their campaign in third spot after a narrow 24-22 win against Crowborough although Bromley, who lost 57-31 at Lewes can still overhaul them.  At the foot of the table the two sides that were already relegated clashed, with Sheppey losing out to Crawley in a low scoring 3-7 scoreline.  The last of the fixtures saw Park Hse 33-17 winners against H&B.

Kent 1:  Champions Beccehamians were run very close by Anchorians but just shaded the match 29-30, whilst Vigo hammered bottom club Sittingbourne 82-5 to confirm the playoff against Sussex 1’s Uckfield.  A 14-7 result for kings Coll over HSBC sees them secure third place.  At the bottom end of the table the clash between NAG and Southwark would likely decide the other relegation place and a 24-14 win for the lancers confirms their survival for another season.  In mid-table Cranbrook were 13-34 winners at OGs.

It has been said that ‘age inevitably takes its toll on the bodies of even the most hardened rugby players, but the passion and desire to play still lives on’, and this last Sunday’s Spitfire Gold Veterans Trophy Finals held at The Mote certainly demonstrated that, with a day of rugby that despite the slightly damp conditions certainly lived up to the competitive yet Corinthian ethos of the game.

A weather enforced postponement from the original date in mid-March certainly hadn’t dampened the enthusiasm in what is now the fourth year of what is now a well-supported club competition across the county sponsored by Shepherd Neame; and there were four finals to be played across the two tiers of the tournament.

First up saw Beckenham take on Canterbury in the Shield Final, this was a closely contested encounter which saw Beckenham with the initial balance of power, but in the end it was Canterbury that lifted the trophy with a hard fought 10-17 result.  

The Plate Final saw two sides that have traditionally reached the finals day of the competition as Thanet Wdrs faced Tunbridge Wells, unfortunately the match whilst competitive proved to be somewhat one sided as Thanet ran in 46 unanswered points until Wells finally got on the scoreboard with the last play of the match, as the Wanderers took the trophy 46-7

The Bowl final proved to be a thrilling encounter between two well matched sides in O Gravesendians and Sittingbourne. The Swale club held sway initially but OGs came back into the game with never more than a score separating the sides.  The closing stages saw Sittingbourne throwing everything at their opponents in what was a gripping finale, but they just came up short with OGs taking the silverware 17-13.

The Cup Final saw a Sevenoaks side who just missed out on winning last years competition on try countback, face New Ash Green who having made the Bowl Final in all of the previous seasons now found themselves in the Tier 1 competition.  Injuries the previous day had shorn NAG of a few players, and as is the spirit of this competition the hosts had made up the numbers for the season finale.  Sevenoaks always looked to have too much firepower for the new boys to the cup competition although the match was very competitive during the first half.  It was going into the final quarter of the match that Oaks stretched away to lift the Cup with a 50-12 scoreline.

Our thanks to Dougie Dick from Shepherd Neame for presenting the trophies and to the match officials who gave their time and without whom we wouldn’t have a game.

National 1: League champions Coventry posted a 32-27 win against visiting Rosslyn Pk, but the main interest was in the chasing group as DMP look to have all but secured the runner up spot with a 15-17 win at third placed Ampthill.  Blackheath’s 23-12 win against visiting Cambridge sees them move up to fourth as Plymouth Albion fell to a surprising 33-14 loss at a Hull Ionians side looking to avoid the drop.  Elthamians maintained station in sixth place after a 28-32 win at Moseley.  At the bottom, relegated Fylde lost heavily, going down 71-24 at Bishops Stortford, whilst O Albanians look favourite to accompany Fylde, their fate is not yet sealed as they posted a 43-25 win against Caldy.  Loughborough Students posted a narrow 23-25 win at Esher and currently occupy the third relegation place, four points adrift of Hull Ionians and safety.

National 2(S):  A 7-24 win at Redruth keeps Cinderford at the head of the table from Chinnor who won high scoring encounter with fourth placed Taunton 43-56.  Redingensians in third also lost out, going down 27-24 at BSE.  At the foot of the table two of the strugglers faced each other with Barnstaple inflicting a narrow 16-12 defeat on Broadstreet, a result that confirms their relegation.  Wimbledon remain favourites to go down with them and gave their hopes a boost with a 22-17 win against TJs, whilst a 37-31 win against Worthing also keeps O Redcliffians hopes alive.  A 43-7 defeat at Canterbury for Ldn Irish WG sees them still satjust above the drop zone in a relegation battle that looks as if it may go to the final weekend of the season.  Elsewhere, Clifton were 29-22 winners against Henley.

London Premier:  A 38-27 win against struggling Westcombe Pk is still not enough to give Guernsey the title as Barnes kept up the pressure with a tight 20-17 win against promotion rivals Tring and next week’s clash between Tring and the league leaders could have a big say in how the placings end up.  Hertford in fourth are not yet wholly out of the picture with their 20-27 win at Sidcup whilst Tunbridge Wells complete the top five after they beat Westcliff 16-24 to exchange places with their opposition.  At the bottom of the division, relegated Towcestrians went down to a heavy71-19 defeat at Shelford, a result that moved the Cambridge based club out of the bottom three to be replaced by ‘Combe’ after their defeat.  Southend won 31-26 against Dorking, but with their fate already sealed the only outcome yet to be resolved is who of ‘Combe’, Sidcup and Shelford will join them.  In the remaining fixture Guildford lost out 19-24 to visiting S&E.

London 1(S): Top faced bottom with a predictable outcome as CS Rugby hammered Gravesend 88-5 whilst in second spot Medway slipped to a fourth defeat of the season, going down 41-24 at Cobham allowing third placed Havant to close the gap after they also ran in 80+ points in their 86-14 rout of Thurrock.  At the bottom whilst Gravesend and Maidstone’s fate is decided, with the county town club losing out 5-58 to visiting Chichester; the third relegation place is still not decided with Colfes’ tight 30-29 win against Brighton seeing them close the gap to safety to just 4-points.  In the mi-table encounter Sevenoaks beat Ldn Cornish 41-31.

London 2(SE):  Champions elect Dartfordians were 57-36 winners over Alleynians, whilst second placed Hove won 17-50 at H&W and now look favourites for the playoff berth against O Reigatians.  Charlton Pk still have a chance after a 39-25 win against Haywards Heath, but their fate is not solely in their own hands.  At the bottom of the table the relegation places were decided some time ago with both the relegated clubs losing again, as Pulborough went down 28-34 at home to D&B whilst Barking lost 52-12 at Beckenham. In mid-table Horsham were 41-12 winners against Dover.

London 3(SE):  Aylesford’s 22-5 win against Park Hse combined with second placed Thanet’s 30-9 defeat at Bromley sees the league title go to the Bulls whilst Dunstonians 19-31 win at relegated Sheppey keeps them in a distant third spot.  At the bottom, basement club Crawley lost 5-29 to visiting O Wills whilst Folkestone’s 40-7 defeat at Crowborough now sees them favourites for the third of the relegation places after H&B were solid 32-7 winners against fellow Sussex club Lewes.

Kent 1:  League champions Beccs were narrow 15-13 winners over second placed Vigo, who still remain favourites for the playoff place despite Kings Coll closing the gap after a 62-12 win against NAG.  At the bottom the division is propped up by the already relegated Sittingbourne who fell to a heavy 0-62 defeat to visiting Southwark, a result that somewhat eases the Lancers relegation worries.  In the mid table Ashford’s recent loss of form continued as they lost out 24-10 at HSBc, whilst Cranbrook were narrow victors in a low scoring affair against Anchorians (6-0). The last of the matches saw RBS 47-12 winners against visiting OGs.

Note:  The author had a discussion today in respect of who the playoff fixture would be against from Sussex 1, not quite as simple as you might think.  Due to only having eight teams in the league it appears that they play a regular season which is then followed by a two pool promotion/relegation playoff system (Sussex 1A & 1B) with points from the regular season carried into those respective pools.  Hellingly won the regular league season and also carried that form into the playoff pool to confirm their automatic promotion to Ldn 3(SE), the pool system saw a change in the runner up from the regular campaign as East Grinstead who had carried an advantage into the pool then lost form with Uckfield, who had finished third in the regular season overhauling them to take the playoff spot.

Kent 2:  This weekend saw the completion of the league fixtures for this division with Champions Whitstable signing off with a 26-12 win over Bexley, whilst Brockeians 5-39 win at Dartford valley was incidental as they could do nothing to overhaul Foots Cray in second, who sat out the final weekend.  In the remaining two fixtures Lordswood were 0-24 winners at Askean whilst Faversham signed of their campaign with a 23-19 win against Greenwich.

The evening of Friday the 27^th April saw Maidstone Rugby bring the curtain down on what has been a mixed season for the club. With 80 in attendance the club recognised the efforts of the members both on and off the pitch across the year.

Of the Players Awards, Rory Beech picked up the Head Coach’s award, whilst Karim Neseyif (Veterans), Jason Hudson (Barbarians), Sam Weston (Mustangs) and Lewis Stimpson (1^st XV) were rewarded with the respective team awards.

The evening saw four members recognised with Vice Presidencies: Neil Cole, Richard Gray, Eugene Moore and Martin Maytum.

The David Arnold Memorial Trophy was awarded to young hooker, Ryan Murphy; just reward for his hard work in recovery from serious knee injury and his performances with both the Mustangs and 1^st XVs this season.

Of the Club Awards; the Bernard Hinks Awards went to Mickey Back (Non Player), Richard Gray (Other XVs) and Matt Iles (1^st XV), with the Millennium Trophy for the team of the season being the reward for the league winning Mustangs XV.

The Harry Green Memorial Cup, which is not an annual presentation and awarded to a member for their commitment to the club over a sustained period, was presented to Sean Charlton in recognition of his long term contribution in several areas.

National 1: With champions elect Coventry narrow 21-24 winners at Plymouth Albion, the runners up spot looks like being taken by DMP who were 41-35 winners against Bishops Stortford, with Ampthill moving up into third after they were 21-31 winners at Rosslyn Pk.  For the county’s clubs, Blackheath and elthamians look like finishing fifth and sixth, with ‘Club’ ending honours even I a 24-24 draw at Loughborough St whilst Elthamians won 42-26 against Hull Ionians. At the bottom, relegated Fylde lost out 17-32 to Esher whilst O Albanians were beaten 50-26 at Cambridge. Loughborough still occupy a relegation place with Hull Ionians just above them.  None of the three have an easy run in and one good result by any of the three clubs could really shake up the order at the bottom.   In the other fixture Caldy just edged out Moseley 21-20.

National 2(S):  Leaders Cinderford were 45-8 winners against struggling Wimbledon, with second placed Chinnor narrow 34-33 winners against Redruth; if not quite yet mathematically, the promotion and playoff places are now effectively secured by the top two sides.  At the bottom of the table relegation is not yet confirmed for any club, although Broadstreet’s 20-23 loss at Redcliffians sees them anchoring the table and their opponents taking a step to potential safety.  Wimbledon sit just above Broadstreet whilst Barnstaple are the other side on the edge of the drop zone and a 32-14 defeat at TJs won’t ease their worries.  In mid-table Canterbury fought out a 30-30 draw at Henley, whilst Ldn Irish WG went down 29-50 at BSE; Worthing fell to a 24-36 loss to visiting Clifton whilst third & fourth battled it out with Redingensians taking the honours with a 31-15 win against Taunton.

London Premier:  At the top, leaders Guernsey fell to their first home defeat of the season as their nearest rivals Barnes posted a 22-28 win to narrow the gap to just 2 – points whilst third placed Tring also stay in the reckoning a further 2-points behind after a 40-5 win over struggling Shelford, a result that drops them into the relegation zone. Hertford stay fourth but out of contention after a hefty 71-3 win against Southend, a result that also confirms their relegation along with Towcestrians who fell 7-31 to visiting Guildford.  Shelford’s defeat and a 24-24 draw for Westcombe Pk against visiting Dorking sees them out of the drop zone on points difference, whilst Guildford and Sidcup who lost 29-21 at sixth placed Tunbridge Wells, are by no means clear of danger yet. In the remaining fixture S&E fell to an 8-50 home loss to fifth placed Westcliff.

London 1(S): At the top of the table CS rugby tipped into triple figures after a 15-24 win at Cobham and the title now looks theirs to lose as they face three bottom half clubs in the run in.  Medway stay second after a 29-15 win over Chichester with Havant in third following their 16-26 win at Gravesend, a result that sees the Kent side relegated.  Also at the bottom, Maidstone went down to a heavy 78-21 loss at Brighton, again a result that also seals their relegation.  The battle for the third relegation spot will be contested between Colfes and Thurrock, with Colfes losing out 24-19 at Ldn Cornish whilst Thurrock were 41-19 winners at Tottonians. the last of the fixtures saw Chobham just edged out 20-26 by visiting Sevenoaks.

There are previously postponed matches outstanding in this division which will be played over the Easter weekend as follows:

Thurrock v Colfes (Thurs 29^th)

Medway v Brighton (Sat 31^st)

Tottonians v Gravesend (Sat 31^st)

London 2(SE):  champions elect Dartfordians fell to an uncharacteristic 27-10 defeat at the hands of Haywards Heath, whilst in second spot Hove now look favourites for the playoff spot after they beat Horsham in a high scoring 43-38 encounter, whilst Charlton Park’s hopes were dented after they lost out 39-17 at Dover.  At the bottom of the table the two relegated sides faced off against each other with Barking 45-31 winners over Pulborough.  In the remaining fixtures, Alleynians went down 22-31 to Beckenham and D&B lost out 17-23 to H&W.

London 3(SE):  Bothe Aylesford and Thanet Wdrs are already promoted and posted wins against Lewes (15-25 and H&B (26-8) respectively.  The interest is at now the bottom end of the table where Sheppey who lost 33-7 to O Wills, and Crawley are already down, Folkestone currently occupy the third relegation place but their 34-15 win against Crawley sees them close the gap on a H&B side whose early season promise has deserted them and left them in danger.  Park Hse and Crowborough are still on the edge of the danger zone after a 34-30 result in favour of the Bromley outfit, between the two clubs.  In the last of the fixtures dunstonians fell to a 21-41 loss to visiting Bromley.

Kent 1:  Champions Beccs ran out 23-38 winners at Southwark, a result that drops the London based club into the drop zone, whilst Vigo now look to have all but secured the playoff place following a 22-15 win against Cranbrook, Anchorians sit third after a 64-22 win against RBS with Kings Coll fourth after a 0-36 win at an Ashford side that seem to have lost form.  At the bottom of the table a 23-12 defeat for Sittingbourne at NAG means thay are all but relegated, whilst the result lifted NAG out of the relegation zone. Although with two/three games remaining there are still three sides that could go down with Sittingbourne.  In the only other fixture OGs fell to a 17-27 defeat to HSBC.

Kent 2:  Champions Whitstable weren’t in action today and the battle for the second promotion spot was between Foots Cray and Brockleians, with Brocks needing their rivals to slip up at Greenwich to have any chance, in the end a 7-40 win was more than enough to sink Brocks chances despite their own solid 56-10 win against Askean. The other results saw Lordswood 4-5 winners against Faversham, whilst Bexley beat Dartford Valley 17-29.

Here are the latest winners for the 500 club.

March:

£100 - Martin Arnold

£50 - Brian Lovelidge and Trevor Langley

£30 - Steve Matthews

You've got to be in it to win it!!

When the sun shone and people were walking around in T Shirts on Friday afternoon, there were a few serious misgivings about whether the previous day's decision to postpone the Spitfire Gold Veterans Finals had been correct. However, after the weekend's weather the concensus was amongst anyone that had either played or stood on the touchline, that Sunday would have been a horrible experience had we not done so.

After careful consideration and feedback from the respective clubs the finals will now take place on Sunday 8th April; we acknowledge that its impossible to please everyone (especially those who's Vets may be involved in League games on the Saturday). But as the season draws to a close there is a lot to fit in with Kent Cup Finals, Tours and respective Youth Festivals & Finals, not just for us as hosts but also for the participating finalists, many of whom have other responsibilities within their clubs.

The outline schedule for the day will ideally see all the finals played on on the 1st XV pitch as 60 minute matches as follows:

Shield Final: Beckenham v Canterbury, KO 13:30

Plate Final: Tunbridge Wells v Thanet Wdrs, KO 14:40

Bowl Final: Sittingbourne v O Gravesendians, KO 15:50

Cup Final: New Ash Green v Sevenoaks, KO 17:00

Apart from the RFU Cup competition regional finals, this weekend was largely spare until the ‘Beast from the East’ at the start of the month saw blanket postponements.  In large part the overwhelming majority went ahead despite the second cold snap in as many weeks.

National 1: Action for the top three clubs here with Coventry now confirmed as champions after a 12-55 win at Caldy, and with only a solitary promotion place it rather made the results  for DMP and Plymouth Albion academic.  Wins for both, with DMP 15-25 winners at Cambridge and Plymouth 17 -10 victors against Bishops Stortford means both can still take the runners up place currently occupied by the NE club.

National 2(S):  At the top a 40-12 win against struggling O Redcliffians for Cinderford keeps them 9-points clear of Chinnor who beat Barnstaple 41-12. At the bottom Broadstreet lost 22-14 at Tonbridge, Wimbledon  sit just above them but had no fixture this week with their early fixtre against Redingensians having been the only surviving fixture of the blizzards earlier this month.  Redcliffians complete the bottom three and are 8-points adrift of Barnstaple and Clifton, who won 29-7 against BSE. In the mid-table fixtures Ldn Irish WG posted an important 39-32 win against Redruth whilst Canterbury fell to a 22-17 defeat at Worthing. Henley’s match against Taunton was scheduled for Sunday but yet again fell victim to the weather.

London Premier:  With leaders Guernsey having no fixture, a 42-10 win for Barnes against struggling Shelford narrowed the gap to 6-points at the top of the table, with Tring a further two points behind following their 26-12 win against Westcliff.  The bottom of the table a welcome 19-34 win for Sidcup moves them well clear of the drop zone, and in doing so confirms Towcestrians relegation after just one season.  Southend’s 31-22 defeat at S&E means they are just one more defeat away from the drop whilst Westcombe Pk’s 24-22 win against Hertford means they are just 3-points from safety as well as denting their opposition’s playoff hopes.  Shelford and Guildford, who had no fixture now look to be the clubs in immediate relegation danger if Combe are able to pull off their Houdini act.

London 1(S): with Medway’s match against Brighton falling to the weather, CS Ruby or Havant faced each other knowing they could stretch their lead or close the gap as appropriate.  In the end a 19-10 win for the leaders sees them with a 9-point buffer, whilst Havant were unable to narrow the margin on the Kent club.  At the bottom, Gravesend played their fixture against Sevenoaks on the Friday evening and scraped a narrow 18-17 win but still remain bottom, whilst Maidstone went down 32-18 at Chobham.  The match between Thurrock and Colfes was again postponed. In md-table Ldn Cornish and Chichester drew 20-20 whilst Cobham squeaked a 20-19 win against tottonians.

London 2(SE):  A 14-25 win for dartfordians at Hove sees them secure the league title and promotion whilst denting the playoff hopes of their nearest challengers given third placed Charlton Pk had business elsewhere on the day meaning their clash with D&B was postponed. Horsham’s 22-14 win against H&W still sees them with an outside chance of a playoff challenge.  At the bottom of the table, already relegated Barking conceded their fixture at Haywards Heath, whilst Pulborough’s 45-15 defeat at Alleynians confirmed their relegation. The remaining fixture between Dover and Beckenham was postponed.

London 3(SE):  Only two matches survived the weather and one of those was a HWO as crawley conceded their fixture at Lewes, whilst in the other fixture, Park Hse lost out 12-38 to O Wills.

Kent 1:  At the top a 0-47 win for Beccs at bottom club Sittingbourne means the leaders are just one win from the title, Vigo sit second and the combination of their 41-12 victory over HSBC and Ashford falling to a 15-17 defeat to Anchorians means they are favourites to face East Grinstead in the promotion playoff.  At the foot of the division, Sittingbourne look almost certain for the drop, with the other place being contested between NAG, Southwark and RBS whose matches were postponed. The only other fixture to survive saw OGs hammer Kings Coll 55-0.

Kent 2:  At the top Whitstable have just one fixture remaining, but this weekend’s 5-25 win at Lordswood sees them take the league title and promotion.  The other two promotion contenders faced off against each other, with Foots Cray 3-16 winners at Brockleians to currently put themselves in pole position, although Brocks have a match in hand and probably look favourites to take the place.  In the other fixtures Askean went down 21-32 to visiting Faversham, whilst Bexley beat Greenwich 0-37.

RFU Cup Competitions (Divisional Finals)

RFU Intermediate Cup: Disappointment for Charlton Pk as they lost out in their attempt to make it a second successive divisional intermediate Cup title, losing out by the narrowest of margins, 12-13 at home  against Camberley, who now travel to Gloucester club Coney Hill for the National Semi-finals.

RFU Senior Vase:  Disappointment for Bromley, who have a good record in this competition as they fell to a heavy 3-36 home defeat to last season’s beaten finalists O Cranleighians, they now travel to Cornwall to face the SW divisional champions Saltash.

RFU Junior Vase: There was no county representation in the divisional final with both ashford and Anchorians falling at the semi-final stage.  In the end it was a powerful Chipstead side that proved to have too much for O Wimbledonians, running out 0-29 winners to take the divisional title and progress to face Devon based Sth Molton.

National 1: In all five fixtures took place over the weekend with the previously postponed fixtures involving both of the county’s sides taking place on Good Friday, unfortunately both resulting in defeats as fifth placed Blackheath went down 15-5 at Bishops Stortford and rivals Elthamans were unable to close the gap in sixth place as they were beaten 6-18 by visiting third placed Ampthill. On Saturday Plymouth Albion’s fixture against relegation threatened Loughborough St was an early postponement due to a waterlogged pitch, whilst second placed DMP were narrow 18-16 winners against visiting Esher.  The last of the matches also affected the relegation battle and as struggling Hull Ionians drew little succour from a 29-19 loss at Cambridge.

National 2(S):  Just a single outstanding fixture in this division to be played as Henley hosted Taunton in a top six clash with the visitors running out 15-20 winners to narrow the gap on third placed Redingensians.

London 1(S): A number of previously postponed fixtures took place over the weekend, with Thursday evening seeing the clash between the two remaining relegation protagonists take place with Thurrock hosting Colfes.  A 20-10 win for the home side now gives them an 8-point cushion and it is looking highly likely that all three relegation places will be occupied by Kent clubs.  The two Saturday fixtures both went with home advantage as Medway were convincing 45-10 winners against Brighton and now look favourites to secure the playoff spot, whilst in the other fixture bottom club Gravesend went down 41-26 at Tottonians.

In conjunction with the RFU, Maidstone Rugby will be hosting a match on Saturday 31st March 2018 at The Mote.

This match is primarily aimed at a mixture of players who have played at Maidstone at youth level or have played in recent years but not within the past season.

We'd like to invite YOU to come and join us for a friendly game, consisting of players in this situation. You can always invite friends to come along to play as well.

Eligible players must fall into just ONE of the following;

- Aged 18 -25 yrs.

- Have played at Maidstone before but not this season.

- Have not played at Maidstone ever.

So why not come down, join in and see what you've been missing out on......or perhaps never had?!

If you are interested, please get in contact with the club via the contacts page at the earliest opportunity, so that we can gauge numbers and start assembling two teams.

National 1: Coventry’s 48-13 win against Elthamians effectively seals the league title as with 6 games remaining they now sit 30 points clear of DMP who slumped to a 38-26 loss at Rosslyn Pk.  The third and fourth placed clubs faced off against each other with Ampthill 33-28 winners against Plymouth Albion and still in with a shout of the playoff place.  At the bottom end of the table Fylde’s relegation was confirmed with a 36-5 loss at fifth placed Blackheath, whilst O Albanians look likely to join them despite a 34-19 win against a Loughborough St outfit that are also involved in the relegation battle. Hull Ionians posted a 29-24 win against Caldy to sit just above the drop zone, whilst losses for Esher and Cambridge against Bishops Stortford (17-28) and Moseley (14-13) could possibly still see them dragged into the battle. 

National 2(S):  A narrow 18-20 win for leaders Cinderford at Barnstaple keeps them 9-points clear of Chinnor, who won 27-37 at struggling Wimbledon.  Chinnor have a14-point buffer to third placed Redingensians who slipped to a 2519 defeat at Redruth.  At the foot of the table, a 29-14 win for Broadstreet against Worthing keeps their survival hopes just about alive as are Wimbledon’s just above them.  O Redcliffians complete the bottom three and a 14-10 win over TJs means they keep in touch with Clifton just above them after they won 17-24 at Canterbury, and Ldn Irish WG who lost out 31-24 to Taunton.  The last of the fixtures saw BSE go down 18-27 at home to visiting Henley.

London Premier:  Leaders Guernsey will be relieved with tight 21-22 win at struggling Shelford  to maintain a buffer to the chasing pack of Barnes, Tring and Hertford who all won.  Barnes overcame struggling Westcombe Pk 33-19, whilst Tring hammered Guildford  5-73 and Hertford had a tight 17-19 result at Dorking.  At the bottom, Towcestrians lost heavily, 68-10 at Westcliff and are now all but relegated, Southend look favourites to join them after they slumped to an 8-45 defeat to Tunbridge Wells with Combe completing the drop zone trio and 7-points shy of Sidcup, who also lost out, with a 25-32 loss to S&E, although Guildford and Shelford just above them could still get sucked into the relegation battle on the run in.

London 1(S): The top two went head to head, with leaders CS Rugby taking revenge for the reverse fixture with a 19-10 win to inflict a second consecutive defeat on Medway.  Havant who vanquished them in their last outing took the opportunity to close the gap in third with a 43-31 win over Cobham; a tight 26-23 win for Chichester over Brighton keeps them in fourth place.  At the bottom of the table Gravesend’s trip to Tottonians was postponed, whilst Maidstone just lost out 15-18 at home to Ldn Cornish.  Above them both Colfes and Thurrock posted narrow wins, with Colfes 20-19 victors over Chobham, whilst Thurrock beat Sevenoaks 16-18.

London 2(SE):  A 20-30 wi for dartfordians at Dover sees them one win from the league title, whilst the battle for the playoff spot now looks to be a two horsed race between Hove and Charlton Pk, with Charlton Pk getting the better of the head to head between the two with a 27-20 win.  Horsham’s 14-5 win against D&B sees them a distant fourth.  At the bottom, an already relegated Barking lost out 17-37 at Alleynians, whilst Pulborough’s 14-26 loss at home to H&W means they remain favourites to join Barking.  In the mid table battle Beckenham won a low scoring encounter with Haywards Heath with an 8-0 scoreline.

London 3(SE):  The leading two went up against each other with Aylesford doing the double of Thanet Wdrs in a 19-15 scoreline although with a minimum 15-point buffer these two now look to have secured promotion, as Dunstonians in a distant third place slumped to a 15-13 loss at H&B.  at the bottom Crawley and Sheppey are already relegated and lost to Park Hse (17-35) and Bromley (26-29) respectively. The third relegation spot is currently occupied by Folkestone who won 7-19 at O Wills but although currently 6-points shy of safety Folkestone look to have a more comfortable run in than some of the sides above them.  In the remaining fixture Crowborough were 10-3 winners against local rivals Lewes.

Kent 1:  A tight 25-23 win against struggling NAG keeps Beccs 12-points clear at the top, whilst second placed Vigo were 0-49 winners at RBS and currently look favourites for the playoff spot.  That said it remains tight in the top half of the table and any slip up could see the side below cash in.  Ashford lead that charge after a 39-7 win against OGs whilst Kings Coll beat bottom club Sittingbourne 47-22 to stay in the hunt, along with Anchorians who lost out 29-22 at HSBC.  At the bottom Sittingbourne anchor the division with NAG just above them, Southwark are just 3-points above them after they lost narrowly 29-28 at Cranbrook.

Kent 2:  A 34-3 win for Whitstable over Greenwich combined with Foots Cray stumbling to a 10-17 home defeat to Lordswood means the leaders have a six point cushion.  Brockleians remain in the promotion battle after they beat Faversham 7-29.  With Whitstable in pole position now looks like next week’s clash between second and third may resolve the promotion battle.  The remaining fixture saw Askeans lose out 12-36 to visiting Dartford Valley.

As was apparent earlier in the week, most of the weekend’s fixtures succumbed to the weather with only a handful of fixtures surviving the combination pf the onslaught from the ‘Beast from the East’ and ‘Storm Emma’, of which only one was below level 5, a Surrey 4 fixture which ended up as a walkover anyway, all other fixtures across the region were postponed to Sat 17^th March.

National 1: Two fixtures survived the cold and both were relevant to the relegation battle, in particular the clash between Fylde and O Albanians which went the way of the Hertfordshire club 21-31 and keeps their survival hopes alive.  For Fylde, they are 26-points adrift of safety and the next couple of weeks could see their relegation confirmed. The other match saw Loughborough host Moseley and despite narrowly losing out to the visitors 32-33, the bonus points were enough to lift Loughborough out of the bottom three, although they are tied on points with Hull Ionians.

National 2(S): In the only fixture to survive in the division Wimbledon travelled to fourth placed Redingensians, predictably the result went according to league standings with the home side running out 24-15 winners to move into third spot.  For Wimbledon the result deepens their relegation woes and leaves them fewer matches than their rivals to achieve sanctuary above Clifton

London Premier:  Guernsey’s warmer climate saw the league leader’s match against visiting Guildford as the only surviving fixture.  Guernsey are unbeaten at home this season and as expected overturned the November defeat suffered at the hands of their opponents with comfortable 38-7 scoreline.

With so many postponements this is perhaps an opportune moment to look at what’s happening elsewhere as we enter the latter stages of the league and cup competitions.

RFU Cup Competitions (Regional Finals)

In the RFU Cup competitions the draw was held this week after last weekend’s regional semi-finals.  Both surviving Kent clubs received home draws for the respective finals as Charlton Pk will host Ldn 2(SW) leaders Camberley in the Intermediate Cup, whilst in the Senior Vase Bromley will entertain O Cranleighians who made the same stage in the competition and currently head Ldn 3(SW).  The Junior Vase is an all Surrey 1 affair as two mid-table sides in O Wimbledonians and Chipstead go head to head.

Other Leagues:

SW Premier:  Dings Crusaders look likely to return to national 2 as they sit atop the division and 19-points clear of their nearest challenger.  The playoff place against London Premier opponents still looks open as the chasing three clubs (Bournemouth, Newton Abbott and Maidenhead) are separated by just 3-points.

London 1 (N): Whilst Ldn 1(S) remains a three horse race, for the division north of the Thames it is very much a two horse race as leaders Brentwood and Chingford sit 17-points clear at the top and are separated by only a single point. On paper Chingford might look to have the easier run in but the clash between the two later this month may well decide the issue. At the foot of the table whilst survival is still mathematically possible the three clubs to be relegated looks to have already been decided, with Sth Woodham Ferrers propping up the table with Letchworth Gdn City and Saffron Walden the other two likely to go down.

London 2 (SW): Camberley top the table and with a 16-point buffer look like they will take the title and automatic promotion.  The playoff spot looks to be between O Reigatian who are currently second and 6-points ahead of nearest challenger Twickenham.  At the bottom it looks like perm two from three with just 2-points separating the bottom three clubs with Eastleigh bottom from Winchester and Effingham & Leatherhead.

London 3(SW):  With automatic promotion and no playoff at this level it doesn’t directly affect the Ldn SE league quadrant.  Nevertheless, two clubs are locked together at the top on 79 points with O Cranleighians top and O Emmanuel second but level on points. They both sit 10-points clear of Portsmouth in third.  The bottom sees Basingstoke already relegated and New Milton & Dist and Weybridge Vandals looking like the other two relegation candidates.

Sussex 1:  With this division only consisting of eight clubs, the league campaign is already concluded with Hellingly obviously benefiting from their new pitch this season and taking the title with a 100% record from East Grinstead who were 16-points adrift and will face the runners up in Kent 1 in the promotion playoff at the end of the season.

National 1: Just four matches in this division as the league catches up on previously postponed fixtures.  By far the most interesting was the clash of the top two as leaders Coventry travelled to DMP and came away with a convincing 0-42 win that sees them just a couple more winning results from securing the league title and promotion.  Plymouth Albion moved back into third spot after they beat Moseley 16-20, whilst in mid table the match between Cambridge and visiting Caldy ended in a 6-15 defeat for the hosts.  At the bottom end of the division Hull Ionians moved above Loughborough St and out of the bottom three with a tight 27-26 win over Rosslyn Pk.

RFU Cup Competitions (Regional Semi-Finals)

RFU Intermediate Cup: Charlton Park’s bid for a return to Twickenham continues as they were 24-32 winners at Norwich to book their place in the regional final where they will face Camberly, who were convincing 47-8 winners against visiting Rochford Hundred.

RFU Senior Vase:  Bromley maintained their habit of recent years in making the latter stages of this competition and will again represent the county in the regional final after 7-27 victory at Hampshire club Trojans.  They will face one of the finalists from last year in O Cranleighians who beat Portsmouth 26-20.

RFU Junior Vase: Despite having a representative in each semi-final, unfortunately the county won’t be represented in this year’s regional final; as Ashford fell to a 3-15 defeat to visiting Chipstead whilst Anchorians lost out 29-17 at O Wimbledonians in the other semi-final.

Mitsubishi Motors Volunteer of the Year

The Mitsubishi Motors Volunteer of the Year is a nationwide initiative in conjunction with the RFU that gives you the opportunity to nominate a volunteer at your grassroots rugby club, or wider rugby family, who deserves recognition for their commitment to the game.

For full information on the range of categories and how to nominate please click here

Important:  Please note the closing date for nominations is midnight on Sunday 25 February 2018

Kent RFU Volunteer Recognition Awards

Recognising volunteers within Rugby is at the heartbeat of club support for Kent RFU. Currently there are two ways to nominate your club volunteers for recognition:

The nominations for the Kent RFU Volunteer Awards 2017/2018 are now open, with a deadline for receipt of nominations 31st March 2018.

Please note: Nominations are via the SurveyMonkey form only: click here

Note:  Making a nomination, particularly for the Kent RFU Awards is not confined to members of the club committee, anyone can make a nomination.  However; the club does request that if you do submit a nomination, could you please let Hon Sec Melanie White know, in confidence, just so there is an awareness of what's happening across the club.  Your cooperation appreciated.

Here are the latest winners for the 500 club.

February:

£100 - James Findlay

£50 - Peter Sime and Nigel Rees

£30 - Steve Matthews

You've got to be in it to win it!!

National 1: With second placed DMP going down 34-19 at fourth placed Plymouth Albion, the title now looks ‘done & dusted’ as they now sit 21-points adrift of leaders Coventry who were 40-10 winners over Cambridge.  Third placed Ampthill were 30-14 winners against Caldy, with fifth placed Blackheath’s tight 29-28 win against Esher keeping them just ahead fellow Kent club Elthamians who won 29-36 at Rosslyn Pk.  At the foot of the table a 36-21 defeat at Moseley keeps Fylde anchored to the bottom and now looking doomed.  Albanians sit just above them and a 36-17 win over Bishops Stortford means they can still see light at the end of the survival tunnel, as can Hull Ionians following their 15-15 draw with fellow strugglers Loughborough St.

National 2(S):  The top two positions in the table look pretty much decided as a 3-36 win for leaders Cinderford at bottom club Broadstreet gives them a 10-point buffer to second placed Chinnor who won 19-24 at O Redcliffians and have a 15-point buffer to Taunton in third place after they beat Clifton 29-27 in a tight encounter; and Redingensians in fourth after they won 31-38 at Barnstaple.  The bottom of the table is still quite tight and whilst Broadstreet look certain for the drop, there is still hope for Wimbledon who won 46-21 against Ldn Irsh WG and O Redcliffians despite their defeat.  Clifton’s loss sees them still involved in the relegation battle although the sides above them have something of a safety buffer.  In the other results in the division, Redruth were 49-38 winners against Henley, TJs won 25-21 against Worthing whilst Canterbury fell to a 46-26 defeat at BSE.

London Premier:  Wins for the top four clubs see no change in the order at the head of the division, with Guernsey’s 29-51 win at fifth placed Westcliff keeping them top and looking favourites for the automatic promotion place, Barnes were 19-42 winners at Guildford to stay in second spot, whilst both Tring and Hertford stay in playoff contention with wins against Kent clubs Sidcup (20-30) and Tunbridge Wells (43-17) respectively.  At the foot of the division the bottom two clashed with Southend just losing out 14-15 to Towcestrians, although the result still looks like being too little to late.  The other important clash in the relegation contest was between Shelford and visiting Westcombe Pk , with the result going in favour of the home side 27-16 and keeping Combe still mired in relegation danger.  S&E’s 31-15 defeat at Dorking sees them now flirting with the danger zone along with Sidcup and possibly Guildford.

London 1(S): It’s a long time since Medway’s name hasn’t been at the top of the table, but a 29-10 loss at third placed Havant sees them cede top spot to CS Rugby who were 33-43 winners at Tottonians.  Chichester’s 37-19 win against Chobham keeps them in fourth spot but effectively out of contention in what still looks like a two horse race.  At the foot of the table the bottom four were all pitched against each other, with bottom club Gravesend falling to a 31-17 defeat at relegation threatened Colfes,  whilst Maidstone were 40-22 winners against Thurrock in their efforts to close the gap on safety.  In the mid-table clashes Brighton were 29-20 winners against Ldn Cornish and Sevenoaks narrowly lost out 17-19 to visiting Cobham.

London 2(SE):  A 30-8 result for Dartfordians over D&B keeps then 14-points clear of second placed Hove who were narrow 21-22 winners at Beckenham.  Charlton Pk are still in with a shout in third spot after they beat H&W 38-31.  At the bottom, relegated Barking put in an encouraging performance despite losing 27-33 to visiting Dover, whilst Pulborough lost out 17-24 to Horsham and now look unlikely to bridge the 15-point gap to H&W and safety with just 5 fixtures left.  In the remaining match Alleynians were 35-10 winners against Haywards Heath.

London 3(SE):  Before covering this week’s results, one that sneaked past last week was the previously postponed fixture between struggling Crawley and title challengers Aylesford; predictably the result went the way of Aylesford 0-27 pushing them back to the head of the table and sealing their hosts relegation back to Sussex 1 in the process.

This week sees Aylesford stay top on points difference after a 17-0 win against Bromley, whilst Thanet’s BP 7-33 win against bottom club Crawley allowed them to draw level on points.  Dunstonians sit third but a long way adrift despite a 10-17 win at Crowborough.  The bottom of the table sees both Crawley and Sheppey now relegated after the island club lost  19-45 at home to H&B.  The third relegation place looks like being fought out between Folkestone and Park Hse, with the former in prime position after the two sides exchanged places after falling to a 10-22 home defeat to the Bromley based outfit.  The remaining fixture saw O Wills run out solid 32-17 winners against Lewes to sit comfortably in upper mid-table.

Kent 1:   Leaders Beccs tripped up in a major way as they fell to a 48-14 defeat at King Coll, a result that pulls the hospital club back into playoff contention, whilst in second place Vigo now have the upper hand over Ashford who slip to fourth following a 20-26 win at the mid-Kent club.  The clash between OGs and Anchorians went the way of the Gillingham club with a 12-29 result that sees them move into third spot.   At the bottom it now looks like Sittingbourne are favourites for the drop after a 58-5 thrashing at Cranbrook sees them beginning to fall adrift.  NAG currently occupy the other relegation place despite a 20-20 at RBS, with Southwark moving out of the drop zone after they won 30-40 at HSBC. 

Kent 2:  The top three were all in action but the clash between Whistable and Brockleians was the key battle and going in favour of the east Kent club 22-12 to see them two points clear of Foots Cray who defeated Askean 36-10 with Brockleians now third and 6-points adrift, although they have a match in hand.  Elsewhere Lordswood were 17-19 winners at Bexley whilst Faversham won 14-5 over visiting Dartford Valley.

Due to the wet weather we have quite a bit of work to do on the pitches to keep them playable and prevent them deteriorating. The pitches are maintained by colunteers within the club who meet every Friday to get large & small jobs completed  as well as afternoons & mornings during the week.

Recent weather has curatailed midweek activity as well as impinging on what can be achieved on friday mornings and there are quite a lot of areas on the pitches that need hand forking and sand applied this week to assist drainage (both in the short & longer term). This will ensure that games can go ahead and also has longer term benefits for the pitches.  Given it is half term and people may have time available, the club would be grateful of extra assistance this Friday (16th Feb).

We meet at 9:00am for a bacon roll & tea and then get to work. Many hands make light work and with some extra bodies we can get a lot done by working concurrently on more than one pitch to achieve quite a lot in a short space of time. if you can, or are prepared to  spare the time then your help would be most appreciated. Could you please icontact Bob Hayton (07979 501433) if you're able to help out this week; you never know, you might enjoy yourself.

Please bring a fork/spade/rake along if you are coming.

It is with great sadness that we have to report the death of Dave Dunne on 11^th February after a long illness at the age of 70.

Dave was rugby captain of his school team Bromley Tech School and at 18 played for a local team in Beckenham but gave up after a back injury.  He came to Maidstone in 1969 and he took up various sports -  judo, badminton, squash and fencing and around 1976 played social rugby with Dave Flatman’s  father, a side called ‘The Jubilees’.  In the late 1980’s he met Dave Arnold in the dentist chair and he invited him to play for the club (initially 4^th XV then Vets) which he did on the wing until 2001 when he suffered a shoulder injury. He carried on coaching the youth with Mark Price and Dave Hughes.

Dave loved all aspects of the game – especially the comradeship of the Vets, a good tourist but couldn’t drink a lot before he got very verbal, which always lead to good and interesting conversations!

Dave and his wife moved to Launceston, Cornwall in 2007 where his energies where put to work redesigning his now beautiful garden.

We send our condolences to his wife Sue, his sons Michael and Stephen and his daughter Louise

National 1: A 24-31 win for leaders Coventry keeps them well clear at the top of the table whilst the result leaves opponents Loughborough St still stuck on the edge of the relegation battle.  DMP stay second after they beat visiting Blackheath 33-19, whilst third placed Ampthill lost ground after they lost 20-8 at Cambridge as did Plymouth Albion who suffered a 16-12 loss at Elthamians.  At the bottom Fylde lost out narrowly to Hull Ionians and look certain for the drop whilst the Humberside club closed the gap on Loughborough and potential safety.  O Albanians also look likely to go down after they went down to a 24-8 defeat at Esher.  In mid table Bishops Stortford lost out 10-15 to visiting Moseley, whilst Caldy were solid 33-3 winners over Rosslyn Pk.

National 2(S):  A 26-0 result over visiting TJs keeps Cinderford 10-points clear at the top from Chinnor, who were 25-17 winners against visiting Broadstreet, who slip to the bottom of the table. Taunton and Redingensians sit 15-points adrift in third and fourth places respectively after wins against Canterbury (12-21) and O Redcliffians (14-21).  At the foot of the division Broadstreet prop up te table from Wimbledon who were 0-19 winners at Henley, with O Redcliffians just above them.  Those three look favourites to go down although Clifton’s 6-26 loss to visiting Redruth sees them still in danger of being drawn into the drop zone. The same could be said for Ldn Irish WG who ended a four match losing streak with a 37-22 win over Barnstaple, who themselves are not totally safe from the relegation battle.  In the last of the fixtures, Worthing were 24-18 winners over visiting BSE.

London Premier:  Just the one fixture in the division which was the previously postponed fixture between Westcliff and Hertford with the result going he way of visiting Hertford with a 12-19 scoreline, a result which keeps them in the contest for the promotion playoff and probably ends fifth placed Westcliff’s involvement in the same.

RFU Junior Vase:  In the one outstanding fixture in the RFU Cup competitions Anchorians faced Reeds Weybridge for a place in the Junior Vase regional semi-finals in two weeks time; in a tight contest they were 17-15 winners and now join Ashford in the last four.  Ashford will host Surrey based Chipstead, whilst Anchorians travel to O Wimbledonians.

The club is sorry to have to report the death of Dave Laughton, a stalwart member of the club through the ‘70s and early ‘80s.

Dave joined the club in October 1970 by the then usual route of turning up at the then Market House, in Earle Street, to enquire of the publican, Geoff Fletcher, the details of training and playing. Geoff himself was a club member and hosted the weekly selection meetings in the upstairs room.

Very quickly, Dave found his level in the 4^th XV as a solid member of the second row, aided by his capacity to drink significant quantities of beer whilst retaining the ability to drive home without incurring the notice of the Kent constabulary. His regular attendance on a Saturday afternoon, along with his failure to show any sign of injury quickly brought him to the attention of the ‘committee’ and he was honoured with the title of ‘skipper’, which he held for many years.

Dave hailed from Wakefield and he never lost his broad Yorkshire accent nor his contempt for ‘southern softies’. Work eventually forced him to leave the area in 1984 and he relocated to Cork, in Ireland, where he and his family lived until his passing, from cancer, in January.

He will be remembered by many of the Vets and older members of the club who, I know, wish to send their condolences to his wife of fifty years, Brenda.

National 1: Top faced bottom with a predictable outcome as Coventry were 47-3 winners against Fylde, with DMP narrow 14-19 winners at Elthamians to stay in second spot and with games in hand over third placed Ampthill, who drew 17-17 with visiting Loughborough St. Plymouth Albion were 21-16 winners against visiting Caldy whilst fifth placed Blackheath won 6-32 at struggling O Albanians.  At the foot of the division Hull Ionians sit just above Fylde and Albanians but fell to a 14-21 loss to Bishops Stortford to lose ground on Loughborough in the battle for survival. The last of the fixtures saw Rosslyn Pk narrow 10-7 winners against Cambridge.

National 2(S):  At the top a 29-12 win for Cinderford over Worthing saw them notch up 100 league points which sees them 10-points clear of Chinnor who just edged out TJs 13-14. Wins for Taunton against BSE (24-10) and Redingensians at Broadstreet (14-36) sees them locked together in third & fourth spots but realistically now well out of contention.  At the foot of the table Wimbledon stay bottom despite a 20-15 win against Clifton, whilst O Redcliffians also won, 20-14 against Ldn Irish WG, both results that could see the losing sides drawn into the relegation battle.  The last of the fixtures saw Barnstaple narrow 10-7 winners against Henley, whilst Canterbury went down 31-19 at Redruth.

London Premier:  Wins for all of the top four sides as leaders Guernsey were convincing 69-5 winners against Sidcup, a result that could see the Kent club drawn into the relegation dogfight, Barnes beat fifth placed Westcliff 35-7 whilst Tring were 25-5 winners against struggling Southend who now look to be too far adrift in the bottom three to salvage the season.  Fourth placed Hertford were 8-39 winners at S&E, who like Sidcup could be dragged into the relegation battle.  At the bottom Towcestrians look certain for the drop after 10-24 defeat to Dorking sees them at least 23-points from safety.  Westcombe Pk sit atop the bottom three after a tight 11-10 win against Tunbridge Wells in the Kent derby keeps their survival hopes alive as they are now just 3-points from Shelford, who hammered Guildford 64-0

London 1(S): Solid wins for the leading two clubs sees no change at the top, with Medway 38-10 winners against Ldn Cornsih, whilst second placed CS Rugby beat Sevenoaks 44-9.   A 27-15 win fo Havant over Tottonians keeps them just about in touch but reliant on the top two slipping up somewhere in the end of season run in, whilst Chichester now look out of contention with a surprise 20-10 reversal at Thurrock.  The foot of the table saw Maidstone 37-26 winners at Gravesend to move off the bottom as the two clubs exchanged places.  Colfes occupy the last of the relegation spots after they went down 46-30 at Cobham.  In the remaining fixture Brighton were 8-14 winners at Chobham.

London 2(SE):  dartfordians maintained their buffer at the top of the table with a 5-26 win at H&W, whilst second placed Hove ran riot against bottom club Barking, running in 107 unanswered points against the Essex club in a match that all but seals their relegation.  Charlton Pk’s narrow 25-31 win at Horsham keeps them in contention in third spot with Haywards Heath also still just about in the mx after they beat struggling Pulborough 33-9, a result that realistically now sees them with too much ground to make up to stave off relegation.  In the mid-table clashes, Dover were 27-17 winners against Alleynians, whilst D&B lost out 15-20 to visiting Beckenham.

London 3(SE):  Leaders Thanet were 43-24 winners over O Wills, with second placed Aylesford 5-29 winners at H&B; third placed Dunstonians are 10-points adrift of the top two despite receiving a HWO against bottom club Crawley, who are all but relegated.  In the other matches in the relegation struggle, Sheppey lost out 29-3 at Park Hse, a result that puts the islanders one defeat from relegation but keeps Park Hse still in the bottom three thanks to Folkestone’s useful 12-20 win at Lewes.  H&B’s recent run of poor form sees them also likely to be drawn into the survival battle.  The last of the fixtures saw Crowborough 5-15 winners at Bromley to move up to sixth place.

Kent 1:   A 24-8 win for Beccs over Cranbrook sees them 16-points clear at the top, whilst probably ending any hope the Wealden club had of making the playoff spot.  Vigo and Ashford remain locked together in second and third respectively after wins against OGs (46-12) and Southwark (13-50).   Anchrians 25-12 win against Kings Coll keeps them in contention.  In the bottom half of the table Sittingbourne remain anchored to the bottom following a 15-49 defeat to RBS, with Southwark just above them and level on points with NAG who lost to HSBC, 14-23.  Looking at the respective run ins, it now seems more than likely that the relegation places at the close of the season will be occupied by two of the current bottom three clubs.

Kent 2:  Wins for the top three keep Whistable at the head of the division after they beat Askean 0-30, whilst Foots Cary sit in second spot after a 7-28 win at Faversham.  Brockleians ae third following their 40-5 win against Bexley, although they have a game in hand and just 4-points cover the top three places.  The remaining fixture saw bottom club Greenwich move back into positive points after a narrow 5-8 win at Dartford Valley

Saracens Rugby Camp comes to Maidstone Rugby Club

Wednesday 14^th February

Timings – 9:45 - 15:15

Normal Price £33; On-line price £30

During the February half-term school holiday, the Saracens coaching staff will again be visiting the club to run their very popular rugby camp.  The Saracens coaches will instill the core values that drive their professional players, urging young talent to play with Passion, Work Rate, Honesty, Discipline and Humility whilst working effectively as a team.

Participants can expect to receive constructive feedback during the course, advising strengths and areas of improvement which will enable individuals to further their personal development.

The rugby camp is open to both boys and girls aged U7-U14. Whether you have been on a clinic before or are new to rugby.  The Premiership Rugby Academy Camps, are the best opportunity for players of all ages and positions to fine tune their rugby skills and take away a greater understanding of this ever increasingly popular sport!

To book your space, please click here  or call Sid Young on 0203 675 7242

National 1: League leaders Coventry continued their bid for promotion with a 36-10 away win over Bishop's Stortford. DMP remain 15 points adrift after they got the better of struggling O Albanians in a high scoring 52-24 scoreline. Ampthill move up to third after a 26-5 away win over bottom club Fylde, whilst Plymouth Albion dropped to fourth in the table after 16-14 defeat at Cambridge. Blackheath stay fifth after they bounced back from defeat last weekend with a 20-12 home win over Moseley, with fellow Kent club Elthamians in sixth despite falling to a 32-24 loss at Caldy.  At the foot of the table Hull Ionians complete the bottom three alongside Fylde and Albanians after they lost 38-27 at Esher, whilst Loughborough St are by no means safe despite a handy 37-15 win against Rosslyn Pk.

National 2(S):  The top two went head to head with the spoils going to leaders Cinderford who made amends for their home defeat to Chinnor by inflicting their own 14-26 away win to extend their lead at the top to 9 points. With redingensians held to a 12-12 draw by TJs, Taunton move into third spot after they beat Worthing 19-25. In the mid-table group Henley were 22-20 winners against strugglers O Redcliffians and BSE were 27-14 victors over Redruth.  Canterbury were 17-7 winners against Wimbledon who drop to the bottom, whilst Broadstreet’s convincing 0-34 win at Ldn Irish WG moved them off the foot of the table. Clifton’s 24-19 win against Barnstaple gives them some breathing space from the drop zone.

London Premier:  At the top Guernsey are 6-points clear following a 15-46 win at struggling southend, with Barnes in second following a 7-57 win at Sidcup and Tring in close contention following their 7-32 win at Dorking.  Hertford are fourth following a 54-3 thrashing of bottom club Towcestrians, and the promotion places now looks to be between those top four clubs.  At the bottom whilst Towcestrians and Southend’s proverbial ‘goose’ looks to be cooked, a resurgent Westcombe Pk were 10-17 winners at Guildford to make it four wins from their last five to close the gap on Shelford, who were beaten 29-0 at Westcliff.

London 1(S): No change at the top, with leaders Medway winning 7-17 at Tottonians and second placed CS Rugby 0-11 winners at Colfes.  Third placed Havant just edged Sevenoaks 8-15 whilst Chichester were convincing 34-8 winners against struggling Gravesend. At the bottom Maidstone were just edged out 19-20 at home to Cobham, whilst Thurrock’s 25-12 loss at Brighton sees them still involved in the relegation struggle. In mid-table Ldn Cornish were just edged out 20-21 at home to Chobham.

London 2(SE):  The Dartfordians bandwagon rolls on with a 26-8 win against Horsham, whilst what looks like the battle for the playoff spot seems to be being pared down.  Hove sit in pole position after an 8-27 win at Alleynians, with Charlton Pk 6-points behind after a 0-44 win at struggling Pulborough.  A 12-21 defeat for Haywards Heath to visiting |Dover has probably ended any promotion aspirations they may have harboured.  At the bottom, Barking remain winless after they fell to a 5-50 loss to visiting D&B, and H&W appear to have enough of a buffer to the drop zone despite a 29-7 loss at Beckenham.

London 3(SE):  A 14-38 win for Thanet Wdrs at Folkestone sees them maintain the lead from Aylesford, who beat struggling Sheppey 0-24.  Dunstonians are the nearest challenger to the top two but were held to a 10-10 draw at O Wills and now sit 10-points adrift.  At the foot of the division Crawley lost 5-27 at home to Bromley and now look certain to be consigned  back to the county leagues along with Sheppey who’s position looks just as precarious.  The battle to avoid the last of the relegation places looks like it will be fought out  by Folkestone and Park Hse, who drew 17-17 with Lewes.  Although after their bright start to the season, H&B could yet be dragged into the battle after going down 33-0 to Sussex rivals Crowborough.

Kent 1:   Beccs 17-24 win at RBS now gives them a 16-point advantage and given their run in they look extremely unlikely to drop enough points to lose top spot.  Vigo’s 5-16 win at Anchorians puts them in second spot but the team on the move in the division is Ashford; after looking like being locked into the relegation battle in early season, they have continued to climb the table and a 59-5 thrashing of struggling NAG now sees them level with Vigo and in with a real chance of the playoffs.  Kings Coll’s 28-8 win over Cranbrook still sees both with an outside playoff chance as well.  The foot of the table is anchored by Sittingbourne, who lost 20-7 at HSBC, with Southwark level with NAG just above them after they lost 18-5 at OGs.  Things could change but it’s beginning to look likely that the relegation places will go to two sides currently in the bottom four as both HSBC & OGs look to have built a bit of a cushion.

Kent 2:  With Snowdown’s withdrawal from the league leaving an odd number of clubs Brockleians had no fixture this week, Whitstable take over top spot after a 25-6 in the local derby win over near neighbours Faversham, whilst Foots Cray  are second following a 29-7 win against Dartford Valley.  Bottom club Greenwich lost 0-17 to visiting Lordswood whilst the last of the fixtures saw mid-table Bexley 28-13 winners against Askean.

National 1: after last week’s defeat at Blackheath, league leaders Coventry bounced back with a 57-12 win against visiting Esher, whilst fifth placed Blackheath fell to a 32-21 defeat at Hull Ionians, a result that keeps the Yorkshire clubs survival hopes alive.  In the chasing pack, DMP and Ampthill both won, with 8-10 and 22-12 results against Caldy and Bishops Stortford respectively.  Plymouth Albion sit fourth but their match at Loughborough fell to the wet weather.  At the top , whilst Coventry hold a 14-point cushion, both DMP and Plymouth have games in hand, although they would still have a lot to do to mount a realistic challenge at this point.  At the bottom of the table a 31-15 defeat for Fylde at the hands of Rosslyn Pk sees them at least 15 points from safety, whilst a 34-13 loss to Moseley sees O Albanians also deep in the relegation mire.  Hull’s win and Loughborough’s postponement still sees them both in danger with at least 6-points to make up on Esher who look reasonably safe.  In the remaining match, Elthamians now sit sixth after a tight 12-7 win over Cambridge

National 2(S):  In what now looks like a two horse race, the leading two clubs won with Cinderford 26-5 victors against third placed Redingensians, whilst Chinnor posted a big 50-10 win against Worthing, with the third placed club now 17-points adrift of the top two. Fourth placed Taunton fell to a 38-22 defeat at fifth placed Redruth who narrow the gap between the clubs to 9-points.  At the foot of the table Broadstreet prop up the division after a 12-42 home defeat to Henley, whilst Wimbledon recorded a 32-12 win over BSE; Redcliffians complete the bottom three but still posted a morale boosting 34-0 win against Clifton, who are just above them in the table and by no means clear of danger themselves.  In the mid-table encounter Barnstaple proved too strong for Canterbury with a solid 24-7 win.

London Premier:  a 24-11 win for Guernsey over visiting Dorking keeps them at the top, from Barnes in second after they hammered strugglers Southend 97-7, Tring slip to third after they were held to a 14-14 draw by fourth placed Hertford and Westcliff lost ground in completing the top five after they fell to a 29-22 loss at Guildford.  At the foot of the table Towcestrians went down 5-41 to visiting Tunbridge Wells, whilst Westcombe Pk move above Southend after picking up a welcome BP win with a 35-3 result against visiting S&E.  A 17-25 defeat for Shelford by Sidcup keeps them on the edge of the drop zone and the relegation battle now looks like it will be fought out between those four clubs.

London 1(S): Wins for the leading two clubs really make it look like they need to really have to slip up badly to miss out on the promotion places as leaders Medway were 45-10 winners against Chobham whilst CS Rugby were 26-0 winners against bottom club Maidstone.  Havant sit third after they edged Colfes 17-13 with Chichester slipping up 26-12 at Cobham.  At the bottom end of the table Gravesend sit just above Maidstone following their heavy 8-60 home defeat to Brighton, whilst Thurrock’s 24-15 win against Ldn Cornish sees them move out of the drop zone to be replaced by Colfes. in mid-table Tottonians beat Sevenoaks 17-5.

RFU Cup Competitions

RFU Intermediate Cup: At the regional quarter-final stage Camberley received a HWO against Woodford, whilst last season’s Twickenham runners up Charlton Pk just edged out the National Senior Vase champions Farnham 17-14.  O Cooperians were beaten 12-24 by Norwich whilst Rochford were convincing 38-0 winners against Ldn Exiles in the last of the fixtures.

RFU Senior Vase:  Bromley are making a habit of doing well in this competition and a 19-31 win over Thetford sees them into the semi-finals, whilst the county’s other representatives Aylesford bow out after a narrow 17-14 loss at Trojans.  O Cranleighians are having another good run this year as they beat Southwold 23-12, whilst in the remaining tie, Portsmouth were 31-0 winners against Datchworth.

RFU Junior Vase: Two of the county’s representatives remain with Ashford 20-5 winners against Royston whilst Anchorians will have to wait until the 10^th Feb to play Reeds Weybridge due to a delay in the previous round of matches.  In the other two fixtures, Chipstead were 18-10 winners against Bognor, whilst O Wimbledonians progress after a tight 15-17 result at Millbrook.

National 1: After last week’s win, leaders Coventry slipped up this week, going down to a heavy 61-29 defeat at fifth placed Blackheath, DMP posted a 41-7 win against Mosely to stay second with Plymouth Albion were 0-26 winners at bottom club Fylde.  Ampthill drew 29-29 at Esher to maintain fourth place.  The foot of the division remains anchored by Fylde, but in the clash between the two other clubs in the drop zone saw Albanians post a solid 50-28 win against Hull Ionians to close the gap, although both clubs are at least 5-points shy of Loughborough and safety as the Students lost out narrowly, 21-25 to visiting Elthamians.  The bottom four are other 7-points adrift of Esher who drew, and Rosslyn Pk who were 20-22 winners at Bishops Stortford.  The mid-table fixture between Cambridge and Caldy was postponed.

National 2(S):  Cinderford fremain 4-points clear after a 17-31 win at Ldn Irish WG, whilst second placed Chinnor returned to winning ways with a narrow 29-31 win at third placed Redingensians. Taunton’s 66-15 win against bottom club Wimbledon keeps them in fourth, 14-points clear of fifth club Redruth who fell to a high scoring 46-43 loss at Worthing.  At the bottom end of the table, Wimbledon prop up the table with above them who lost 31-24 at Clifton and O Redcliffians above them after they suffered a 48-29 loss at Canterbury, and with a 9-point gap to Clifton and  safety for the bottom three, they now look the favourites to go down. In the mid-table encounters Henley lost out 15-20 to visiting TJs whilst BSE beat Barnstaple 39-25.

London Premier:  A 33-44 win at fourth placed Hertford keeps Guernsey 5-points clear at the top in addition to denting their opponents challenge; Tring sit in second spot with a 22-31 win at Tunbridge Wells and Barnes’ 19-32 win at Dorking keeps them third.  Realistically the battle for the promotion placings is now between these four clubs.  At the foot of the table bottom club Towcestrians lost out 42-26 at S&E, whilst Westcombe Pk just above them were nilled by 43 points at Westcliff, Southend complete the bottom three and posted a useful 34-26 win against Shelford, a result that sees them the fourth bottom club but with a 10-point cushion to today’s opposition. In mid-table Sidcup were 4726 winners against visiting Guildford.

London 1(S): Leaders Medway were pushed hard at Sevenoaks but prevailed with a 29-37 win, whilst CS Rugby keep station in second place after a tight 13-16 win at Chichester, a result that whilst not ending, may have severely dented the Sussex club’s challenge.  Havant stay third after they won 14-30 at bottom club Maidstone.  Elsewhere at the foot of the table Gravesend lost out 29-7 at Ldn Cornish, whilst Colfes posted a 39-29 win against Tottonians to move out of the drop zone and are replaced by Thurrock who lost 36-25 at Chobham. The remaining fixture saw Cobham just edge out hosts Brighton with a 26-30 scoreline.

London 2(SE):  Leaders Dartfordians won 8-27 at Charlton Pk whilst Hove stay second after a narrow 20-15 win against Haywards Heath, those results combine with Horsham’s 32-24 win over Beckenham see the sussex club move into third place.  The bottom of the table is beginning to look cut and dried, with another one-sided scoreline as barking went down 88-0 at H&W, whilst Pulborough were overturned 78-7 at Dover.  D&B are third bottom and went down 14-37 at home to Alleynians, although on today’s showing  it would take a remarkable turn of events for their 11-point safety net to the drop zone to be bridged by the bottom two

London 3(SE):  Thanet Wdrs stay top after a 42-24 win over a struggling Park Hse side very much involved in the relegation struggle, Aylesford remain in second spot following a 27-13 win against mid-table Crowborough. Dunstonians remain third after a thumping 65-12 win against a Folkestone outfit that are now being drawn into the relegation struggle, whilst fourth placed Bromley drew 17-17 with O Wills.  At the bottom a 27-0 defeat for Crawley sees them anchored to the foot of the table, as well as checking H&B’s slide down the table.  A 55-0 defeat at Lewes for Sheppey sees them lloking nailed on certainties for the drop, alongside Crawley, with the other relegation place now looking to be a battle between Park Hse & Folkestone.

Kent 1:  I’ve mentioned how tight this table is at both the top and bottom before but let’s get the formality of the leaders result out of the way first; Beccehamians got back to winning ways after last week’s narrow defeat with a 20-5 result against HSBC. A 28-12 defeat for Kings Coll at Vigo sees them drop from second to sixth with their opposition up to third, Anchorians move from  third to second after they beat Southwark 20-25, whilst Ashford move up to fourth following a 5-46 victory over bottom club Sittingbourne.  Cranbrook completes the top half with a 39-30 win against RBS.  In the bottom half of the table no change in the bottom two who are Sittingbourne and Southwark, with NAG just above them after a 5-40 defeat to visiting OGs who now look like they have enough leeway to steer themselves to safety.  However, stand by for another shuffle of the pack in two weeks’ time.

Kent 2:  Brockleains go to the top of the table courtesy of a HWO against Greenwich and Whitstable falling to a 14-8 defeat at third placed Foots Cray, all of which sees the top three separated by just 4-points.  Lordswood are some way off the pace in fourth after a 5-53 win at Dartford Valley, whilst in the only other fixture, Faversham suffered a similar heavy defeat going down to a 5-66 thumping by visiting Bexley.  The only other scheduled fixture saw Askean receive a HWO against bottom club Snowdown.

National 1: Leaders Coventry picked up where they left off before the break with a 52-5 win against struggling O Albanians who remain in the bottom two, whilst DMP continue in second spots despite their fixture against Cambridge being postponed, Plymouth Albion’s match against Bishops Stortford was also postponed and they slipped to fourth with Ampthill moving above them after a 21-14 win against Blackheath.  At the bottom of the table Fylde were well beaten 55-10 at Elthamians, whilst Hull Ionians complete the bottom three following their 13-29 loss to visiting Moseley. A 71-14 hammering for Loughborough St at Caldy means they are by no means clear of danger, and likewise for Rosslyn Pk, although a high scoring 44-37 win against Esher just above them would have brought some New Year cheer.

National 2(S):  The mid-season break appears to have disturbed Chinnor’s momentum as they slipped to a 20-35 home defeat to mid-table Ldn Irish WG; no such woes for Cinderford who beat Henley 34-6 to take over top spot. It is looking like a two horse race, with Redingensians 9-points adrift of the top two despite a useful 39-26 victory over Worthing. Early pace setters Taunton sit fourth following a comfortable 12-53 win at Barnstaple and have clear water between themselves and Redruth who went down 33-28 to bottom club Wimbledon.  Above the SW London club Broadstreet did their survival hopes some good with a narrow 12-7 win against Canterbury, as did O Redcliffians who complete the bottom three despite a solid 24-14 win against BSE. In the last of the fixtures, Clifton’s 17-10 defeat at TJs sees them flirting now just above the danger zone and in need of a good result after six consecutive defeats.

London Premier:  Guernsey’s 27-11 win against Tunbridge Wells keeps them at the top of the pile with a chasing pack of three contenders. Of the three Hertford slipped to fourth after a 34-16 defeat at Barnes who take over second spot, whilst Tring occupy third after they beat S&E 40-12.  At the foot of the table two of the bottom three were in action against each other, with Westcombe Pk just shading the encounter with bottom side Towcestrians 25-24, although the result was not enough to move them out of the bottom three, although it narrowed the gap to 10-points after Sidcup lost out 47-12 at Westcliff. Southend also remain in the bottom three after they lost 31-25 at Guildford, whilst Shelford posted a good 57-24 win against mid-table Dorking to move themselves up a place.

London 1(S): The Medway juggernaut continues to roll with a 29-0 win over Thurrock, whilst CS Rugby are just three points adrift after they beat Brighton 48-24 to establish an 8-point buffer to Havant who take over third spot with a 38-12 win over Chichester.  A 24-12 win for Tottonians sees them in fifth, but some way off the pace of the leading contenders.  Above Maidstone, Gravesend lost out 15-21 to Chobham whilst Colfes complete the bottom three after they lost out 13-6 a Sevenoaks. In mid-table Cobham were 13-10 winners in a tight contest against Ldn Cornish.

London 2(SE):  Big defeats for the bottom two as neither registered a point with basement club Barking shipping 92 points to visiting Horsham whilst Pulborough went down 0-52 to leaders Dartfordians.  Whilst Darts are 13-points clear at the top, there is real competition for the playoff place, with Hove leading the pack despite falling to a 24-18 defeat at Dover, Charlton Pk to full advantage to close the gap after they were 12-27 winners at Beckenham, with Haywards Heath also in contention after they narrowly beat D&B 22-19.  In the remaining fixture Alleynians and H&W fought out a 15-15 draw

London 3(SE):  Leaders Aylesford saw their fixture at bottom club Crawley postponed due to a waterlogged pitch and Thanet took advantage with a 32-39 win at Lewes to take over at the head of the table.  Third placed Dunstonians were unable to capitalise and fell to a tight 24-22 defeat at Park Hse, whilst fourth placed Bromley had an equally narrow scoreline but just edged out Folkestone 10-11.  In mid-table O wills were 27-17 winners against H&B whilst Sheppey lost out 21-27 to visiting Crowborough and remain 19-points adrift of safety in the relegation zone.

Kent 1:  Some say a break makes teams fresher, others that momentum is lost, and it was the latter for Beccehamians as the fell to their first defeat of the season, going down 13-7 at Ashford, second placed Kings Coll narrowed the gap to just 13-points with a big 61-24 win against RBS but the battle between the chasing pack looks like being very tight in this division.  A 33-16 win for Anchorians against NAG puts tem third with near neighbours Vigo fourth after they beat struggling Southwark 53-5.  The bottom end of the table is also tight with Sittingbourne at the foot of the table and losing out 53-7 at OGs whilst Southwark and NAG sit just above them, as OGs move out of the bottom three.  Just 7-points cover the bottom six clubs so there could be a lot of shuffling about as the weeks progress as HSBC proved with their 24-19 win against Cranbrook, a result that moved the bank side upwards and saw the Wealden club drop down

Kent 2:  The battle for the two promotion places now looks to be between three clubs, with leaders Whitstable racking up a big win with an 80-0 hammering of Dartford valley, Brockleians stay second despite falling to a 22-14 defeat at Lordswood whilst third placed Foots Cray were 24-61 winners on the road at Bexley. At the foot of the table Snowdown continue to prop up the division after a narrow 17-20 loss to visiting Faversham, whilst Greenwich lost out to a similar scoreline in the 19-24 loss to Askean.

It is with some sadness that the club has to announce that Club Captain Ben Williams is standing down from the captaincy role with and that current vice-captain Adam Knight will be taking over the role of Captain with immediate effect, supported by Vice Captains Matt Iles and Gary Beck.

This has been a difficult decision for Ben in what has been an injury hit season for him which has also been complicated by increased work commitments which are limiting his availability,  this is not a decision that he has taken lightly but he felt that at a time when the team required some consistency it was not fair to remain as captain when unable to commit fully to the role for extended periods although he will continue to play a full role in the senior squad.

At this juncture it is worth looking back at the 1^st XV’s record under Ben’s captaincy in what has been one of the most successful periods in the club’s recent history.

Ben returned to the club during the 2011-12 season following his university studies having played at both Hartpury College and Chester, and after what had been a difficult period for the club. In his first season back Ben was part of the squad that won the Ldn & SE Senior Vase narrowly missing out on a trip to Twickenham with a tight defeat in the national semi-final of that competition.  He took over the captaincy the for the 2012-13 season, leading the side to promotion and the league title in an unbeaten Ldn 3(SE) league campaign as well as retaining the Ldn & SE Senior Vase, but again falling just short in the national semi-finals. The following season saw him lead the side to runners-up position in Ldn 2(SE) and narrowly missing out on promotion in the playoff. 

Undeterred by this loss, the side under Ben’s captaincy completed a second undefeated league campaign to take the Ldn 2(SE) league title as champions in 2014-15 but by far the pinnacle of his captaincy was in winning the Ldn & SE Intermediate Cup before going on to lead the side to victory at Twickenham in an excellent team performance to win the RFU Intermediate Cup final against Bridgnorth in what was a great day for the club in completing a memorable league and cup double. It was for his leadership in what was an unprecedented period of success that the club took the exceptional decision to award Ben a vice-presidency whilst still a serving skipper

Recent seasons have not quite seen the same level of success in terms of silverware, although at county level the 1^st XV were Kent Plate winners in both the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons.

So it is much gratitude we say thanks to Ben for his contribution to the club through his ability and leadership on the pitch and also his not insignificant contribution off it, during his tenure as club captain.

Craig Tuffrey

Chairman

Apologies for the delay in posting this weeks missive, been haveing a couple of IT difficulties which I needed to get sorted.  As we hit a convenient holiday break I would take this opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year.  good luck to you all as we commence the downhill run to the season finale. 

National 1: With the battle between the top two in  Coventry and DMP postponed there is no change at the top but Plymouth Albion were able to close the gap after beating O Albanians 26-8, Ampthill also closed up with a 45-7 win against Hull Ionians. Blackheath slip to fifth after falling to a 32-7 loss at local rivals Elthamians whilst Bishops Stortford close the gap in sixth despite a narrow 22-21 loss at Cambridge.  At the bottom of the table, Fylde lost 21-0 at Loughborough to sit just below O Albanians, with Hull Ionians completing the bottom three.  Rosslyn Pk remain in relegation danger but moved out of the bottom three after a 30-26 result against Moseley, whilst in mid-table Caldy’s 15-7 win against Esher sees the two sides locked together on points.

National 2(S):  Just a point separates the top two with Chinnor maintaining the advantage after a convincing 41-7 result against Canterbury, Cinderford keep up the pressure after they beat BSE 45-29. Redingensians and Taunton sit third and fourth but somewhat off the pace after Redingensians were 43-16 winners against struggling Clifton whilst Taunton slipped to a 26-20 defeat at TJs.  At the foot of the table two of the bottom three went head to head, with Wimbledon just edging O Redcliffians 28-29 to post their first win of the season, whilst Broadstreet’s 11-21 defeat by Redruth keeps them in the relegation zone. In the mid-table encounters, Ldn Irish WG went down 17-24 to visiting Henley, and Worthing were 36-29 winners against Barnstaple.

London Premier:  A 19-43 win for Guernsey against S&E keeps them a point clear of Hertford at the top of the pile, with Hertford 31-5 winners against struggling Shelford.  Tring and Barnes look to be the only other clubs that might have a say in the promotion battle, with both just 3 and 4 points off the pace but posting wins, with Tring 9-17 winners at bottom club Towcestrians and Barnes narrow 21-22 winners at Tunbridge Wells.  The bottom of the table also looks like it will be contested between four clubs with Towcestrians in bottom spot and Southend just above them following a 0-52 hammering at the hands of local rivals Westcliff.  Westcombe Pk currently occupy the last relegation place but a 7-10 win at Sidcup sees them narrow the gap on Shelford to just 9-points. In the mid-table tussle Dorking just came out on top 30-26 in a Surrey derby against Guildford.

London 1(S): This division is beginning to develop into a three horse race with Medway going into the New Year leading the division after a narrow 19-21 win at Colfes.  CS Rugby sit just behind them after they beat Ldn Cornish 14-20 whilst Chichester are a little further back following their 24-17 win over Tottonians.  Havant are by no means out of the hunt but a 20-12 loss at Brighton will have dented their aspirations.  At the bottom, Maidstone just fell short in a tight contest against Sevenoaks 31-34 whilst Gravesend fell to a heavy 78-17 loss at Thurrock, Colfes complete the top three with Thurrock and Chobham still not safe and Chobham losing out 20-22 at home to Cobham.

London 2(SE):  One should never count ones chickens, but Dartfordians are looking comfortable at the top of the table after a 27-17 win against Beckenham, with Hove their nearest challengers following a 49-17 win at strugglers Pulborough.  Charlton Pk and Haywards Heath are the nearest challengers to the top two, with Charlton Pk hammering bottom side Barking 88-12 and Heath rather narrower 16-21 winners at H&W.  at the bottom, Barking look destined for the drop but Pulborough are only a few points adrift of H&W and also D&B, who put in a good shift to beat Dover 24-8. The last of the fixtures saw Alleynians just pip Horsham with a 22-25 result on the road.

London 3(SE):  At the top it remains nip & tuck between Aylesford who were 12-5 winners over O wills, and Thanet Wdrs who posted a somewhat more comfortable 46-5 win against Sheppey.  A 15-10 win for Dunstonians over Lewes sees them complete the top three but some 8-points off the pace.  At the foot of the division Crawley lost 35-14 at Crowborough, and along with Sheppey now look destined for the drop.  The other relegation slot is currently occupied by Park Hse who posted a morale boosting 16-36 at next door neighbours Bromley, although Crowborough and Folkestone, who lost 24-10 at H&B are by no means yet safe.

Kent 1:  A 40-0 drubbing of OGs by Beccehamians sees them 17-points clear at the top, from Cranbrook and Kings Coll after Cranbrook lost out 11-15 to Ashford and Kings Coll beat struggling Southwark 19-48.  In the top half of the table Anchorians were 5-14 winners at bottom club Sittingbourne whilst Vigo had a similar result with a 5-128 win in the local derby at NAG.   There is a distinct top & bottom half to this division and whilst Sittingbourne and HSBC, who won 15-22 in the banks derby against RBS, occupy the relegation slots; only 3-points cover the bottom six clubs before a 19-point gap to safety, so expect a constant shuufling of the relegation pack in the early part of the new year.

Kent 2:  Disappointingly only two of the programmed five fixtures took place, however, leaders Brockleians did what they needed to do with a 0-56 win at Askean, whilst in the other fixture  Bexley were 26-0 winners against Dartford Valley.  Both Whitstable and Foots Cray received HWO against Greenwich and Snowdown respectively to stay in touch with the leaders, whilst Faversham also benefited from the withdrawal of Lordswood

Here are the latest winners for the 500 club.

October:

£100 - Tom Challis

£50 - Gordon Diment and Neil Coles

£30 - Glyn Richards

November:

£100 - Martin Sharp

£50 - Geoff Golding and Glyn Richards

£30 - James Findlay

December:

£800 - James Findlay

£100 - Trevor Langley

£50 - Peter Sime and Keith Newman

£30 - Steve Matthews

Congratulations to all of you who have won and all who have joined the 500 club this season.

Why not join now for next season and don't miss out on the winnings!'

It's that easy!

Contact Bob Beney robertbeney@btinternet.com

Melanie White  melaniejpwhite@gmail.com

A very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all

National 1: Coventry’s convincing 63-14 trouncing of Apthill sees them stretch 13-points clear at the top of the table as second placed DMP struggled to a 10-13 win at bottom club Fylde. Plymouth Albion’s trip to Moseley fell to the weather and with Blackheath posting a 29-17 win against Caldy they move into third spot.  At the foot of the table O Albanians sit one above Fylde after a 15-24 defeat to visiting Elthamians with Rosslyn Pk just above them but with a game in hand after their trip to Hull Ionians was another victim of the weather. Loughborough St lost 43-12 at Bishops Stortford, a result that sees them still on the edge of the drop zone, whilst in mid-table Esher lost out 10-13 to Cambridge.

National 2(S):  A narrow but high scoring 34-37 win for leaders Chinnor at BSE keeps them a point clear at the top from Cinderford who were 14-33 winners over third placed Taunton.  Redingensians 15-40 win over Canterbury sees them still in fourth spot, but level on points with Taunton, whilst Canterbury stay fifth, but 8-points adrift of the top four.  At the bottom end of the division the clash between the bottom two left Wimbledon still winless as Broadstreet took the points with a 24-30 result.  A 22-22 draw at Barnstaple for O Redcliffians wasn’t enough to close the gap on safety with Clifton still picking up 2 bonus points from their 31-33 defeat to Ldn Irish WG, and they maintain an 11-point buffer between them and the drop zone. In the remaining fixtures, TJs lost 45-11 at Redruth whilst Henley beat visiting Worthing 43-28.

London Premier:  with leaders Hertford’s trip to Westcliff postponed, Guernsey took over top spot after they beat third placed Tring 19-13, whilst Barnes closed the gap in fourth place with a 62-7 trouncing of bottom club Towcestrians and it now looks very much like the promotion places will be between the current top four.  The same can be said for the relegation battle with Westcombe Pk one off the bottom after losing out narrowly 28-25 at Southend who sit one place above them and some 11-points adrift of Shelford who beat S&E 36-31. In mid-table Guildford went down 26-39 to visiting Tunbridge Wells, whilst Sidcup were 40-24 victors over Dorking.

London 1(S): after a top v bottom clash, Medway continue to head the table with a 12-41 win at local rivals Maidstone, whilst CS Rugby stay in second spot after a 46-20 win over Thurrock.  Both Havant and Chichester remain in touch at the halfway stage, with both posting victories against Chobham (33-14) and Colfes (28-33) respectively.  At the bottom, there’s no change in the order with Gravesend still one off the bottom following a 27-20 defeat at Cobham. In the mid-table encounters Tottonians drew 34-34 with Ldn Cornish whilst Sevenoaks fell to a narrow 14-18 defeat at home to Brighton.

London 2(SE):  a 20-25 win at Alleynians sees Dartford maintain a 9-point advantage over second placed Hove who beat H&W 40-26.  There is a 6 point gap to three clubs all locked together on points with Haywards Heath moving up after beating Charlton Pk 22-5, whilst Horsham failed to take advantage, going down 33-28 at Dover.  At the bottom Barking lost 5-69 to Beckenham and with a points deduction to boot any hope of salvation looks a forlorn hope.  A 29-19 defeat for Pulborough at D&B sees them as favourites to accompany Barking for the drop, although D&B are by no means out of danger, along with H&W. 

London 3(SE):  An 8-32 win at struggling Park Hse keeps Aylesford at the top of the table from Thanet Wdrs who beat third placed Bromley 29-19.  Dunstonians sit in fourth place after a 45-19 win against Sheppey, with Lewes also still just in touch after a 31-24 win over H&B who are now sliding down the table.  At the foot of the division Crawley fell to a 55-12 defeat at O Wills and prop up the table with the bottom three now beginning to fall adrift.  Folkestone and Crowborough are by no means fully safe and a 34-12 win for the Kent club will ease some worries.

Kent 1: This is a division with a distinct top and bottom half to the table, Beccehamians continue to lead after an 11-35 win at Vigo to maintain a 13-point cushion over Cranbrook in second spot following their 19-34 win at Anchorians.  At the bottom HSBC lost 22-7 at a resurgent Ashford, whilst Sittingbourne occupy the other relegation place after a 39-10 defeat at Southwark. In reality six clubs are still involved in the battle to avoid relegation with RBS shuffling the pack with a 26-34 win at OGs, whilst NAG lost out 10-29 to visiting RBS

Kent 2: Comfortable wins for the leading two as leaders Brockleians beat Faversham 29-0 and second placed Whitstable were 5-31 winners at Greenwich.  A 7-19 win for Foots Cray at Lordswood keeps them in touch but sees their hosts now falling off the pace.  At the bottom Snowdown shipped 90 unanswered points to visiting Bexley, whilst Dartford V had a convincing 62-5 win against Askean.

Former Maidstone member & player Miles Huppatz will be making his first Twickenham appearance this week as part of the Cambridge squad in this season’s Varsity match as they look to retain the trophy they won last year after a 6-year losing streak.

Miles is a dual code player for Cambridge, having missed out through injury last year, he captained the Cambridge University RL side in this year’s varsity encounter at the HAC, unfortunately ending up on the losing side 48-10 for Oxford’s eighth consecutive victory.

With a number of former premiership players across both squads, Miles will be in good company, alongside former England 7s players Charlie Amesbury and Ollie Phillips, with Dom Waldouk of Newcastle among a number of professional and representative players in the Oxford line up.

Apologies for the delay in this weeks blog, given the reduced amount of fixtures you might of thought it would have been easier to generate the motivation. Unfortunately not, as i found my time spent elsewhere and then completely forgot about the thing until Wednesday morning.  Once again apologies, I have placed a note "must do better" on my file!!

National 1: No change at the top as leaders Coventry won 13-43 at Rosslyn Pk, with second placed DMP 21-15 winners against Ampthill who slip a place to fourth.  Plymouth Albion’s 29-3 win against Hull Ionians sees them up to third place.  Blackheath stay in fifth place after they beat Cambridge 16-27 and have a gap to Bishops Stortford who were turned over 29-22 by bottom club Fylde.  Just above them at the foot of the table O Albanians lost 26-0 at Caldy, with Rosslyn Pk rounding out the bottom three.  Just above them are Loughborough St who posted a high scoring 49-38 win against Esher  whilst in mid-table Elthamians were 47-17 winners against visiting Moseley

National 2(S):  It is beginning to look like a battle between Chinnor and Cinderford for the title, with Chinnor 13-7 winners against Taunton who sit in a clear third place, and Cinderford 49-19 winners over Redruth.  The chasing pack is led by Redingensians who won 29-17 against BSE, with Canterbury in fifth after they won a narrow encounter 22-26 at Ldn Irish WG.  At the bottom of the division Wimbledon’s 46-15 defeat at TJs sees them continue to anchor the table, with Broadstreet’s 15-27 defeat by Barnstaple keeping them in the drop zone.  O Redcliffian’s 40-34 loss at Worthing sees them complete the bottom three and they are at least 11-points adrift of safety as we hit halfway in the season. In the remaining fixture Henley were 30-20 winners against visiting Clifton.

London Premier:  A 33-25 win over Sidcup keeps Hertford at the top of the table  as we approach the halfway point with Guernsey 3-points behind them follow a convincing 8-39 win at relegation threatened Wetcombe Pk.  Tring move into third spot above Barnes after coming out on top 31-10 in the encounter between the two clubs; whilst Westcliff’s 24-7 loss at Tunbridge Wells sees them falling off the pace in fifth. At the bottom of the table three clubs are locked together on points and 10-points adrift of safety, with Southend propping up the table after a narrow 38-34 loss at Dorking, whilst a 14-7 win for Towcestrians over Shelford still keeps them in the drop zone along with Combe who complete the relegation favourites. In mid-table S&E were 41-26 winners against Guildford.

London 1(S): Medway returned to winning ways with a 49-27 win against Thurrock whilst CS Rugby maintain second spot after they hammered Gravesend 0-46.   Havant complete the top three after they were 22-42 winners at Thurrock.  At the bottom Maidstone lost out 44-26 at Chichester, whilst Gravesends result saw them drop below Colfes who were narrow 32-33 winners against Brighton.  In the mid table encounters Chobham lost out 23-31 to visiting Tottonians and Ldn Cornish fell to a 10-27 defeat to Sevenoaks.

RFU Junior Vase: Only three of the county’s clubs remained in the competition with cranbrook falling to a 48-23 defeat to Reeds Weybridge, whilst Ashford proceed to the next round with a solid 8-22 win on the road at Surrey 3 club Bec Old Boys.  Gillingham Anchorians also remain in the competition despite a 30-8 loss in Rd 2 to O Whitgiftians, obviously some transgression occurred and they will play their outstanding 3^rd Rd tie at Essex club Writtle Wdrs in the New Year on 20 Jan.

National 1: A 29-14 win for Coventry against Plymouth Albion sees them now 11-points clear at the top, with DMP in second following their 22-22 draw at Bishops Stortford.  Ampthill’s 29-23 win over Rosslyn Pk sees them overhaul Plymouth into third spot, whilst Blackheath stay fifth despite a narrow 21-22 loss at home to struggling Loughborough St.  At the foot of the table Fylde continue to prop up the table after they went down 51-12 at Esher, whilst O Albanians remain in trouble after they were hammered 7-54 at home by Cambridge.  Another useful win for Hull Ionians, this time 27-11 against Elthamians sees them now moving clear of danger; the last of the fixtures saw Moseley just edge a tight contest 13-11 against visiting Caldy.

National 2(S):  The leading three all won, with Chinnor 13-20 victors at Redruth, whilst Cinderford were 23-31 winners at basement club Wimbledon, third placed Taunton were 31-21 victors over visiting fourth placed club Redingensians.  BSE and Canterbury stay in touch, with BSE beating Ldn Irish WG 35-24 and Canterbury narrow 25-24 winners against Esher.  At the bottom, three clubs are beginning to fall adrift, Wimbledon prop up the division with Broadstreet just above them following their 22-19 loss at O Redcliffians who occupy the other relegation spot.  Above them, Clifton have a 13-point safety cushion despite losing out 34-26 to Worthing.  The last of the fixtures saw TJs lose out 22-3 on the road at Barnstaple.

London Premier:  At the top of the division Hertford despatched struggling Southend 17-36 to now head the table with Guernsey second following their narrow 16-22 win at Barnes who drop to fourth spot. Tring drop to third after they tripped up 30-16 at struggling Shelford.  At the foot of the table Towcestrians played out a high scoring 38-38 draw at Guildford to sit just below Southend with Westcombe Pk rounding out the bottom three following their 52-0 hammering at Dorking.  In mid table Sidcup came off second best against county rival Tunbridge Wells with a 26-48 result, whilst Westcliff were 54-24 winners against S&E

London 1(S): At the top Medway lost their first match this season with a 22-9 defeat at Chichester, a result that sees the gap to CS Rugby reduce to 3 points after they beat Cobham 26-19.  Havant’s 42-10 win over Gravesend keeps them third and level on points with Chichester.  At the bottom Colfes edged out Ldn Cornish 36-32, which was important as Maidstone also picked up a confidence boosting win with a 29-17 result over Brighton.  Thurrock lost out 43-26 at Tottonians and in the mid table encounter Sevenoaks drew 24-24 with Chobham.

London 2(SE):  Dartfordians continue to lead the way with a 30-23 win over Haywrds Heath and with Hove losing out 25-20 at Horsham they now have a 9-point advantage at the top.  Charlton Park’s 44-33 win against Dover keep them in the playoff running along with Horsham & H Heath.  At the bottom a 55-10 defeat at Pulborough for Barking sees them still winless at the foot of the table, whilst D&B’s 12-10 defeat at H&W means they are still in relegation danger. In mid-table Beckenham were 31-18 winners against visiting Alleynians.

London 3(SE):  Aylesford’s 25-12 win over Lewes keeps them at the top from Thanet Wdrs and Bromley , who both had narrow wins against H&B (19-22) and Dunstonians (29-24)respectively.  At the foot of the table Crawley lost out narrowly 26-29 to visiting Folkestone, whilst Sheppey were well beaten 7-41 by visiting O Wills; Park Hse occupy the third relegation spot and a 32-0 defeat at Crowborough  now sees a distinct gap between the bottom three and survival.

Kent 1: Unbeaten Beccehamians now have a 13-point lead at the top of the table after their 24-0 win over Southwark.  In the chasing pack it is between three of four sides with the days results seeing three clubs locked together on points; Anchorians currently occupy second spot after they beat RBS 5-24, from Cranbrook who were 14-8 winners against Vigo who are the third club in that tussle.  A 17-26 loss for Kings Coll against Ashford sees them slip off the pace.  At the bottom basement club HSBC were narrow 27-24 winners against OGs, whilst Southwark occupy the othet relegation spot.  Both Sittingbourne and MAG are by no means clear of danger as they fought out a 22-22 draw.

Kent 2: The top two are beginning to pull clear with leaders Brockleians 14-19 winners at third placed Foots Cray and Whistable 33-0 winners against Lordswood in fourth.  At the bottom Greenwick lost 26-5 at Bexley whilst Askean were beaten 38-22 at Faversham.  In mid-table Snowdown lost out 21-26 to visiting Dartford Valley 

Christmas is coming, so don't forget the traditional day of rugby, carols, mince pies, cheese, port, mulled cider, baileys with hot chocolate and karaoke  at the annual MFC Christmas party which is scheduled for the last home 1st XV fixture this year  on December 16th. Plus, the winners draw for our giant Christmas raffle and the mega 500 Club cash sum!

Raffle tickets available at the bar (50% goes to the RFU IPF) and for the mega 500 club draw, please contact Bob Beney ASAP (click here) if you are not already signed up!

There’s no need for a ticket to the MFC Traditional Christmas Party. It's our way of sharing some Christmas cheer and love to our members.

PS: As you can see, Carol's already been practicing decorating the tree, and pretty much now got it down to a fine art!!

On a weekend that was devoid of league rugby below level two, it is the RFU Cup competitions that take centre stage, although it is disappointing to see that out of a total of 32 regional cup ties, 11 resulted in W/Os

RFU Intermediate Cup: Of the eight fixtures scheduled in this round, two ended as walkovers with the county’s Charlton Pk benefiting from Twickenham’s concession, whilst Rochford Hundred benefited from the withdrawal of Hampstead.  The county’s other representative remaining in the competition were Dover who fell to a 7-43 home defeat to L2SW leaders Camberley.  Of then other fixtures, Horsham went down 37-27 at Ldn Exiles whilst G&F narrowly lost out at home, 29-31 to last season’s Senior Vase champions Farnham.  Chelmsfrord, who have featured well in this competition in the past were beaten 0-47 by Woodford, whilst Norwich beat Chiswick 18-10.  The last of the ties saw O Cooperians 35-24 winners over struggling Barking.

RFU Senior Vase:  Aylesford posted a 17-12 win over Welwyn to progress, but the clash between Bromley and Thanet Wdrs meant that the county would lose at least one of its representatives in the competition, with Bromley convincing 41-0 winners.  Struggling Sheppey conceded their tie against last season’s regional finalists O Cranleighians whilst in the last of the ties affecting the county’s clubs, Dinstonians lost out 10-34 at home to Trojans.  Of the remaining fixtures Portsmouth and Southwold received walkovers against Warlingham and Wisbech respectively, whilst Stowmarket lost 10-27 at home to Datchworth, with W Norfolk going down 22-41 to visiting Thetford.

RFU Junior Vase: The Junior Vase is not as far progressed as the other tournaments, although disappointingly six of the sixteen ties resulted in walkovers, with Cranbrook benefiting from the withdrawal of Thamesians, bit both Brockleians and Whitstable conceding their fixtures.  In the other fixtures involving kent clubs, Ashford just edged a tight encounter 19-21 at OMW, whilst Anchorians went down 30-8 at O Whitgiftians and Sittingbourne were on the end of a 76-0 drubbing at O Wimbledonians.

For a complete round up of all the RFU completion results click here

It’s taken a little while but the VX3 online shop is now up and running and can be accessed either directly from the club website Shop page or by clicking on the VX3 logo (right).

The VX3 Shop stocks all the items used by the senior squad.  The club shop in the clubhouse will still stock certain items, so if you need a pair of shorts or socks quickly that’s the place to go, but the VX3 facility provides the chance for individuals to order other club branded items without the limitation of minimum orders etc.

With no league fixtures this weekend, Thursday’s training session gave way to a club fixture between a Maidstone XV and 36 Regt RE.  There has always been a strong relationship between the county town club and its resident Army unit.  Like most relationships there are peaks & troughs and the pace of operations for the Royal Engineers over the past 15 ye3ars has meant that they have seldom all been in barracks.  From a sport perspective this has made life difficult for team sports and this was only the unit side’s second fixture in 3 years.

Apart from an extremely entertaining match that saw the club represented by players from right across the spectrum of the club’s senior sides, Maidstone eventually took the honours with a 57-40 result.  Not that the scoreline was of too much importance, the real winner on the night was the game of rugby and the opportunity to rekindle a longstanding relationship between what are two of the county town’s institutions.

Thanks to Richard Weston and the coaching team from a Maidstone perspective for organising the fixture, and particular thanks to Gaz Beck who has a foot in both camps for promoting the initiative.

A return fixture looks on the cards for the New Year and both sides are already looking at a similar evening fixture next season, possibly with the Presidents Cup up for grabs.

Maidstone Rugby were back on TV this week after a 2 year hiatus, as they participated in BT Sports weekly rugby magazine programme as part of the audience and also providing the demonstration players.

With players from across the club taking part, the opportunity didn’t go unnoticed by new club kit suppliers VX3 who were delighted to see their brand take centre stage.

National 1: Leaders Coventry were pushed all the way by Elthamians but stay clear at the top by a healthy margin thanks to a 16-20 win, DMP now sit second after they were 36-7 winners against Rosslyn Pk and leapfrog Ampthill who lost out 16-9 to fellow challengers Plymouth Albion. Blackheath returned to winning ways after they beat bottom club Fylde 19-26.  Just above Fylde, Loughborough and O Albanians clashed with the students taking the result 37-18, whilst 27 points proved enough for Hull Ionians for the second week in a row as they edged out Caldy 26-27. In the mid-table battles Bishops Stortford were 24-17 winners against Esher, whilst Cambridge lost out 15-22 to visiting Moseley.

National 2(S):  A 64-22 win for leaders Chinnor over bottom club Wimbledon keeps them two points clear of Cinderford who were 32-19 victors over Barnstaple, whilst despite a 45-38 defeat at the hands of Ldn Irish WG, Taunton remain in third spot.  Fourth placed Redingensias are realistically the last of the challengers in fourth after they overcame Redruth 21-12.  At the foot of the table O Redcliffians and Broadstreet occupy the two places above Wimbledon, with ORs going down 33-24 to TJs, whilst Broadstreet lost out 42-14 at Worthing. In the mid-table battles, city club Canterbury fell to a 25-15 defeat at Clifton, whilst BSE lost out 27-20 at Henley.

London Premier: Tring stay top after they soundly beat a Guildford side that toppled Guernsey the week before 31-6,  Barnes 10-51 win at struggling Westcombe Pk keeps them in second spot whilst Combe remain in the bottom three.  Hertford’s 31-7 defeat of Dorking keeps them locked together with Barnes whilst Guernsey retain fourth spot after they recovered from last week’s defeat with a 52-0 thrashing of Shelford who sit just above the drop zone.  With an 8-point gap to reach the top four Westcliff are fifth after a 22-42 win at bottom club Towcestrians, whilst Southend remain in the bottom three despite a good 12-17 win at Tunbridge Wells. In the last of the fixtures a mid-table battle saw S&E just edge out Sidcup 27-24.

London 1(S): The top two clashed with Medway taking the honours over CS Rugby  20-12 to open up an 8-point advantage at the top of the division, Chichester remain in third spot despite losing out 38-26 at Brighton and Havant are fourth following their 14-29 win at Cobham.  At the bottom end of the table Maidstone continue to toil, losing out 30-15 at Ldn Cornish, with Colfes just above them following their 36-21 loss at Chobham.  Gravesend round out the bottom three after they lost out 24-31 to Tottonians.  In mid-table Thurrock overcame Sevenoaks 18-5.

London 2(SE):  Dartfordians stay top after they beat Dover 18-13 in a tighter than expected contest, whilst Hove retain second spot after they overcame Charlton Pk 18-3.  Haywards Heath closed up in fourth following their 24-8 win against Beckenham.  At the bottom of the table, basement club Barking conceded to Alleynians, whilst Pulborough lost heavily, going down 47-0 at H&W who create some space to the drop zone, as do  D&B after they overturned Horsham 31-15.

London 3(SE):  The top two clashed and exchanged places as Aylesford take over top spot following a 7-15 win at Thanet Wdrs.  An 83-5 hammering of Sheppey by Bromley keeps them third with Dunstonians moving into fourth place after they beat H&B 16-11.  At the bottom, an 18-5 loss for Crawley at park Hse keeps them propping up the table, with Park Hse still in the other relegation spot.  Crowborough and Folkestone are the two other clubs flirting with danger and enjoying mixed fortunes this weekend; as Folkestone defeated O Wills 20-12, whilst Crowborough fell to defeat at Lewes by the same score.

Kent 1: The lack of a bonus point for leaders Beccs in their 17-21 win at NAG sees their lead reduced to a mere 9-points over Vigo who were 35-14 winners against RBS.  Cranbrook sit third after they were narrow 25-27 winners at Southwark.  At the foot of the division HSBC occupy bottom spot after a 35-0 defeat at Anchorians. Three clubs sit locked together on 13 points just above them with Sittingbourne’s 17-27 defeat by Kings Coll seeing them below Southwark and RBS with whom they’re tied on points. In the last of the fixtures OGs lost out 17-26 to visiting Ashford.

National 1: A 38-14 win for unbeaten Coventry over Caldy sees them now 10-points clear at the top from Ampthill who beat Elthamians 33-7.  DMP slip to third despite a 33-26 loss at Esher whilst Plymouth drew 26-26 at Rosslyn Pk.  A second successive defeat for Blackheath sees them slip off the pace after they went down narrowly 19-21 to Bishops Stortford.  At the foot of the division Fylde remain bottom despite a 15-16 win at O Albanians, with Loughborough St just above them after they lost 36-10 at Moseley.  Hull Ionians continue to move up the table following a useful 27-21 result against visiting Cambridge

National 2(S):  A 31-42 reversal to visiting Henley saw Taunton slip to third place to be replaced by Chinnor, who were 27-32 victors at Barnstaple.  Cinderford are second following their 33-43 win at struggling O Recliffians.  At the bottom Wimbledon lost out 13-24 to Redingensians who stay in touch with the leading group, along with Redruth and BSE who both posted wins against Ldn Irish WG (46-38) and Clifton (37-19).  Of the Kent clubs, both posted solid wins with Canterbury 50-26 winners against Worthing, whilst TJs also posted 50 points in their 7-52 result at struggling Broadstreet

London Premier: with Guernsey slipping to a 33-22 defeat at Guildford that sees them drop to fourth, Tring’s tight 33-39 win at Westcliff sees them top the table.  Barnes and Hertford are locked together on points in second and third after both posted wins against struggling clubs Shelford (5-26) and Westcombe Pk (39-17) respectively. A 37-17 defeat at Sidcup for Towcestrians keeps them at the foot of the table, a point below Southend who moved off the bottom after a 32-31 win against S&E.  The last of the fixtures saw Tunbridge Wells mauled 42-7 at Dorking.

London 1(S): There is now a definite top two as the Medway bandwagon rolls on with a 12-31 win at Brighton, whilst CS Rugby look the other early favourites after they beat rivals Havant 21-30.  Chichester also lost ground on the leading two after they fell to a 23-43 defeat to visiting Ldn Cornish whilst Sevenoaks 26-9 win over Gravesend moved them back into the top half.  At the bottom, Maidstone lost out 17-27 to fellow strugglers Chobham who move out of the bottom three, whilst Colfes drew 10-10 with Thurrock.  The last of the fixtures also produced a draw as mid-table Tottonians and Cobham fought out a 22-22 result.

London 2(SE):  the battle between the top two saw leaders Dartfordians prevail 29-22 to open a six point gap over Hove with Charlton Pk moving back into contention after a 42-18 win against struggling D&B.  A 24-39 win for Horsham over H&W sees them just a point behind.  At the bottom Barking shipped another big score as they went down 22-82 to Haywards Heath, whilst Pulborough lost out 18-31 to O Alleynians. In mid table Beckenham just edged a narrow scoreline with a 29-26 win against visiting Dover.

London 3(SE):  This week saw the fixtures rebalance with Bromley and H&B sitting this week out although Aylesford failed to capitalise as they went down 18-25 at home to Dunstonians.  Not so for Thanet Wdrs as they took over top spot with a 17-30 win at Crowborough whilst at the other end of the table Sheppey fell to a 20-27 loss at home to Folkestone and Crawley lost out 6-20 to Lewes in a Friday evening fixture.  A 41-0 drubbing at the hands of O Wills sees Park Hse drop back into the bottom three.

Kent 1: A 39-3 win for Beccs over Sittingbourne sees them stretch their advantage to 10-points from second placed Vigo who beat bottom club HSBC 11-54.  Kings Coll move back to third after a 45-12 win against OGs, with Cranbrook fourth following their 22-13 win against NAG.  Anchorians slipped to fifth after they lost 34-17 at Ashford.  In the last of the matches a 13-7 defeat at RBS sees Southwark remain in the bottom two.

Kent 2:  On a weekend where the top two clashed a more definitive order was established; home advantage told in a tight contest between Brockleians and Whitstable, with Brocks shading a tight match 17-15 to go 3-points clear.   Lordswood stay third after they beat Bexley 36-7 whilst Foots Cray were convincing 5-59 winners at Askean.  At the bottom Dartford Valley posted a useful 31-27 win over Faversham to move up the table, whilst Greenwich had a HWO against Snowdown.

'Fancy winning £800*** for Christmas as well as loads of cash prizes during the season?

Geoff Burr did last year because he's a member of the 500 club.

So why not JOIN THE 500 CLUB now and don't miss out!!
It costs £60 this buys you 6 x £10 shares.

These numbers are entered into a draw which we have throughout the season. Half the total proceeds come back to you in cash prizes, Half help pays for our pitch upkeep or other designate club projects, click here to see what we achieved last year.

For more information and application form  Click link
Don't delay join today!

Contact:

Bob Beney (click here) or Melanie White  (click here)

Many will have noticed that the weekly blog has been somewhat delayed in recent weeks, I had hoped it would be just a one-off event, but appears to have become a more regular occurence.  That is likely to be the case for the remainder of the season as I take some time out to spend with the familly.  Future ATG summaries are therefor likely to be posted on Monday evenings or possible Sunday at the earliest.  I know from feedback that there are those of you who liked to peruse this missive over breakfast coffee, for disrupting your routine I offer my apologies, but you have been spoilt for too long and 'er indoors' says I need to start getting some of my life back!!

BH

National 1: League leaders Coventry maintained their unbeaten start to the season with an impressive 40-7 win over Cambridge.  After benefiting from other clubs mishaps last week Blackheath hopes of challenging the top of the table as they fell to a 28-19 away defeat at Esher who ended a five match losing streak with club slipping to fifth; whilst DMP just came out on top 33-31 in what looked like being the tightest contest of the weekend against Plymouth Albion to sit second & third respectively. Ampthill moved to fourth in the table after beating Caldy 39-22.  There was a big result at the bottom of the table as Loughborough St beat Hull Ionians 58-29 to close the gap on their fellow strugglers, whilst Moseley edged out bottom side Fylde 26-22.  Bishop's Stortford edged the Hertfordshire derby against Old Albanians by just four points in an 18-14 scoreline whilst in mid table Elthamians returned to winning ways, beating Rosslyn Park 34-27.

National 2(S):  Taunton remain at the top after their ninth consecutive win defeating Clifton 33-43on the road, whilst Chinnor are just a point adrift of the leaders after they beat struggling O Redcliffians 42-27.   Cinderford are third after a 34-10 win over struggling Broadstreet, with Redingensians in fourth following their 33-10 win against Barnstaple.  Canterbury slips to seventha after losing out 21-29 at home to BSE, with Redruth also now above them after a 22-42 win at Henley.  At the foot of the table Wimbledon were put to the sword 60-6 by Ldn Irish WG. A 23-19 defeat at Worthing sees TJs now four from the bottom, although with a 9-point cushion between them and the bottom three.

London Premier: Leaders Guernsey’s 29-17 win over Westcliff keeps them a point clear of Tring who beat Sidcup 38-23, whilst Barnes and Hertford are locked together in third & fourth following wins against Guldford (22-15) and Tunbridge Wells (30-32) respectively, with a 7-point gap to fifth placed Westcliff.  At the foot of the table the bottom two clashed as basement club Southend just lost out 33-32 at Towcetrians, Westcombe Pk occupy the other relegation spot following losing 14-27 at home to Shelford who moved out of the bottom three.  In the mid-table clash S&E just shaded the Surrey derby as they beat Dorking 26-22.

London 1(S):  Unbeaten Medway stay top after they held off a second half comeback by Havant to run out 34-28 winners, CS Rugby stay second after they beat Tottonians 29-20 with Chichester third after they won 29-39 at Chobham.  At the bottom Colfes went down 30-7 at Gravesend whilst Maidstone lost out 26-17 at Thurrock. In mid-table, Sevenaoks beat Cobham 10-32 and Ldn Cornsih were convincing 23-7 winners against Brighton.

London 2(SE): A 3-44 win for leaders Dartfordians at D&B keeps them 2-points clear of Hove who were 36-32 winners against Beckenham.  Charlton Pk sit third after they beat H&W 20-54.  At the foot of the table, bottom club Barking conceded their fixture to Dover, whilst Pulborough lost out 47-22 to Sussex rival Horsham.  In the remaining fixture Haywards Heath beat Alleynians 36-0

London 3(SE):  The clash between the leading two saw a change at the top as Aylesford take the lead after a 7-17 win at Bromley whilst Thanet moved into second spot following their HWO against struggling Crawley.  The Sussex side are not bottom however, with Sheppey’s 83-14 hammering at H&B keeping them propping up the table.  The last of the relegation places is now occupied by Folkestone, who went down 24-11 at Park Hse. In the other fixtures O Wills posted a good 29-36 win at Lewes, whilst Crowborough lost out 36-25 at Dunstonians.

Kent 1: A 26-22 win for Beccs over Kings Coll sees them 9-points clear at the head of the table, with Anchorians in second spot after they won a tight encounter with OGs 29-27.  Vigo’s 53-12 win over Ashford sees them in third spot with Cranbrook completing the top four after they beat Sittingbourne 14-46.  The bottom of the table is occupied by HSBC who lost out 29-24 to fellow strugglers Southwark . RBs sit above third bottom Sittingbourne but by no means out of danger after conceding their fixture at NAG

Kent 2:  Whitsatble and Brockleians stay locked together at the top of the table after solid results against Askean (71-0) and Bexley (7-48) respectively.  Lordswood’s 5-32 win at Snowdown sees them in third, just ahead of Foots Cray who beat Faversham 28-12.  Dartford Valley are bottom despite a 5-12 win at Greenwich, but there is little to separate the bottom six sides at this stage.

The first of the weekly Friday Breakfasts for the Ground Volunteers (temporarily known as the 'Old Mens Mowing Club') will take place this Friday (27th Oct) at the club, commencing at 9:00am.

This first meeting is very much looked at as a case of getting the ball rolling, getting to know each other, sorting out a bit of administration.  For those who haven't been involved in the initiative before, it also provides an opportunity to give you some supervised hands on experience with some of the equipment.

We also have some additional equipment and stores arriving that morning which we need to place for future use.

We already have a small pool of people who have already stepped forward to lend a hand, but more are always welcome, whether its on a regular or irregular basis; the whole aim of the initiative is to spread the burden without tasks becoming too onerous; and also to achieve more than if its just left to a couple of committed people.

Obviously hardy clothing is advisable and it is recommended that you bring a pair of gardening gloves.

If you think you could lend a hand then by all means come along.  Those intending to attend could they please confirm to Bob Hayton by Wednesday evening (25th) at the latest to allow Carol to cater accordingly.

Friday 27^th October saw the official launch of the clubs Ground Volunteers initiative starting with an excellent ‘full English’ breakfast.  For the 8-10 volunteers it was an opportunity to look at some general ground tasks and small projects that need doing as well as an opportunity to get to know each other for those who hadn’t previously met.

The scheme has been running unofficially on weekdays for a number of weeks but this was the official launching of the Friday morning work parties.  The morning saw the arrival of a couple of items of refurbished ground equipment & couple taken away for repair and the new trailer was pressed into immediate use. Some small jobs were done and things generally set in motion for our future weekly Friday working mornings.

We meet each week at 9:00am on Friday morning for a bacon roll and a cup of tea before starting; but it's not confined to Fridays, so if you can spare a morning or afternoon during the week then there are lots of little jobs to do to generally tidy up the ground and keep the pitches in good condition.

In line with the club statute and following the proposal passed at the recent AGM; notice is hereby given of the club's Financial General Meeting (FGM), to take place at The Mote on Wednesday 25th October at 7:30pm.

National 1: A 36-0 win for Coventry at Loughborough St keeps them top of the table but Blackheath’s 39-25 win against fellow contenders DMP sees them now in second spot, capitalising  on Plymouth Albion’s 17-17 draw with Elthamians and Ampthill’s narrow 7-8 loss to visiting Cambridge. Bishops Stortford’s narrow 25-27 win at Moseley sees them as the nearest of the chasers to the leading group.  At the bottom of the division Fylde anchor the division from Loughborough after a 33-14 defeat at Hull Ionians who occupy the other early season relegation slot.  Esher’s 29-15 loss at O Albanians keeps them in the wrong half of the table whilst Rosslyn Pk’s 36-32 win against Caldy sees the two clubs swap places in mid-table.

National 2(S):  Taunton stay top after their 17-14 result brought an end to fourth placed Canterbury’s winning run, Chinnor and Cinderford remain in second and third places respectively after similar results against Broadstreet (21-31) and TJs (15-33) respectively. Redingensians complete the top five after a 33-26 win against struggling Redclifffians.  At the foot of the division Wimbledon stay bottom after they lost 26-55 to visiting Henley, whilst the defeats sustained by Redcliffians and Broadstreet wee them occupy the other two relegation places.  Ldn Irish WG and Worthing sit just above the danger zone after both lost out, Irish going down 15-6 at Barnstaple whilst Worthing lost 37-30 at BSE.  The last of the results saw Redruth 36-3 winners against Clifton.

London Premier: Guernsey’s 17-38 win at Kent club Sidcup sees them take over at the top after Barnes slip to third after they were narrowly beaten 13-12 at Westcliff, a result that pull the Essex club into the leading group.  Tring sit in second place after they beat bottom side Southend 16-32 whilst Hertford’s 41-22 win against S&E keeps them in fourth spot.  At the bottom end of the division, Southend and Towcestrians are beginning to be cut adrift, with Towcestrians going down 45-5 at Dorking.  Shelford and Westcombe pk are the other two clubs in the relegation danger are, with Shelford losing out 34-8 at Guildford, whilst in the Kent derby, Tunbridge Wells were convincing 31-15 winners over Combe. 

London 1(S):  Medway remain unbeaten at the head of the table following a convincing 15-59 win at Ldn Cornish, with CS Rugby in second spot after they beat Sevenoaks 12-41 whilst Chichester’s 50-17 defeat of Thurrock keeps them in third, with Havant in fourth spot after they won 19-28 at Tottonians.  At the bottom Colfes posted their first win of the campaign with an 18-7 win against a Cobham side who continue to blow ‘hot & cold’, whilst Gravesend got the better of Maidstone 12-20 in an encounter that was symptomatic of both clubs league placing. The remaining result saw Brighton move to the top of the mid-table chasers after they beat Chobham 33-3.

London 2(SE): There is a clear top two in the table with Dartfordians leading the way from Hove whilst Charlton Pk & Horsham remain in contention.  Leaders Dartfordians were 49-22 winners against H&W whilst Hove were massive 10-81 winners at bottom club Barking who remain pointless and even at this early stage look destined for the drop.  Charlton Pk replaced Horsham in third spot as the two clashed with Park running out 25-8 victors.  At the bottom, whilst Barking are anchored to the foot of the table, they are ten points adrift of Pulborough who posted a 27-19 win against H Heath and are level on points with D&B who went down 22-10 at Beckenham.  The last of the fixtures saw Alleynians move out of the immediate danger zone after they beat Dover 25-22.

London 3(SE):  Bromley’s narrow 10-12 win at Crowborough keeps them top as Thanet slipped up by a similar margin at O Wills, going down 15-13 to slip to third with Aylesford cashing in with a 26-15 win against H&B to move into second spot.  Lewes sit five points back in fourth place after another narrow scoreline with a 15-17 win at Folkestone.  At the bottom Sheppey are enduring a torrid time as they lost out 14-43 at home to fellow strugglers Park Hse, a result that sees Park Hse move up a place to be replaced by Crawley who lost 10-27 to visiting Dunstonians.

Kent 1: A tight 7-8 win at Cranbrok for leaders Beccehamioaans sees them now eight points clear even at this early stage in the season.  Anchorians lost convincingly at Kings Coll 35-10, a result that sees the two swap places in second & third.  The bottom of the table sees Southwark at the foot of the division after a 23-10 loss at Ashford, with HSBC still in the bottom two despite a good 25-12 win over NAG who are also struggling.  In mid-table OGs went down 12-20 to visiting Vigo.

Kent 2:  Brockleians and Whistable remain locked together at the top with both recording wins as Whitstable were 13-22 winners at near neighbours Faversham, whilst Brockleians hammered Snowdown 57-0.  Lordswood stay third by virtue of a HWO against Greenwich.  Bottom of the table Dartford Valley lost out 12-37 to Foots Cray whilst Bexley were 21-55 winners at Askean in the last of the fixtures.

Apologies for the delay in posting this week's missive, but was rather busy over the weekend and for a short period just lost my mojo and enthusiasm to sit down and assemble the results. Back to normal now to hopefully no further waves of apathy to overcome.

National 1: Coventry’s tight 30-27 win against Bishops Stortford puts them top, three points clear of DMP who lost out in an equally tight contest 33-31 at O Albanians.  Plymouth Albion sit third after they beat Cambridge 17-10.  Blackheath’s convincing 14-55 win at Moseley keeps them in contention in fourth spot along with Ampthill who were 35-12 winners against struggling bottom club Fylde.  Hull Ionians moved off the bottom thanks to a 43-28 win over Esher whilst Loughborough St lost out 49-14 at Rosslyn Pk. In the mid-table battle, sixth placed Elthamians proved to have the edge over fellow promoted club Caldy with a 23-21 scoreline.

National 2(S):  Taunton continue to set the pace as the onle unbeaten side in the division with an 81-14 destruction of Worthing, whilst Chinnor move into second spot after a 20-31 win at Cinderford, a result that drops their hoists to third.  Canterbury’s good form continues as they sit fourth after a 7-22 win at newly promoted but struggling Wimbledon.  There is then a 5-point cushion to fifth side Redruth who won a tight encounter 12-9 at home to BSE.  The bottom of the table sees new boys O Redcliffians one off the bottom, despite a useful 25-25 draw with Henley, with Broadstreet completing the bottom three but closed the gap on Ldn Irish WG above them, with a good 53-40 win. In mid-table TJs lost out at home to Redingensians 27-47, whilst Barnstaple were 37-24 winners against Clifton.

London Premier: There are a group of 3 or 4 clubs who are now beginning to look like being the main contenders this season; leading the group are Barnes who beat Sidcup 31-9, from Guernsey who hammered struggling Southend 66-3.  Third place is occupied by Tring after a 40-24 win over Dorking, with Hertford in fourth spot following their 12-67 win at Towcestrians.  Westcliff are also in touch with the leading group after they beat Shelford 23-38.  At the foot of the table the heavy defeats for Southend and Towcestrians see them still looking for their first points of the campaign and occupying the bottom two places, with Westcombe Pk just above them despite a 27-22 win over Guildford. The remaining mid-table battle saw S&E just pipped by visiting Tunbridge wells 26-27.

London 1(S):  Medway continue to head the division after inflicting a heavy 56-7 defeat on Tottonians, whilst a 36-7 win for CS Rugby against Colfes and a 21-40 win for Chichester at Gravesend see them both just a point behind.  Havant complete the top four after they beat Sevenoaks 41-12.  At the foot of the table Colfes and Gravesend occupy the bottom two places with Maidstone above them after a couple of decisions went against them in their 36-28 loss at Cobham.  The remaining fixture saw Chobham just lose out 29-34 at home to Ldn Cornish

London 2(SE): Dartfordians good form continues as they now head the table following a narrow 10-13 win at Horsham who slip to second spot.  Hove sit third following their 29-12 win against Alleynians and there is a now a four point gap to Charlton Pk and Haywards Heath after they both won against Pulborough (48-26) and Dover (10-13) respectively.  The bottom of the table sees Barking yet to register a point after a 43-6 defeat at D&B, with Pulborough above them; the remaining contest saw Beckenham 8-21 winners at H&W.

London 3(SE):  At the top Thanet and Bromley are tied after the East Kent club were 28-7 winners against Folkestone, whilst Bromley have played one game more and won 68-10 at struggling Crawley.  Aylesford sit third as they also posted a 60 point haul, with a 67-0 hammering of Sheppey who seem to be struggling this season.  However, the bottom of the table is anchored by winless Park Hse who were beaten 38-32 at Lewes.  In the mid-table contests H&B lost out 14-23 to visiting Crowborough, whilst Dunstonians were 36-17 winners against O Wills.

Kent 1: Beccs continue to lead the way with a 41-19 win over RBS, with Anchorians in second spot following their narrow 20-24 win at Vigo and are 4-points clear of the third place pairing of Cranbrook and Kings Coll who both clashed this weekend with the Wealden club posting a rather one-sided 62-5 win given their relative league positions.  The bottom of the table sees HSBc anchored at the foot of the division after a 38-13 loss at Sittingbourne, with Southwark just above them after they fell to a 13-23 defeat to visiting OGs.  The remaining contest saw NAG run out 26-17 winners against Ashford.

Kent 2:  Whitstable and Brockleians remain the only unbeaten clubs in Kent 2 after posting wins against Foots Cray (38-17) and Greenwich (5-41) respectively.  Lordswood sit third after they hammered bottom club Dartford Valley 64-5.  In mid-table Snowdown were 13-7 winners against Askean, whilst Faversham fell to a 33-5 defeat against Bexley.

There will be discussion and small presentation at the club on Tuesday 3rd Oct for members who have indicated an interest in assisting in helping with pitch maintenance and general groundcare at the club.  The meeting is schedued for 7:30pm and is not expected last last more than an hour. The bar will be open.

If you have not been approached but are interested in volunteering to help out and have a couple of hours spare to assist on a reasonably regular basis then please feel free to come along.

Don't be scared by the word 'volunteer', its not a dirty word, and the aim of this exercise is to try and spread the workload, create some flexibility and probably achieve more in the process.  Come along and you will find out more.  For those who have pitched in to help during the summer it has been a quite rewarding experience, especially after hearing comments on the condition of the pitches at the start of the season.

National 1: It remains tight at the top of the table with DMP maintaining their perfect record after a 32-26 win against Caldy, Coventry are also undefeated after they were comfortable 26-61 winners at Esher, with Plymouth Abion third after they overcame struggling Loughborough St 28-49.  Blackheath remain in contention in fourth spot after they beat bottom club Hull Ionians 46-13, along with Ampthill who won at Bishops Stortford 22-41. At the lower end of the table, Fylde picked up their first win with a 29-20 win against Rosslyn Pk, whilst O Albanians lost out 19-38 to visiting Moseley.  The last of the matches saw Elthamians just edge a tight contest 28-29 against Cambridge, to move into sixth place.

National 2(S):  As happened last season, Taunton are the early season leaders after a 34-17 win against visiting Redruth, with Cinderford in second after they just beat Redingensians 36-37.  Chinnor’s 14-45 win at Worthing sees them in third spot from Canterbury in fourth after they beat Barnstaple 41-31.  At the lower end of the table three clubs are still looking for a first win, with O Redcliffians going down 45-21 at Clifton, Wimbledon losing out 48-23 at BSE and finally Broadstreet beaten 41-17 at Henley.  The remaining fixture saw TJs go down 26-37 at home to Ldn Irish WG

London Premier: Just 2-points separate the top four with Barnes taking over at the head of the table after a 15-37 win at a struggling Southend still looking to pick up their first point of the season.  Guernsey and Sidcup sit a point below the leaders, with both losing their unbeaten records as Guernsey lost 24-20 at Dorking and Sidcup slipped to a 24-32 home defeat to Shelford. Tring complete the top four after they just lost out in a tight 26-24 battle with Hertford one place below them. At the bottom Towcestrians like Southend remain point less after a 41 -7 mauling at Tunbridge Wells, whilst Westcombe Pk complete the bottom three and are also still looking for a first win after just being squeezed out 30-29 at S&E. The last of the fixtures saw Westcliff lose out 10-36 to visiting Guildford.

London 1(S):  Medway are back at the tap of the table with a 28-38 win at Chobham with CS Rugby into second after they dominated Maidstone 7-39.  Chichester sit third after their match with Cobham, who have blown ‘hot & cold’ so far this season, unfortunately for Chi it was one of the hot days they suffered a 27-41 loss to the visitors. Havant complete the top four after they beat bottom club Colfes 25-34.  At the bottom Gravesend sit between Colfes & Maidstone in a bottom three after they lost  out 46-15 at Brighton, whilst Thurrock are also in the bottom half, losing 57-35 at Ldn Cornish.  The remaining fixture saw Sevenoaks and Tottonians play out a 20-20 draw.

London 2(SE): With Hove slipping to a 36-19 defeat at Haywards Heath, Horsham take over at the top of the table following their tight 25-27 win at Beckenham, with Dartfordians third following their 28-22 win over Charlton Pk.  The bottom of the table is occupied by Barking who went down 3-41 to visiting H&W, whilst Pulborough picked up their first win of the campaign with a 30-26 win against Dover. D&B’s 22-7 defeat at Alleynians sees them complete the early season bottom three.

London 3(SE):  A closer than expected 30-37 win for Thanet at bottom club Park Hse keeps them at the top of the division, from Bromley who were 6-17 winners at O Wills, H&B sit third following their 12-33 win at Crawley.  Just above Park Hse at the bottom are Sheppey who are having a poor start to their seaso, as they lost out 7-40 to visiting Lewes. The remaining fixtures saw Aylesford 14-21 winners against Crowborough, whilst Folkestone beat Dunstonians 33-27.

Kent 1: An 11-49 win at HSBC for Beccs keeps them as the front runners with second placed Kings Coll slipping to a 17-23 defeat to Vigo who move up to fourth.  Anchorians sit third after they routed Southwark 57-5.  At the bottom end of the table a 43-0 defeat at OG sees NAG sit just above the bottom two of HSBC and Southwark, with Sittingbourne also having a poor start to their campaign with a 38-3 defeat at Ashford.

Kent 2:  After two rounds the top of the table sees a three way tie between Whitstable, Foots Cray and Brockleians.  Whitstable were convincing 5-75 winners at Dartford Valley, whilst Foots Cray were 34-13 winners over Bexley.  Brockleians had a much tighter contest, running out 22-17 winners over Lordswood who sit fourth. In the other two matches, Faversham were 11-5 winners against Snowdown, whilst Askean beat Greenwich 24-7.

Kick off times for England’s three Test matches in the Old Mutual Wealth Series have changed.

The Autumn Internationals against Argentina, Australia and Samoa being played in November at Twickenham Stadium will now kick off at 3:00pm, this is 30 mins later than had been initially announced.  The change of kick off times is to accomodate the matches being broadcast on Sky Sports’ new Main Event channel. 

The club has been informed that long standing Vice President,Tony Levick has recently passed away.

Although a long standing member of the rugby club Tony's real passion and interest was in cricket and he had been Hon Treasurer and also President of The Mote CC.

Tony also served Kent County CC for 19 years as Honorary Treasurer from 1976 to 1987 and again from 1992 to 1998 as well as serving as a General Committee member from 1974 to 1976 and again from 1990 to 1993.  In 1998 he was appointed as the Club’s President and was an Honorary Life Member of the Club

More recently he was also one of the Trustees of The Mote.

The club sends it's sympathy and condolences to Tony's  familly at this sad time

Tony's funeral will take place at 14:30hrs on Friday 29th September at St. Nicholas Church, Linton.

National 1: DMP still head the table after a 17-31 win at Moseley, with Coventry now second after a 37-10 win against Blackheath that sees the Kent club slip to fifth place.  Plymouth Albion’s 68-15 dismantling of struggling Fylde sees them in third from Bishops Stortford who were 24-31 winners at Rosslyn Pk.  At the bottom of the table the early season strugglers alongside Fylde are Hull Ionians who went down 26-36 to O Albanians, and Loughborough St who were beaten 36-20 at Elthamians who now sit eighth.

In mid table Ampthill were comfortable 45-5 winners against visiting Esher, whilst promoted Caldy lost out narrowly, 16-20 to visitors Cambridge.

National 2(S):   Cinderford and Taunton set the early season pace at the head of the table, with Cinderford 29-21 winners against Ldn Irish WG and Taunton 27-42 winners at a Wimbledon side still looking for its first win.  Chinnor, Redruth and Canterbury are the leading contenders in the chasing pack, with Chinnor 36-14 winners against Redingensians and Redruth 20-19 winners over visiting Worthing in what has been there third tight battle in as many weeks.  Canterbury were 24-34 winners at O Redcliffians. TJs are by no means out of the hunt and a 20-14 win against Henley sees them in sixth spot, just behind county rivals Canterbury. At the bottom O Redcliffians, Wimbledon and Broadstreet occupy the bottom three places, with Broadstreet losing out narrowly, 32-35 to visiting Clifton.  In the last of the fixtures Barnstaple lost out 24-39 to visiting BSE.

London Premier: After four matches it is newly promoted Sidcup who sit at the top of the table after a 24-44 win at Guildford sees them maintain their perfect record, Guernsey sit a point behind after they beat fellow promotion challengers Hertford 24-21 with Tring in third after they won 16-6 against Tunbridge Wells.  Westcliff complete the top four after they added to Westcombe Pk’s woes with a convincing 15-49 win against the Orpington based club who now sit third from bottom. A 19-60 home defeat for Towcestrians by S&E keeps them at the foot of the table with Southend also looking at what might be a long hard slog this season after they suffered an equally heavy 60-10 defeat at Shelford.  In what was another 60 point scoreline Barnes stay on the edge of the leading challengers with a 64-21 win over Dorking.

London 1(S):  A 41-24 win for Medway at Sevenoaks puts them at the top of the table with Chichester in second place after a 10-20 win at fourth placed CS Rugby, Tottonians now sit third following a 38-24 win against bottom club Colfes with Havant in fifth after a 52-36 win against Maidstone.  The bottom of the table sees Gravesend just above Colfes after they lost out 16-29 to visiting Ldn Cornish with Brighton completing the bottom three after a 36-36 draw with Cobham.  The last of the fixtures saw Thurrock lose out 14-16 at home to Chobham.

London 2(SE): Hove continue to head the table after a 43-21 win against visiting Dover, whilst Dartfordians are just behind them after they dismantled Pulborough, scoring 118 points with nil in reply.  Horsham complete the top three after they inflicted an 88-10 defeat on Barking who along with Pulborough prop up the early season table.  In the mid-table tussles, Charlton Pk were 25-10 winners against Beckenham, with H&W 24-15 winners against Alleynians and finally Haywards Heath went down narrowly at D&B in a 22-19 scoreline.

London 3(SE):  A 45-12 win over Lewes keeps Thanet Wdrs at the top of the table from Bromley who just shaded the 27-26 result against visiting Folkestone.  H&B slip a place after losing out 7-18 to O Wills, with Aylesford also in contention after they beat Crawley 34-12.  The bottom end of the division sees winless Park Hse at the foot of the table following a 52-12 defeat by Dunstonians with Sheppey also in the bottom half after leaking over 50 points for the second successive week in a 64-10 defeat at Crowborough.

Kent 1: Beccs and Kings Coll remain neck & neck at the top after both posted  BP wins, with Beccs 59-7 winners against Ashford and Kings Coll winners against RBS by a narrower 20-24 scoreline. Cranbrook sit third after they beat HSBC 27-15 whilst Anchorians were big 17-71 winners at NAG.  The foot of the table is occupied by the two bank sides with OGs just above them after they lost out 24-15 at Sittingbourne whilst in mid table Southwark overcame Vigo 27-17.

Kent 2:  With just 10 clubs this was the opening weekend of the league campaign for the division with Lordswood topping the table after the first round of matches and a 48-0 defeat of Askean.  Brockleians also posted a solid 39-3 result over Dartford Valley to sit second with Whitstable also posting a 17-38 win at Bexley.  The remaining fixtures saw Greenwich post a useful 29-12 win against Faversham and Foots Cray were 0-29 winners at Snowdown CW.

Maidstone Rugby will host a free RFU Pitch Maintenance evening at The Mote on Wed 11^th October commencing at 6:00pm.  The evening sees the launch of the RFU Pitch Contractor Partnership with Rigby Taylor and provides an opportunity to meet your local RFU Volunteer Pitch Advisors.  The evening will see a keynote presentation by RFU Twickenham Head Groundsman Keith Kent as well as a number of pitch machinery demonstrations.

The evening is free of charge but attendees are requested to register their attendance via groundsmenconnected@rfu.com

National 1: DMP maintained their perfect record at the top with a 35-18 win against Cambridge with Coventry second after a tight 19-21 win at struggling O Albanians.  Blackheath are third after an equally close 16-15 win against Ampthill.  Plymouth Albion sit fourth in the early season table with a 17-36 win over newly promoted Bishops Stortford.  At the bottom the early season stragglers are Hull Ionians who lost out 38-24 to Moseley in a match played on the Friday evening, whilst Fylde are also struggling following their heavy 7-43 defeat to O Elthamians.  In the early season mid-table battles Esher were 32-17 winners against Rosslyn Pk, with Caldy posting a good 26-31 win over Loughborough St.

National 2(S):  Word is that due to Hartpury’s rise, Cinderford is again the club of choice for Gloucester’s academy players and another big win, this time 17-90 at Henley does little to dispel that theory as they head the table.  Taunton are level on points after they beat Barnstaple 52-3, with Chinnor as the only other unbeaten club after a 24-43 win at Ldn Irish WG.  City club Canterbury sit in the top half of the table after a 41-7 beating of new boys Broadstreet, whilst TJs sit in the middle of the pack after they posted a solid 14-24 win at Clifton. The early season basement boys are O Redcliffians who lost 28-20 at BSE who along with Wimbledon who lost out 24-16 at Redruth are still looking for a first win.  The remaining result saw Worthing lose out to Redingensians in a high scoring 30-40 scoreline.

London Premier: Guernsey sit top of the table, one of only three clubs still unbeaten as they just edged out new boys Tunbridge Wells 24-26. Sidcup sit second after a 33-28 win against Westcliff who are now fourth with Tring in third after they beat S&E 22-27.  Hertford, who would have been many people choice as promotion candidates fell to a 17-23 home defeat to Barnes whilst Dorking also sit amongst the front runners after a 30-27 win over struggling Shelford who sit in the bottom three.  At the bottom end of the table Towcestrians anchor the division after their match against fellow strugglers Westcombe Pk was abandoned due to an electrical storm, whilst Southend continue to struggle, going down 19-38 at home to Guildford.

London 1(S):  Cs Rugby lead the way after a 17-38 win at Brighton with Chichester are second following a 30-17 win against Havant.  Medway slip to third after failing to pick up a bonus point in their 15-20 win at Thurrock.  By far the result that caught the eye was newly promoted Ldn Cornish’s 57-10 dismantling of Cobham whilst Maidstone’s poor record against Tottonians continued with a 22-37 defeat. Gravesend picked up their first win of the campaign with a 24-30 win at Chobham whilst Colfes are still waiting for their first win after losing out 17-24 against Sevenoaks.

London 2(SE): Hove and Dover sit at the head of the table after two matches with wins against Pulborough (25-54) and D&B (23-22) respectively.  Dartfordians sit third after beating Beckenham 11-15 with Horsham fourth following their 19-36 win at Alleynians.  Barking share bottom spot with Pulborough after a 7-31 loss to Charlton P, with D&B and H&W just above them after the latter’s 38-24 loss at Haywards Heath.

London 3(SE):  It is the two clubs that started their campaigns a week early that head the table with newly promoted H&B top following a 14-14 draw at Folkestone whilst Bromley were 10-43 winners against next door neighbours Park Hse. Thanet sit third after they hammered Sheppey 7-75, with Aylesford in fourth after they were held to the division’s second draw, a 15-15 result against O Wills. The remaining result saw Crawley 12-10 winners against Crowborough and Lewes convincing 43-15 winners against Dunstonians.

Kent 1: Perennial challengers Beccs head the table following a 0-34 win against OGs, with Kings Coll in second after a 34-10 win over Southwark.  A tight 37-35 win in the local derby with NAG sees Vigo complete the top three.  At the bottom Sittingbourne are still looking to get their campaign rolling after they lost out heavily, 46-7 to Anchorians. In the battle of the banks the honours went to RBS by a single point as they edged HSBC 24-25.  In mid-table Ashford lost out 5-19 to Cranbrook. 

National 1: Coventry are the early pace setters after a 50-11 win over Moseley, with DMP on their heels following their 15-27 win at Hull Ionians who prop up the table.  Newly promoted Bishops Stortford sit third after edging out the side they came up with in a 13-19 scoreline against Elthamians.  Blackheath posted another good result with a 6-25 win at Rosslyn Pk to complete the top four.  Of the other likely contenders Plymouth Albion beat Esher 43-10 whilst Ampthill were 28-24 winners against an Albanians side yet to win.  A 37-19 defeat for Fylde at newly promoted Caldy sees them at the wrong end of the table whilst in the last of the fixtures Cambridge lost out 9-14 to Loughborough St.

National 2(S):  Taunton sit atop the division as they did in the early stages of last season after a 10-48 win at Redcliffians, whilst a solid 29-24 win for Barnstaple against Redruth sees them second, with Worthing in third after their 15-31 win against newly promoted Wimbledon.  Cinderford are the other undefeated side in the table and they hammered Clifton 57-5.  The county interest was in the derby between TJs and Canterbury, with the spoils going to the visiting city club with a 24-36 score, a result that sees both clubs in the middle of the table. Above them Redingensians were convincing winners at Ldn Irish WG by 44-16, the remaining fixtures saw Chinnor 39-20 winners over Henley whilst Broadstreet went down 16-20 to visiting BSE.

London Premier: As was probably to be expected it is the sides that challenged last season,  that even at this early stage look like being the front runners as Guernsey and Hertford head the table after wins against S&E (25-17)and Shelford (19-37) respectively.  They are joined by two of the newly promoted sides in Tring who were 42-19 winners over fellow promotes Towcesterians, whilst Sidcup beat a Westcombe Pk outfit that finished fourth last time out with a 23-32 scoreline.  At the bottom end despite only two fixtures, it is looking like Southend who battled relegation last season may do so again after they were thumped 69-5 by Essex rival Westcliff.  Guildford also sit in that pack after they lost narrowly to visiting Surrey neighbours Dorking 31-32. In the remaining fixture Barnes brought newly promoted Tunbridge Wells back down to earth after last week’s win with a 35-7 defeat.

London 1(S):  Medway sit top after week two with a convincing 49-8 win over Colfes who now prop up the table. A convincing 34-67 win for Chichester over Tottonians keeps their perfect record as does CS Rugby’s 34-18 win against Ldn Cornish to complete the top three, with Cornish yet to get off the mark.  Havant also look leading challengers this terms after they beat Brighton 17-13 and are the last of only four sides to be unbeaten after two fixtures.  In the early season mid table melee, Cobham were surprised 17-19 at home against Chobham whilst Sevenoaks put in a good performance to beat Maidstone 43-17.  In the last of the fixtures Gravesend just came up short against Thurrock, losing out 11-14

London 2(SE): In what is the opening round of fixtures in the division, again it was the sides that challenged last season that were expected to be the fast starters, and so it proved, as  Dartfordians posted the biggest score of the day with an 83-0 hammering of the once mighty Barking, for whom it might be a long season. Beckenham were also convincing winners as they beat Pulborough 49-3 but Charlton Pk were beaten 23-35 by Alleynians.  Hove also won, with a 10-33 win at D&B whilst Dover were 20-27 winners at H&W.  In the Sussex derby, Horsham just edged newly promoted Haywards Heath by the odd point in the 13-12 scoreline.

London 3(SE):  Oddly there was a single fixture played in this division last week which sneaked under the radar of the author and will be dealt with now as newly promoted H&B hosted Bromley for what was their first fixture at this level and ran out comfortable 51-22 winners.  That result combined with this week’s 27-16 win over Park Hse sees then top the table followed by Crowborough who beat O Wills 34-15 and Aylesford who were 33-22 winners against Folkestone. Sheppey came away with the points after a 20-25 win at Crawley whilst Bromley recovered from last week’s loss with a 42-15 win over Lewes.  The last of the fixtures saw Thanet Wdrs edge out Dunstonians 19-22.

Kent 1: After a torrid time last season leading relegation, Ashford got their season off to a flyer with a 0-60 win over newly promoted RBS, a 15-28 win for Kings Coll over HSBc sees them in second and rounds off a bad day for the bank sides.  Beccs also look certain to challenge again this season after their opening day 31-21 win against Anchorians.  Cranbrook lost out 24-27 to OGs in what is always a tight contest whilst the narrowest winning margin in the division was between Sittingbourne and Vigo, with the villagers just shading the 31-32 score.  In the last of the fixtures NAG posted a solid 20-5 win over Southwark Lancers.

The club has 2 (two) high category tickets remaining for the England v Samoa Autumn International at Twickenham that have become available.  Anyone who would like to apply for the tickets is requested to contact Steve Vincent at the earliest opportunity.

First Come, First Served

National 1: The top five all won and Coventry’s 0-64 hammering of bottom club Fylde keeps them 3-points clear of Plymouth Albion who beat Caldy 17-34.  DMP stay third after a 36-21 won against visiting O Elthamians. Blackheath stay fourth after beating O Alnaninas 31-3 with Ampthill’s 14-36 win at Loughborough St keeping them level on points in fifth.  At the bottom Loughboroughs loss sees the drop to one off the bottom whilst bonus points for Hull Ionians despite losing out 35-31 at Bishops Stortford sees them move up a place.  Whilst the bottom three now look set to struggle, they are still not adrift from lower mid table, where Rosslyn Pk lost out 50-23 at Cambridge and Esher went down 27-32 to visiting Moseley.

National 2(S):  It was a series of tight contests at the top with a narrow 20-26 win for leaders Taunton at BSE keeping them two points clear at the top and posting the largest winning margin of the leading group. Second club Chinnor beat TJs 24-20 in an equally close contest whilst Cinderford remain third following another tight result with a 27-29 win at Worthing and Canterbury stay fourth after an 18-16 win against Redruth and puts them five points clear of fifth placed Redingensians who were 49-17 winners over struggling Broadstreet.  At the foot of the table Wimbledon remain winless after losing out 25-20 at Clifton, with O Redcliffians just above them following a heavy 53-22 loss at Ldn Irish WG. In the last of the fixtures a 29-22 win for Henley over Barnstaple saw them move up four places

RFU Intermediate Cup: Only three of the counties sides compete in the competition with Dover receiving a bye in this round. For the other two clubs it was mixed fortunes as last season’s runners up Charlton Pk were solid winners with a 30-12 result against O Reigatians. Unfortunately Beckenham lost out with a narrow 36-33 defeat at that hands of last season’s Senior Vase champions Farnham. A full list of the remaining results is below.

Results: H&F v Rochford 18-48, H Heath v Ldn Exiles 12-37, Horsham v Eastleigh HWO, Norwich v Harlow HWO, O Cooperians v Cantabrigian HWO, Twickenham v Hove 28-14, Woodford v Harrow 45-5

RFU Senior Vase:  Both Bromley and Thanet Wdrs received first round byes, with the other four of the county’s clubs having mixed fortunes.  Aylesford were solid 8-50 winners at Petersfield, whilst Dunstonians had a much tighter contest before running out 30-25 against visiting Battersea Ironsides.  Sheppey were 40-20 winners against Crawley whilst O Wills fell at the first hurdle, going down 21-59 to visiting Trojans.

Results: Cheshunt v Southwold AWO, Datchworth v Teddington 44-17, Hitchin v Stowmarket 22-34, Newmarket v Wisbech AWO, Thetford v Maldon 56-10, W Norfolk v Basildon HWO

Byes: Bromley, OldCranleighans, Portsmouth, Thanet Wanderers, Warlingham, Welwyn

RFU Junior Vase: In a competition that saw 10 first round Walkovers we will concentrate only on the results affecting the county’s clubs. Unfortunately 3 of the walkovers were conceded by Askean, Southwark and Dartford Valley, although Sittingbourne were the beneficiary of O Blues withdrawal. Brockleians result is one of three still not announced, so no doubt one can speculate there are some issues there with regard to match cards.  That left three remain Kent matches, OGs fell to Becs OB by 26-14, whilst Greenwich lost heavily 59-7 at PJF.  Whitstable were the only side to post a winning score as they beat Croydon 38-17.  Ashford, Cranbrook and Anchorians all received first round byes.

Byes: Ashford, Bognor, Burgess Hill, Cranbrook, Gillingham Anchorians, Millbrook, Royston,

Sandown & Shanklin, Uckfield

Well here we are again at the start of another season and another series of sad Saturday nights for the author; were did the summer go?  Actually it took a little perseverance to ‘get my arse in gear’ so to speak, but thankfully this season’s first instalment is not quite as arduous as the normal weekly fare due to there only being fixtures down to level 6.  Anyway, here we go with the 2017-18 season’s Around the Grounds, and in doing so may I wish all your respective clubs the best of luck in their various league & cup campaigns.

National 1: For the first time in many years (I don’t know since when) the county has two clubs in the division and it was mixed fortunes for them.  The more seasoned Blackheath just got the upper hand in a tight battle with last season’s league runners up Plymouth Albion, winning by the odd point in the 32-31 scoreline, whilst Elthamians fell to an opening day defeat, going down 39-14 at Esher.  Two sides expected to challenge this season clashed on the opening day with Moseley drawing 21-21 with visiting Ampthill. After a rocky start to last season Rosslyn Pk had a strong end to their season and seem to have maintained that momentum with 0-58 demolition of O Albanians, whilst Coventry posted the biggest score in the division as they beat Hull Ionians 20-63. In the battle between the promoted divisional winners of last season, the honours went to Bishops Stortford as they beat Caldy 49-26; whilst Fylde lost out to Cambridge 12-25 and in the final fixture DMP were 33-23 winners against Loughborough St.

National 2(S): By all accounts Cinderford are the side most people fancy to top the division although no doubt a few clubs will have different ideas; regardless of that they got their season rolling with a solid 17-39 win at Canterbury.  With Elthamians having been promoted last term, newly promoted TJs are the county’s other club in the division, and a 17-50 win at Bury St Edmunds will be a great confidence boost for the side.  Wimbledon who came up with TJs didn’t fare as well, losing out 13-33 at home to Barnstaple, the other promoted new boys were O Redcliffians who received something of a baptism of fire, going down 58-10 against a Redruth side that will no doubt be in the hunt next April. Of the other fancied sides, Taunton who finished fourth last season were 41-21 winners against Broadstreet (promoted & level transferred from Midlands); whilst Chinnor were held to a 24-24 draw at Clifton.  The remaining fixtures saw Henley 28-24 winners over Redingensians whilst Worthing were 27-22 winners over the visiting Ldn Irish WG.

London Premier: Perhaps the first noticeable item is the retitling of this division which now sits it squarely back as a London & SE division, which it has always been until the RFU renamed the then National 1 as the Championship.  The subsequent cascade of retitling elevated the division to a national title when in effect it had remained the senior division regionally.

Regardless of the terminology, the sides one might have fancied to do well this season had mixed fortunes on the opening day; Hertford who finished third last term posted a 47-20 win over visiting Guildford whilst Guernsey racked up the biggest score of the day with 5-75 hammering of new boys Towcesterians (level transferred from Midland Premier).  Westcombe Pk fell to a 32-26 defeat at promoted Tring whilst Barnes who were relegated back to the division also fell to defeat against visitors S&E 32-35.  For the county’s new boys in the division, both posted confidence boosting wins to start their campaigns as Sidcup ran out 25-35 winners at Southend, whilst Tunbridge Wells were comfortable 39-19 winners against Shelford.  In the remaining fixture Dorking were overturned at home 15-22 by visiting Westcliff in revenge for the defeat suffered in the penultimate fixture of last season.

London 1(S):  It is anticipated that this division will be tightly contested this season and all of the first weekend’s result ended with bonus point wins.  A 12-45 win for CS Rugby at Chobham sees them top the pile with the newly promoted and much fancied Medway outfit also racking up 40 points with only 17 in reply, as they beat Gravesend.  A 25-44 win at newly promoted Ldn Cornish for Havant got their show on the road, with relegated Chichester 28-10 winners over Sevenoaks.  Maidstone got the upper hand in their encounter with a Colfes outfit that have probably the largest pack in the division, with a 34-21 to sit just above Cobham who were 27-33 winners against Thurrock, who were level transferred from Ldn 1(N), in the last of the fixtures Brighton just lost out to visitors Tottonians, in what looks like the division's tightest encounter of the day with a 29-31

What more could you wish for?  An opening day that gave us some glorious weather with a great game of rugby and a solid win for the 1st XV  to boot (not to mention a pleasant game of cricket also taking place).  In addition we also had Phil Brown, Marketing Director from new Platinum Sponsors, Millwood Designer Homes on hand to watch the action.

Whilst he was there club President Jim Tinsley and Chairman Craig Tuffrey took the time to present him with one of this season’s 1^st XV shirts in addition to getting Phil to present the Man of the Match award after the final whistle.

Club Access: All members are alerted to the new 2m (6'6")height restriction barrier that has been installed at the gate from the car park leading up to the pitches. This has been installed to keep unwanted visitors out and will be closed as a matter of course and opened on request or busy match days. Drivers of commercial or high vehicles (vans etc) please be alert to its presence.

Additionally there will be roadworks taking place on Park Road commencing on Monday 14th Aug for 3 days, during which time Park Road will be closed. For members approaching the club from the south of the town on the Loose Road, please use an alternative route to Park Road during that period.

As we sit almost all of the125 perimeter board spaces have been filled but there are still a couple of places available for the 2017-18 season on the internal perimeter before we start to occupy the external perimeter along the touchlines to create the capacity for more boards as necessary, ideally we need 5 or 6 to start with. Could your company be interested? Have you asked them? The worst they can say is No!! So why not find out.

If your company are or may be interested then please pass details to Bob Hayton and the club will take it from there.

The World Rugby Executive Committee has approved the addition of six law amendments to the programme of global law trials.

Those who attended the AGM will have seen the section on Volunteering in the Annual Report, in addition a piece about the need for volunteers was also included in the latest circulation of the club newsletter.

The club is looking for volunteers to commit to a few hours a week on a regular basis to assist with ground & pitch maintenance.  We already have a small pool of committed volunteers, but need others to step forward to cover absences and unavailability; this is not a lifetime  or life changing commitment, just a request for people to step forward and give some time.

You don’t need to be horticulturally minded, just demonstrate a willingness to help; and for those of you who’ve never driven a ride-on mower, tractor, or connected a 3-point linkage then full instruction can be given.  It’s not that onerous and in many ways is a pleasant way to spend a morning, afternoon or evening on a sunny day.

If you feel you can help in this area then please contact a member of the committee, please don’t leave everything to the committed few.

Maidstone Rugby’s Lead Physiotherapist Gemma has been involved with the England Women's Rugby training camps in the lead up to the World Cup in Ireland in August. 

In April she covered the Basingstoke abc training camp with the forwards, and from there has assisted the Head and Senior Physio at various locations around the UK. She has also been a pitch side physio for England Development 7s at Bisham Abbey and at 7s in the city. 

Gemma says: "It's been an amazing opportunity and in my pursuit of continuing to learn and develop to provide the best possible care, it has been an invaluable experience and one that I'm very grateful for". 

"I'm starting a private practice in February to allow me to have the flexibility to do sports physiotherapy. In the meantime, I have just accepted a six month contract with BMI Somerfield Hospital in Maidstone, who have been very understanding regarding my sports commitments. I'm excited to join the team there who are experienced, enthusiastic and have great rehabilitation equipment, including an alter-g treadmill". 

"It's exciting to be involved in the England Rugby set up and hopefully I can bring what I've learnt back to the club at Maidstone. The club are also looking for Physiotherapy Partners this season (click here for information) to help spread the cost of kit and equipment and further improve our injury management protocols. Any help from local businesses, particularly those in the medical field would be greatly appreciated!" 

NB: initial response from local medically related businesses has been good with three commited to helping support grassroots sport already

Shirt Number Sponsorship - Last One

The club has one remaining Shirt No Sponsorship opportunity available for next season as follows:

Shirt No: 18. (Sold)

First Come, First Served!!

RFU have changed the method of allocating away tickets. Please see below (in italics) on the new allocation system.

“Historically, we have based the ticket allocation to the clubs on the number who have expressed an interest on their Six Nations home application form, with typically around 850 clubs expressing an interest each season. This season, in the interest of fairness we will be offering an initial allocation to all clubs. There are currently 1,397 Clubs, CBs and Societies entitled to apply for tickets and your (MFC) initial allocation is as follows:

• Italy v England: 2
• Scotland v England: 2
• France v England: 4

This first allocation may be less than you have received previously for the reasons detailed above. After the initial sales window, we will release any tickets not taken up enabling you to purchase additional tickets, subject to availability.

This first allocation may be less than you have received previously for the reasons detailed above. After the initial sales window, we will release any tickets not taken up enabling you to purchase additional tickets, subject to availability.

 "The initial sales window for Club Six Nations away matches will run from 10am on Monday 9th October until 10am on Monday 16th October."

The additional sale will open at 10am on Wednesday 18th October. Further details on this will follow.”

The club will purchase those tickets available in the first allocation. A random number draw will decide which member gets the limited amount of tickets and rather than wait until just before the actual fixture before allocating it would be good to know who wishes to be included in the draw so that if they are successful then they can make early travel/hotel arrangements.

Members applying for tickets should forward applications for tickets to Steve Vincent by 18^th October at the latest. Please note Steve will be out of the country from 20^th October for 10 days, so it is important that your applications are submitted promptly.

MAIDSTONE RUGBY ARE RECRUITING FOR THE 2017-18 SEASON

Ambitious London 1 (S) club Maidstone Rugby are recruiting for the 2017-18 season and welcome all aspiring senior players to the county town, ambitious local players, or players moving to the area. Current players and coaches. Please pass this on to any of your mates/contacts who may be interested in playing at Maidstone next season, regardless of level/ability.The club is looking to strengthen the senior squad for the upcoming 1st XV league and cup campaigns as well as the Kent League competitions.

If you are interested in joining a club that has a professional attitude on the pitch but is very sociable off it, then please contact Head Coach, Mike Hebden (click here)

Maidstone Rugby is a traditional club with a friendly atmosphere. Located at “The Mote” on the edge of Mote Park close to Maidstone town-centre and its vibrant nightlife. The club runs 4 senior sides every weekend, with the 1st XV playing their rugby in London Division 1 (South) within the English Clubs Championship.  In addition they have been the London & SE Division, RFU Senior Vase and Intermediate Cup Champions in three of the last four seasons in which they were eligible to enter, reaching the National semi-finals of the Senior Vase competition in 2012 & 2013 and winning the national final of the Intermediate Cup at Twickenham in 2015.

The club has a well-established coaching structure, as well as full physiotherapy and sports science support. Additionally the club has access to broad range of 'state of the art' fitness training facilities through one of the sponsors (Topnotch Health Clubs).

The club's 1st XV currently play in London Division 1 (South).

Currently the club runs 4 Senior sides and caters for players of all standards.  If you are a player looking to test yourself at a higher level in competitive rugby, or even just interested in club rugby in a more social and corinthian environment, then you are just the player we are looking for and we will have a team in which you can flourish.

In order to foster greater movement of Youth players into the senior club, Maidstone will not be running an U18s side this season – instead, after a year of training together with the senior club and a couple match appearances, the U18s will be playing in a combined 2ndXV / Development team. We’re delighted that Mick Walker has stepped up to become the head Coach, and he will be ably assisted by a number of other senior members and coaches throughout the season. This is a fantastic opportunity for the ex-Youth boys to move into senior rugby with the mentorship of our senior players, also for us to provide a competitive team for senior players in other sides to move into, and finally to give a place for aspiring 1stXV players to showcase their skill and commitment to the Club.

Many of the U18s still play at school, so initially they will be training only with a small subset available for Saturday matches. After Christmas – normally a time when injury and other commitments take a toll on our numbers – the side will be bolstered by the U18s becoming available once school commitments end. At the same time the current U17s will start to train with the senior teams on a Tuesday evening as we did last year, the ambition  being that we start to provide a continual stream of fresh, home-grown talent into the senior sides, allowing us to improve our league positions and ultimately get back to fielding a ‘full suite’ of sides from 1^st XV to 5^th XV.

This is a great opportunity for the club to grow organically and retain the loyalty of younger players who have in some cases played for the club for 10+ years already – there are many adults playing who cannot boast that length of service ! These boys have the potential to be our future, and our intent is to make them feel valued as such, as every age group makes the transition from U17 to senior rugby. As they move through their lives we’ll put further initiatives in place to support them and retain them even as they transition to University and beyond – for now however we’d like to ask that the senior players – and our supporters ! - make them feel welcome, look after them, and help them develop into the great Maidstone Rugby players they have the potential to be.

Allan Crosbie, Youth Transition Manager

As indicated in May’s/June’s information leaflet, Kent County RFU is launching a new initiative called ‘Kent Referees Group’, focused solely at Club Referees.

Aims and Ambitions

The Kent Referees Group aims to make sure that all senior matches and as many other games as possible from U13 upwards are refereed by accredited referees to provide a safer and more enjoyable experience for players.  The ambition extends to providing referees for Kent U10-U12 festivals. Referee cover may also become possible for other club mini/midi festivals.

The accreditation process has been designed to make sure that all Club Referees are competent. Each Club’s Community Referee Co-ordinator (CRefC) will be responsible for ensuring that all referees within his or her Club receive support and further training if required.  The Kent Referees Group will work in partnership with the RFU Training Team and KSRUFR to give all accredited referees an identity within the Kent Rugby community and to support and provide them with training and development opportunities. To this end, all accredited referees will be provided with a Kent Referees Group referee shirt at the first training session planned for November.

Next steps

The success of the Kent Referees Group will depend to a large extent on the active involvement of each CRefC to communicate these aims within the Club community and to be responsible for accreditation of Club referees.  With this in mind, we encourage all CRefCs to come along to one of our information evenings on the below dates in September.

Monday 4th September – 7.30pm at Westcombe Park RFC
Monday 11th September – 7.30pm at Aylesford Bulls RFC
Monday 18th September – 7.30pm at Canterbury RFC

All attendees will receive a Kent Referees Group Polo shirt and food will be provided on the evening.

To register your place please email KentRugbyOffice@theRFU.com before the end of July with your name, club, role, date attending and size of shirt.

Any questions please get in touch with Kent Coaching & Refereeing Chair Dan Phimister: danphimy@gmail.com 

Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting for Maidstone Rugby will take place at The Mote on Tuesday 18th July 2017 at 8:00pm, following an eventful season, both on and off the pitch there will be plenty to be discussed and updated on.

Minutes of the 2016 AGM and details of the agenda for this year’s meeting will be posted here in due course.

If any members have any points or topics to be raised for discussion they should be submitted to the Hon Secretary in writing by Friday 30^th June 2017.

Please make every effort to attend and have a say in the running of your club.

For the AGM Agenda, click here

Situations Vacant

Officers of the Club

Please be aware that two of the Officers of the club are standing down and as a result there are vacancies as shown below.  The committee has sought suitable candidates to propose at the AGM, however, if any member would like to submit their candidacy they are requested to do so in writing to the committee no later than 30^th June 2017.

Chairman

Hon Secretary

For full details of the Role Description for these positions please click on the appropriate link below:

Chairman

Hon Secretary

Club Officials

In addition the role of Chairman of Selectors is also vacant for next season, for a role description click on the link below.  Again, if any member would like to submit their candidacy they are requested to do so in writing to the committee no later than 30^th June 2017.

Chairman of Selectors

Any member interested in assisting in the running and administration of the club by fulfilling one of these roles should contact the Hon Sec in the first instance.

On saturday we gathered in the clubhouse and watched the Lions lose to the All-Blacks: an all too familiar story.

Watching the game in the club-house (and providing a running commentary on the action) were two proud Welshmen. One of them was our own Graham Norton who has been a member and VP at Maidstone since God was a boy and the other was Bob Judd, who is not a member but is a very familiar face because he turns up to referee for us week-in, week-out during the season. 

Whilst Bob was no mean player himself during his rugby career, it was the incredible exploits of Bob's father that attracted the attention of Graham Norton, when he became familiar with the story.  Being something of a historian of Welsh Rugby, Graham researched the story and published it in April's Touch-lines magazine.  

You can read the story here and reflect on the Lions career that would have surely followed had cancer not brought a cruel and tragically early end to the remarkable story.   

The club has been advised by the RFU that all tickets for the Killik Cup fixture: Barbarians v New Zealand on Saturday 4th November are being processed directly with Ticketmaster.  If members would like to book tickets for this event please do so through Ticketmaster via the link below:

http://www.ticketmaster.co.uk/event/3500528B8DAF120A

For groups bookings of 9+ please call Ticketmaster groups line on 0844 844 2121.

Parking for this event will be available in the Rosebine Avenue car park and should be booked through www.englandrugby.com/tickets

Despite the best efforts of Mother Nature, the club held its annual sponsor's BBQ on Tuesday evening, although the weather saw the organisers put Plan B into operation given the weather forecast.  In fact as the afternoon progressed the club's Ground Chairman was probably the only one with a smile on his face as the pitches got a welcome soaking from the persistent rainfall.

This years event despite the weather was again well attended, although the rain may have deterred one or two of the less hardy.  The event provided an opportunity for sponsors to speak with some of the club's committee in addition to being a networking opportunity as a welcome by product.

Charlotte Devoire from the club's Community Partners Bovis Homes was also present, and took the time to watch some of the U16s training under one of the club's community coaches Gavin Allwright.

Additionally the club also took the opportunity to make some outstanding presentations to a number of volunteers.

There were six presentations of Vice Presidencies and in a first for the club three were ladies and increased the number of lady Vice Presidents by 100% with awards going to Karen Moore, Diane Hughes and Diane Iles, with former 1st XV skipper Jim Walker also a recipent along with Kevin Bailey and Peter Iles, to round off a good evening for the Iles household.

In addition, the club presented the Harry Green Memorial Cup to immediate Past President Bob Beney.  This presentation is not necessarily awarded on an annual basis and recognises loyal service to the club over an extended period of time.  In fact it is the second time Bob has been awarded the trophy, the first occasion being 20 years ago in 1997.

As some of you will know, the World Rugby U20 Championship is currently takin place in Georgia; what you probably don't know is that Maidstone Rugby's Martin Mayhem is also out there with an RFU groundsman team to assist various various Georgian grounds teams.  Travelling with RFU Head Groundsman Keith Kent, with whom he operates as one of his team of Volunteer Pitch Advisors, Martin has spent the last week located in Kutasi where the pool matches for N Zealand, Italy, Ireland and Scotland were being played.  This week he moves to Tblisi for the latter stages of the tournament before returning to the UK.

England Rugby and Mitsubishi Motors have developed the Mitsubishi Motors Volunteer Recognition Programme to provide grassroots rugby clubs, Constituent Bodies and the rugby community with opportunities to recognise and reward the volunteers who make up an integral part of the game.

With over 1500 nominations nationally, Eva and Tuggy were successful  in being invited to one of two regional finals hosted by the RFU and Mitsubishi Motors.

Following an informal BBQ and speeches, they were both presented with fleeces and certificates in recognition of all the effort they have made with running the youth section, providing coaching in schools  and club coaching.  The overall winner of the event was a grounds man from Folkestone, who commented on how grateful he was for the advice he had received from Maidstone's martin Maytum in his role as one of the RFU Volunteer Pitch Advisors

The club will be open from 7:30am for live coverage of the British & Irish Lions test matches v New Zealand on saturday 24th June, 1st July and 8th July.

The bar will be open and breakfast will also be being served at a cost of £5 per head.

The Lions tours come round only every four years and there's no better way than being able to watch the game at a rugby club with your mates.

Please inform either Carol or Bob Beney if you are intending to come along for breakfast so we have an idea of numbers for catering purposes.

NB: The first test coincides with the NatWest Rugbyforce working day, so a great opportunity to come down, have a hearty breakfast, watch the rugby and then get stuck in to some work for the benefit of the club.

Given the geographical implications of promotion and primarily relegation at Levels 4 & 5, next season will see Maidstone lock horns competitively with Thurrock for the first time in over two decades.

With both Sidcup and Tunbridge Wells promoted and only Chichester dropping down into Ldn 1 (S) from the division above, this has meant that Thurrock are level transferred by virtue of having the lowest impact on travel mileage of the Ldn 1(N) clubs as a result of being moved to Ldn 1(S).

The confirmed league composition for London 1(S) for 2017-18 is as follows:

BRIGHTON, CHICHESTER, CHOBHAM, COBHAM, GRAVESEND, HAVANT, LDN CORNISH, MAIDSTONE, MEDWAY, O COLFEIANS, SEVENOAKS, THURROCK, TOTTONIANS and CS RUGBY

One of the club's sponsors, Shepherd Neame are hosting the Ride of the Legends Charity Dinner at the Old Brewery Store in Faversham on Wed 21st June, with British & Irish Lions legends Peter Winterbottom, Mike Teague, Roger Arneil and Shane Byrne  attending.

The evening starts at 7:15pm (although earlier Brewery Tours are available), with a free beer on arrival, there will be an auction and raffle following the meal.  There will also be a Q&A session with the above named former Lions.

Tables of 10 at 337.50 per head.

For bookings please contact Mike Gore at mike@rideofthelions.co.uk or via M: 07887 561784

In addition to the match v Australia in November, there are two other Autumn internationals for which we the club is currently not constrained to the usual fixed ticket allocation and for which you might wish to apply for tickets.  Dates and pricing details are as follows:

Sat 11^th Nov: England v Argentina, KO 14:30, Ticket Prices £90, £78, £65, £55 and £35 with Junior tickets (u16) being £20

Sat 25^th Nov: England v Samoa, KO 14:30 Ticket Prices £60, £40 and £30 with u16 at £15.

If you are interested, could you please contact Steve Vincent with your ticket requirements (and in what price categories) so the club can submit bids accordingly.  The closing date for bids is in mid-August, although given that it is the holiday period it is requested that your bids are submitted to Steve by mid-July at the latest.

​NB: Please note that you can bid also for tickets for the fixture against Australia on Saturday 18^th November; Allocation of tickets across all price brackets (£41 - £104) will be through the normal ballot process.

Congratulations to those listed below who have won prizes in the latest 500 club draws conducted for April and May:

April

£100 Mike Lawrenson

£50 Shaun Neaves

£50 James Findlay

£30 Bob Beney

May

£100 Des Diamond

£50 James Findlay

£50 Brian Lovelidge

£30 James Findlay

Congratulation and thank you for supporting the 500 Club.  You've got to be in it, to win it!!

National 2 S & N Playoff: Congratulations to O Elthamians who reached Nat 1 by defeating Sale 14-19 in the promotion playoff.  In what was a tight match throughout the first half-hour saw the two sides locked together with a couple of penalties apiece; OEs took the lead through a penalty try midway through the second quarter when the referee went under the posts after a high tackle prevented a try. Sale reduced the deficit to 9-13 on the stroke of half-time with a drop goal.  In what was a combative affair no one trouble the scorers in the third quarter and a penalty with 15 minutes remaining stretched the OEs lead to 7-points.  A drop goal with little more than a couple of minutes left further increased the lead, although Sale had the last say as they crossed out wide on the stroke of full-time, with the final whistle sounding as the conversion attempt drifted wide.

RFU National Cup Finals;

RFU Intermediate Cup: Charlton Pk fell just short in their attempt to be the third consecutive Kent club to take the trophy as they were pitted against a West Leeds outfit making their third consecutive appearance at Twickenham having been involved in the Senior Vase finals for the last two seasons.  Park found themselves two tries and 14-0 down in the first quarter but fought back with a dominant scrum to level through two tries of their own to go into the interval at 14-14.  A breakaway try gave the advantage back the West Leeds early in the half but a Singh try levelled the scores again.  An unconverted Miller try going into the final quarter gave Park a 26-21 advantage but the loss of two players to yellow cards did the damage as West Leeds scored twice to come back to 26-35 and even the late loss of former England RL international Calderwood for a second yellow offence couldn’t stop the Yorkshire club’s march to the title.

RFU Senior Vase: The club where Jonny Wilkinson started his career were crowned Senior Vase champions after a dominant second half performance saw them run out 37-15 winners against Midlands club Droitwich.  The score was level 10-10 at the break, with both sides scoring a converted try as well as a penalty, but it was three converted second half tries and a couple of penalties that took the match out of Droitwich’s reach as they suffered their only defeat of the season.

RFU Junior Vase:  In what ended up being a good day for Yorkshire clubs, Goole were crowned RFU Junior Vase champions in their first national final after a thrilling 31-24 win over Gloucestershire club Spartans.  Despite struggling in the early stages and going down to an early Spartans try the Yorkshire club hauled itself back into the game after fielding  a poor crossfield kick to run in and level the scores. A further try apiece kept the two sides ‘neck & neck’ until Goole crossed in the corner just before half time to hold a 19-14 advantage.  Goole took the initiative in the second half against a Spartans side that were tiring and having stretched to a 31-19 lead they had chances to put the match out of reach which weren’t taken, Spartans hauled themselves back into the contest with a further try but despite pressing in the closing stages couldn’t breach Goole’s organised defence.

That's it for this season, enjoy the summer and hopefully I'll be back with another weekly blog to round up the county's results starting in September. BH

In National 1 Blackheath never really showed the form and consistency of the last couple of seasons, finishing 7^th in the table.  In a division where many regarded the promotion battle as a ‘one horse race’ Hartpury College took the title and promotion place by a massive 30 point margin from nearest challengers Plymouth Albion.  At the foot of the table Macclesfield drop straight back down to Nat 2(N) after a torrid season, along with Blaydon and Hull Ionians; and with all three relegated sides going into Nat 2 (N) this has created some promotion anomalies further down the league structure.

National 2 (S) started as a battle between four of five clubs, in the end being whittled down to just three.  Taunton; the early season pace setters fell off the pace in mid-season to finish fourth, whilst Bishops Stortford timed their run in to perfection, moving to the top in the last third of the season to take the title.  The playoff place became a battle between O Elthamians and Chinnor with both always having been in title contention until a mid-season wobble saw Stortford move into pole position.  Both went into the last day of the season locked together with Elthamians holding their nerve to take the playoff place, as Chinnor fell to a surprising defeat.  Elthamians then travelled to Manchester to take on a Sale side that finished runners-up in Nat 2(N) and in a tight encounter with a 14-19 scoreline took the prized promotion to Nat 1, and will lock horns next season with Blackheath.  For the county’s other representative, Canterbury finished the season comfortably in mid-table (8^th) although they got off to a very shaky start, and it wasn’t until a morale boosting 51-17 win over Henley at the end of October that they began to assemble a consistent string of results. At the bottom, relegation wasn’t fully decided until late in the day, with Exmouth and Barnes being relegated and Barnstaple consigned to the third relegation place on the last day of the season but reprieved by the geographical implications of relegation from Nat 1.

National 3(SE) Having been contenders in most of the recent seasons, and losing out in the playoff last season Tonbridge Juddians were expected to be amongst the main challengers this time around.  So it proved; as in a promotion battle that involved a handful of clubs gradually whittled down to two contenders with Wimbledon the other leading challenger. TJs clinched the title and the promotion with a couple of weeks to spare whilst Wimbledon took the playoff place and went on to beat Dings Crusaders to also achieve promotion.  Westcombe Pk finished fourth, having fallen off the pace in mid-season along with Hertford who were the other early season challengers. At the bottom, Amersham& Chiltern who were promoted last season having scored over a thousand points were consigned to relegation after a single season having conceded the same.  Colchester also drop back down after two seasons in the division and Chichester’s three season stay at Level 5 also comes to an end.

In London 1 (S) after several seasons as the division’s ‘nearly men’ Sidcup took their opportunity for league honours as they secured the title in late March, the challenge for the playoff position involved five clubs but eventually it was pared down to a battle between Havant and Tunbridge Wells which was only decided on the last day of the season; with Tunbridge Wells then going on to defeat Chingford in the playoff in a nailbiting encounter that went into extra time.  At the foot of the table Gosport & Fareham’s reprieve last season did them no favours as they were anchored to the foot of the table from the outset, they were joined in the drop zone by Dover who after narrow escapes for the past two seasons eventually succumbed to relegation, as did Chiswick who return to playing their fixtures north of the Thames.  Sevenoaks, Gravesend and Maidstone all wallowed in mid-table mediocrity, never really able to achieve the consistency to challenge the leading places .

In London 2 (SE) It was apparent from the outset that the leading contender would be Medway and they secured the league title and promotion in early March.  The battle for the playoff position saw four Kent clubs in contention; although O Colfeians always appeared to be in control and went on to take the position and subsequent promotion by defeating Ldn 2(SW) club Camberley.  Dartfordians, Beckenham and Charlton Pk all challenged but it was the late season clashes between the leading group that eventually finalised the order as the county dominated the upper echelon of the division.  At the bottom Crowborough drop back to Sussex 1 as do Bromley to Kent 1 after only one season in the division where they struggled throughout.  Deal & Betteshanger finished in lower mid-table but had flirted with the relegation zone alongside all the bottom half clubs throughout the campaign.

The battle at the top of London 3(SE) was always tight and Thanet Wdrs led the way for a significant part of the season, but a dip in form in the final third of the campaign took the matter out of their hands going into the last couple of fixtures as Sussex clubs Pulborough and Haywards Heath took the promotion places.  There was keen interest in the bottom half of the table, with any one of half a dozen clubs that could have been drawn into the relegation battle alongside bottom club Ashford, who endured a torrid campaign.  In the end the likes of Aylesford, Dunstonians and Park Hse managed to haul themselves clear leaving Eastbourne and Gillingham Anchorians who throughout the campaign had never quite managed to secure mid-table sanctuary, to drop to their respective county leagues.

As was the case last season the Kent 1 battle for promotion proved to be very interesting with three or four sides battling it out at the season’s mid-point.  In the end Cranbrook and Beccehamians challenge faded, although the Wealden club were still just in contention in the final weeks when it had really become a battle between two contenders.  Hastings & Bexhill always held the whip hand, and despite tripping up unexpectedly in the closing weeks to struggling Sittingbourne, they had enough breathing space to take the title with a week to spare from O Williamsonians  whop subsequently went on to defeat Sussex club Uckfield in the promotion playoff.  At the foot of the table it was apparent very early on the Snowdown were struggling and ended up anchoring the table, the battle to avoid the second relegation place wasn’t decided until the final weekend and involved three clubs, as New Ash Green (NAG), Sittingbourne and Brockleians all struggled.  It was a run of three consecutive wins in the last three weeks for both NAG and Sittingbourne against three heavy defeats that saw Brocks drop to Kent 2 on the final day of the season.

The battle in Kent 2 saw four clubs fighting for the two promotion places as O Gravesendians took the title and return to Kent 1 at the first attempt with Royal Bank of Scotland taking the runners up place after a tight battle with Whitstable and also Foots Cray, although their challenge faded in the closing stages and they finished in third and fourth places respectively.  At the bottom Erith, who had re-joined the league this season, and Shooters Hill propped up the division with even the RFU points deductions not affecting their league standings.  It was also evident that some clubs struggled for a variety of reasons, with a total of 19 match concessions recorded in the division. In mid-table there was little to choose between the sides with just 8-points separating 6^th to 9^th places, with Dartford valley posting their highest league finish so far.

RFU Knockout Competitions

In the RFU Intermediate Cup Charlton Park made it three years in succession for one of the county’s sides to reach Twickenham in this competition, unfortunately just coming up short on the day against a West Leeds outfit that were making their third consecutive visit to HQ.  Beckenham and Colfes fell in the third round with Beckenham falling to Charlton Pk, whilst Deal & Betteshanger went out in Round 2, with Bromley and Dartfordians falling at the first hurdle.

In the RFU Senior Vase it was Thanet Wdrs who got the furthest as they exited the competition in the 3^rd round, going out to the regional Runners-Up in O Cranleighians.  Aylesford Bulls fell in the 2^nd round to eventual Twickenham finalists Farnham, with Sheppey exiting in the first round with a heavy defeat to Sussex club Pulborough.

The RFU Junior Vase none of the county’s clubs were drawn in the first round, although Vigo were the first to leave the competition as they fell to a defeat by fellow Kent club Snowdown CW, in Round 2 with what was probably their best result of the season.  Both they and Sittingbourne fell in Round 2 leaving Cranbrook and Beccehamians to carry the county’s flag, although Kent 1 club Hastings & Bexhill were still very much in the competition and were to take Beccehamians scalp in the next round.  Cranbrook also went out in 3^rd round, falling to O Whitgiftians who were to go on to the national semi-finals.

Shepherd Neame Kent Cup Competitions

Most of the competitions this season progressed without as many withdrawals as in previous seasons. Unfortunately this season’s finals threw up a series of one sided contests, with only the lowest tier Salver final between Greenwich and Snowdown being a real contest.  A tightly contested first half saw Greenwich to a 14-7 half-time advantage, and with addition of only a single penalty in the second period they took the trophy 17-7

In the Vase it was really one-way traffic as Kings College Hosp, whose form had deteriorated since the end of February were on the receiving end of an 82-0 thrashing by Beccehamians.

The Shield final was contested by Medway and Charlton Pk, with Medway adding the trophy to their league title with an 83-7 victory against a Charlton Pk side that had a number of players away on tour and one eye on the following week’s Twickenham Intermediate Cup final.

The Plate final was a local derby between two sides whose fortunes had differed since their last meeting two seasons ago.  In the end the county town club from Maidstone had too much firepower & experience for the near neighbours Aylesford, running out to a comfortable 58-14 victory to retain the trophy they won last season.

The main Cup final saw Nat 3(SE) champions Tonbridge Juddians pitted against London 1(S) champions Sidcup in what was expected to be a competitive encounter.  In fact it was quite the opposite and despite the endeavour of Sidcup’s play their opposition proved to be too well organised for them.  Whilst the first half was competitive with TJs holding a 19-3 advantage at the interval, their superior power and pace proved the difference in the second half as they added 43 unanswered points to romp to a 62-3 final score to take the trophy for the second time in 3 seasons.

Unfortunately this season’s finals threw up a series of one sided contests, with only the lowest tier Salver final between Greenwich and Snowdown being anything like a real contest.  A tightly contested first half saw Greenwich to a 14-7 half-time advantage, and with addition of only a single penalty in the second period they took the trophy 17-7

In the Vase it was really one-way traffic as Kings College Hosp, whose form had deteriorated since the end of February were on the receiving end of an 82-0 thrashing by Beccehamians.

The Shield final was contested by Medway and Charlton Pk, with Medway adding the trophy to their league title with an 83-7 victory against a makeshift Charlton Pk side that had a number of players away on tour and one eye on next week’s Twickenham Intermediate Cup final.

The Plate final was a local derby between two sides whose fortunes had differed since their last meeting two seasons ago.  In the end the county town club from Maidstone had too much firepower & experience for their near neighbours Aylesford, running out to a comfortable 58-14 victory to retain the trophy they took last season.

The main Cup final saw Nat 3(SE) champions Tonbridge Juddians pitted against Ldn 1(S) champions Sidcup in what was expected to be a competitive encounter.  In fact it was quite the opposite and despite the endeavour of Sidcup’s play their opposition proved to be too well organised for them.  Whilst the first half was competitive with TJs holding a 19-3 advantage at the interval, their superior power and pace proved the different in the second half as they added 43 unanswered points to romp to a 62-3 final score to take the trophy for the second time in 3 seasons.

Maidstone brought the 2016-17 season to a close with the traditional annual awards dinner held this year at Cobtree Manor Golf Club.  The evening recognises the contributions made during the season, both on and off the pitch with the presentation of both team and club awards.

This season’s team & individual award winners were as follows:

Head Coach's Award – Josh Pankhurst

Veterans XV (Mike Shaples Plate) – Peter Jones

Barbarians XV (Captains Shield) – Lee Morrison

Mustangs XV – Matt Cooper

1st XV – Ben Kn1ght

The Club awards recipients were:

David Arnold Young Player Award – Harry Cole

Bernard Hinks Award (Non Player) – Richard Weston

Bernard Hinks Award (Senior Player) – Ian Lee

Bernard Hinks Award (1st XV Player) – Nathan Simpson

Millenium Cup (Team of the Year) – 1^st XV

Award-winning developer Millwood Designer Homes has proven to be a good sport, by signing up as one of the lead sponsors of Maidstone F.C, the rugby club at the heart of Kent’s County Town. Formed in 1880, the club is amongst the oldest in the country and has for many years played rugby at the picturesque Mote Ground, in the centre of Maidstone.

As Platinum sponsors, Millwood’s company logo will be printed onto the first team’s new shirts for the upcoming season. A true community team, Maidstone run five senior men’s sides every Saturday during the season and a highly successful Youth and Minis section, meaning the club has an impressive membership of over 500.

Philip Brown, Sales Director at Millwood Designer Homes comments: “We are delighted to start a two year sponsorship with Maidstone Rugby Club and get involved with this fantastic local team. We care about the communities we develop in and have recently launched a collection of new homes at Brambledown, which is just two miles from the club’s home ground. We hope that our sponsorship will help enhance the morale and performance of the team and wish them every success for the rest of this season.”

Bob Hayton, Sponsorship Manager of Maidstone F.C comments: “I would like to express my thanks to Millwood Designer Homes for their generous sponsorship. As a local club we like to develop long standing relationships with businesses in the area. We are confident that Millwood’s generosity will benefit the club and players over the next two years.”

Located just a short drive from The Mote, the home of Maidstone Rugby Club, Brambledown is a selection of 36 houses, including 2 and 3 bedroom semi-detached homes and detached chalet bungalows as well as 3, 4 and 5 bedroom detached homes. Set amongst picturesque surroundings and situated on the edge of Loose Valley, each home has been carefully designed to suit the needs of modern buyers.

As part of ‘The Kent Collection,’ a variety of new homes are also available at Windsor Meadow in Marden and The Old Orchard in Sutton Valence. As with all Millwood homes specification is high and have been designed in keeping with the architectural style of Kent. Some of the homes having traditional feather edge weatherboarding and reclaimed bricks. Modern kitchens feature a comprehensive range of units, ceramic floor tiles, worktops and fully integrated appliances, and bathrooms feature contemporary white suites with chrome fittings.

An excellent commuter location, Maidstone East and West Stations both offer good rail links into central London. By road, the M20 is close and leads directly to M26 and M25, providing easy access to Gatwick and Heathrow Airport, for international travel.

Prices start from £315,000 for at Brambledown. For more information please visit www.millwooddesignerhomes.co.uk.

The club will again be participating in the Natwest Rugby Force weekend on the 24/25^th June.  The aim this year is a major ground tidy up on the immediate pitch surrounds of the 1^st XV pitch, but more importantly along the perimeter fence lines that surround the ground along the rugby boundaries.

When? Saturday 24^th June

Where? The Rugby Club

What?  As mentioned above, the day is ground maintenance orientated.

How? The aim is to split into a number of teams each with specific roles. There will be teams led by competent chainsaw operators who will do the cutting, supported by some with strimmers/brushcutters.  The follow on teams will drag out the stuff that is cut and centralise it at an area for a bonfire at a later date.  Lastly there will be a litter picking team to pick up any foreign body debris.  In addition there are some other smaller ground maintenance tasks that also need to be carried out as well.

The day will be capped off with a BBQ and some refreshments.

What part do you play? Your participation is critical, there is significant work to be done and this is not a task that can just be left to the dedicated few who always turn up; whether you can spare the whole day, or just a couple of hours you participation is crucial to making this a success.  Those of you that have petrol driven strimmers or brushcutters, or even hand hedge cutters/loppers and other garden implements, then if you could also bring them along it would be appreciated. It is recommended that all participants bring a pair of gardening gloves.

Remember, if you as members can’t be bothered to help out, then you end up with the club you deserve.

When: Friday 27th April (timings tbc)
Where: Rhianos, Tonbridge Road
Cost: £28
Dress: Shirt and Club Tie, Chinos/Trouser (No Jeans)

If you haven't got a club tie, then they are on sale at the shop or from the bar.