1st XV

TJs Earn a Bonus

The 1st XV came away with a bonus point win at Chichester with a 18-27 away win on Saturday. A slow start gave Chichester the advantage but by the break TJs had their noses in front. Leading 27 - 13 with 15 minutes to go the game nearly started to swing away from them as Chichester appeared to have scored in the corner. Called back for a forward pass though the try was not allowed but a penalty was awarded and kicked. TJs managed to close the game out and their 4 tries meant an extra bonus point as well.

Elsewhere the results were equally as interesting but in what is sure to be a tight divisin first up results are unlikely to reflect form for the season as a whole? - good to see Hove making their mark and telling that the 3 relegated sides from the National Leagues may not find it too straightforward regrouping this season.

London League One South

Chichester            18      Tonbridge Juddian    27

Hove                    21      Chobham               13

London Irish Am    51       Thanet Wands         5

Portsmouth          16        Haywards Heath     16

Sutton & Epsom    15       Dover                    42

Tunbridge Wells      0       Cobham                24

Wimbledon           16       Beckenham            23

alt

alt
 

TJs looking settled ahead of new season

Warm up games at Canterbury (National 2) and Gravesend (National 3) (Match Report) have given TJs a great deal of confidence going into a new season after back to back promotions during the last two seasons. A settled coaching team of Damkert, Smith and Farr have built on recent successes and the summer months have focused heavily on improving fitness levels so that the squad can hit the ground running in London 1 South.

The league will have a much changed look to it this season with clubs such as Haywards Heath, Portsmouth and Sutotn & Epsom arriving from the higher division and bringing with them considerable experience of what it takes to mix it at national league level. Clubs with just as much ambition as TJs are also in the mix with Cobham and Chobham sure to not only tax the sat nav spellings but also TJs winning streak.

Chichester away on 4th September cannot come soon enough now and hopefully the next two weeks will see the sqaud continue to build on those fitness levels and develop the skills and patterns to succeed at the new level.
 

Back in the Kent Cup

TJs will be back in the Kent Cup next season and the draw has now taken place. A 1st Round bye sees them face Aylesford (Away) in the 2nd Round. The game will have to be played on or before Sunday 5 December. Another cup run could be on the cards although a home tie would be nice soon.

Elsewhere L1S rivals Tunbridge Wells have to go to Sidcup in round 1 before tackling Westcombe Park in round 2 if they get the win. Sevenoaks take on Bromley or Beckenham in round 2.

last eyar's winners, Gravesend who beat Old Elthamians 24-23 in the final, will face Thanet or Deal & Betteshanger whilst OEs take on Blackheath in the second round.

CLICK HERE for the full details of the draw
 

A fresh look to London 1 South throws up some exciting games for next season

Having secured promotion for the second season running TJs now go up to London 1 South to face some old friends and a number of new foes.  Hove RFC, runners up to TJs last season, come up with them and are joined by fellow Sussex clubs Haywards Heath who were relegated from National 3 L&SE last season and Chichester.

Beckenham, Dover, Thanet Wanderers and Tunbridge Wells all remain from last season and make up a strong Kent quintet. Chobham, Cobham and Sutton & Epsom, who were also relegated from National 3 L&SE, join in from Surrey.

London Irish Amateurs from Middlesex, Portsmouth from Hampshire and Wimbledon from south west London make it 14 Clubs in all and a league make up that is certainly an exciting one with some quality encounters anticipated with several clubs making no secret of their future ambitions .

altBeckenham RFC- Blue with yellow stripes. Formed in 1894 they currently have 5 senior XVs, a Vets XV, a Ladies XV and an Academy side.  They have been a strong Kent club for many seasons and in the mid 90s improved their facilities enormously and those of us who have not visited for a while should be pleasantly impressed.  TJ’s Ladies will be locking horns with them in their league as well this season so some new rivalries will emerge.

Beckenham finished 5th last season in L1S with a Won 14 Drew 2 and Lost 10 record and won the Kent Plate Final beating Canterbury 22-5.

Chichester RFC – Dark Blue with 2 sets of thin Light Blue stripes. Founded in 1926 the club were promoted from L3SE in 2008/09 when they also won the Sussex Cup. They run 5 Senior XVs. Last season they finished 6th with 14 wins and 12 losses. They are scheduled to be TJ’s opening and closing league opponents this season.

Chobham RFC – Black with Red & Gold hoops on sleeves. Founded in  this Surrey club run 5 Senior XVs and a Vets XV and have been building to go higher still after regular promotions in recent seasons.

They finished 8th in mid table last season with 11 wins, 2 draws and 13 losses.

alt

Cobham RFC – Light Blue. The Club was formed in 1930 as Old Surbitonians RFC by the first group of school leavers from Surbiton County School, as it was then called. During the 80s it became clear that keeping the ’old boys’ tag was making it difficult to recruit new players despite having gone ‘open’ some years earlier.  Consequently, the Club changed its name in 1989 to Cobham Rugby Football Club to identify more closely with the immediate area and to reinforce the change to an open club.

Two promotions in the last four years have seen them rise to their current league position. Cobham have the added bonus of a very strong youth section with their U17s winning the National Title last season. They run 3 Senior XVs and a Vets XV.

Cobham finished 4th last season and will be looking to improve on a Won 18 Lost 8 league record.

Dover  RFC – Dark & Light Blue hoops. Rugby was played by a variety of town sides in the 19th Century but the official Dover RFC was formally launched in 1926/7. The Club run 4 Senior XVs, a Vets XV and a Ladies XV with a strong youth and mini set up.  In recent seasons the Club have got stronger and stronger with their 2s being the only side to defeat our Warriors XV last season.

Dover were runners up in the league last season with a Won 20 Drew 1 and Lost 5 record.  They narrowly missed out on promotion to National 3 South having beaten 3rd place Sidcup 34-22 in the league play off before losing to the Civil Services RFC 114-31 in the Divisional Play Off.

Haywards Heath RFC – Black & Red hoops.  Founded ? but always a force in Sussex rugby running  4  Senior XVs and a Vets XV. 

They finished bottom of National 3 London & South East last season winning just 4 of their 26 games, ending up 10 points adrift of Portsmouth who finished in 13th.

Hove RFC – Claret & Blue. Founded in 1933  They run 5 Senior XVs and 2 Ladies XVs with a thriving Junior section. A Club on the up and worthy of their second place in London 2 South East last season where they ran TJs close in both games. Having seen off Guernsey in the play-offs they come up as Sussex Cup champions as well having beaten Chichester in the semis and Worthing 2s in the final.

alt

London Irish Amateurs RFC – Green shirts and White shorts. Founded in 1999 as the amateur branch of the London Irish family tree. They run 4 Senior XVs and a Vets XV. London Irish A were promoted from London 3 South West last season as champions with Tottonians in 3rd and Guernsey finishing 2nd but missing out on promotion in their play-off loss to Hove RFC.

Portsmouth RFC – Gold with Blue vertical stripes. Founded in 1886 they run 4 Senior XVs, a Vets XV and  Ladies XV.

They finished second from bottom in National 3 London & South East last season winning just 4 and Drawing 2 of their 26 games.

Sutton & Epsom RFC – Black & White stripes. Founded in 1881 a club steeped in rich Surrey rugby history. A proud club who had played at one below the National Leagues ever since the league inception many years ago. They have 5 Senior XVs, a Vets XV plus a Ladies XV.

They finished 3rd from bottom in National 3 London & South East last season and were relegated with a Won 6 and Lost 20 record.

Thanet Wanderers RUFC – Light Blue with yellow & black stripes. Founded in 1886 they gained the ‘Wanderers’ tag through playing at many different grounds before settling at St Peters Recreation Ground, their current home.  In all their long and distinguished history Thanets' best Season ever was 1996 – 1997 when they won promotion to London One and scooped the first ever Intermediate Cup at Twickenham. They run 5 Senior XVs, a Ladies XV and a strong Youth section.

Thanet W finished 10th last season with a Won 11 Drew 1 and Lost 14 record.alt

Tunbridge Wells RFC – Dark Blue with 2 White vertical side stripes. Founded in 1931 as the Old Skinners RFC the Club have been at the forefront of the local rugby scene ever since. TJ’s rivalry with TWRFC dates back to when both Tonbridge and Old Juddians used to lock horns although since league rugby took over meetings have tended to be as much in Cup encounters as the league. 

The Club have just started developing their changing rooms/showers and intend to add a first floor level extension the following summer. Having enjoyed the Sevenoaks Derby games last season TJs can look forward to renewing old acquaintances on September 18th (TW) and December 18th (TJ)

TWRFC finished fourth from bottom in London 1 South last season overcoming Old Elthamians in the winner stays up game.

Wimbledon RFC – Claret, White & Blue hoops. Wimbledon’s first recorded match was against Richmond in November 1865, making the club one of the oldest in the country, and one of just twelve surviving clubs that founded the RFU in 1871. Promoted to London 1 South in 2008/9 they currently run 4 Senior XVs, a Strollers (Vets) XV and  Ladies XV.
Wimbledon finished 9th last season with a Won 12 Lost 14 record.

NB – Sidcup (2nd) and Old Colfeians (7th) have moved from London 1 South to London 1 North for the 2010/11 season.

 

 

 
 

Special Season for 1st XV reflected in Awards Night

The 1st XV have enjoyed one of their best seasons to date since the Club's inception in 1999. Securing promotion for the second season running the squad will play in London 1 South next season. An undefeated league season now sees them on a wining run stretching back 44 league games.

In the Intermediate Cup they did it the hard way by playing all but one round away from home before reaching the National Semi Final and one converted try from Twickenham with a 19-13 loss at Old Redcliffians.

The whole squad were honoured at the End of Season Awards evening at the Clubhouse with a playing record of Played 22 league games and won 22. 1161 points scored with only 167 against. They scored an incredible 219 tries and used a total of 39 players. Tomasi Biutiviti and Liam Rankin appeared 29 times apiece with 'Tom' scoring 18 tries whilst Neil Meyer (now back in SA) topping the try table with a phenomenal 32 tries from No8.

alt

Player of the Season

A very popular player amongst team mates and supporters alike, Pete Jennings is renowned for his sniping runs from the base of scrums and rucks and all round team play. Not so many know that he has some of the best "game faces" in the business, just check out the pictures elsewhere on the website. After an extended period studying a proper degree oop north the Club was pleased to welcome him back at the end of last season. This season he has only missed a few games when he chipped some nail polish or something else to do with his hand and has contributed much more to the team than the stats suggest

Played 26 with 16 tries but should have been 17 at Old Reds Wink

alt

Coaches Cup

Jack Browne who joined TJs mid way through last season and has been ever present this season. Happy to play anywhere in the back line, scrum half, outside centre, wing or full back, pace and power are key to his game. Maybe not the best kicker around, but arguably the best bar man in town.

Played 28 with 14 tries (4 conversions and 1 penalty)

Special Award winner - Jamie 'Rhino' Stoor for

138 games for TJ 1st XV

Special Awards winner - Toby Carroll for 102 games for TJ 1st XV

alt

alt

 
 
More Articles...
Page 1 of 3