Festival of Girls Rugby, Sunday 16th December

Providing the weather holds and is kind to us,  we have yet another feast of girls rugby lined up this coming Sunday 16th December 

at Hemel Hempastead RFC

Both  games are scheduled to kick off at 2pm and the girls are meeting at Camelot at 1pm 

Encouragingly all four teams have confirmed the fixture already ,   and all have good sized squads 

Also it is very  encouraging that girls from 7 different clubs will be taking part 

 

U15

Royston /Camelot take on Bishops Stortford / Harlow in a London and SE league and also as a  Herts League fixture 

 U18

Herts BaaBaas take on Beccles U18 also in a London & SE League fixture 

Spread the word and lets get as much support there as we can 

 Thanks 

 Kevin 

Kevin Green 

Fixture Sec - Herts Baa Baas U18

Hon Sec  - Herts Girls U15 League

07885 741797

Herts U13 Rugby: Pictures from Herts v Kent

Herts U15s: Photos and match reports

Herts U15s lose narrowly to Kent

In a close and exciting match, Hertfordshire U15s lost 29-26 to Kent at Old Albanians on 18 November. After a long delayed start due to Kent's transport problems, Kent got stuck in straight from the kick off stretching Herts and using their big pack to rumble downfield. Herts were pinged for holding on and a tap and go saw Kent work the ball through their forwards to the Herts line. One of the big Kent forwards drove over the line and first blood went to Kent with the try converted. Herts were on the back foot.

Herts responded with a penalty of their own which was drilled into touch by Zoe Harrison (minus boot). From the resulting line-out the ball was recycled well and a powerful run from Helena Rowland saw her crash over for Herts' first try. Herts were now finding their heads and a blistering run from Zoe Harrison found Hannah Botterman in support who jinked the defence and went over the whitewash. Zoe Harrison added the conversion to take the score to 12-7. Kent again used their forwards to rumble up the pitch and from a Kent scrum 5m out the ball was moved down the line for a large forward to crash over to even the score. Zoe Harrison then stormed through the Kent defence to score and then convert her try. From the restart  Herts gave away a penalty which was drilled into touch. From the line-out Kent moved the ball to their  flying centre who outpaced the Herts defence to score in the corner. It was real end to end rugby with the Kent centres making telling runs whenever they had the ball in their hands, and being stopped by the Herts defence. Against the run of play Helena Rowland powered through the Kent defence to score, with Zoe Harrison converting the try to give Herts a  26-17 lead at half time.

From the restart Herts were awarded a scrum only to hold onto the ball and give away a penalty. The ensuing pressure exerted by the Kent pack led to another Kent try under the posts and a conversion to put them within two points of Herts. Herts now threw everything at Kent, who absorbed the pressure and then spent a long period of time attacking the Herts line. Despite a valiant defence by Herts, Kent broke out to score in the corner to go ahead. Herts were now camped out in their own half and despite their best efforts time eventually ran out.

Credit to all the Herts girls who put up a superb display. Considering they are a fairly new squad every single player stood up and played to the best of their ability. Thank you to all the parents and friends who attended today - your vocal support was much appreciated.

Team: Isabella Allison, Sapphire Bennett, Alexandra Bentley, Katie Boggas, Hannah Botterman, Jessica Duncan, Tian Figg, Zoe Harrison, Millie Kay, Anna Liddelow, Chloe Olliffe, Daisy- Mae Parker, Ellena Perry, Charlotte Robinson, Lillian Ross, Rhiannon Rouch, Helena Rowland, Chelsea Singfield, Izzie Sloan, Jeanine Stephenson, Cara Wardle, Rebecca Wye

Herts U15 Girls put Essex to the sword

Hertfordshire Under 15 girls travelled to Upminster on 28 October and achieved an outstanding 90-10 win in their first county game of the season.

Herts started positively with the forwards securing clean ball which led to Helena Rowland scoring with a conversion from Zoe Harrison. Essex straight away fought back using their powerful forwards with their fly half going over to score a try in the corner. Herts responded immediately, with the ball being passed down the line to Anna Liddelow who outpaced the opposition to score in the corner. Herts were now getting into their stride, and Zoe Harrison followed this up with an individual try on the left. Essex brought their big pack into action, and again drove over for a well worked try. Herts upped the tempo and went over the whitewash only to be pinged for a forward pass. Superb direct running from Herts led to Anna Liddelow going over in the left corner for her second try. Herts backs then started to rampage through the Essex defence with Helena Rowland scoring and Zoe Harrison converting. Herts were now dominating, and Hannah Botterman broke four tackles and then passed to Zoe Harrison who scored and converted her own try. 

The shackles were off, and in the second half Hannah Botterman sold an outrageous dummy to score under the post, and Zoe Harrison followed it up with a conversion. Zoe Harrison led the charge, scoring with one catch from the restart, and scoring again within thirteen seconds. Hannah Botterman then sold another dummy, to score under the posts, which Sapphire Bennett converted. Things weren't going Essex's way, and an attempted kicking clearance ended with Zoe Harrison charging the ball down to score. Again Sapphire Bennett converted the try. Herts were now dominating in all aspects of the game with Hannah Botterman's straight and hard running resulting in another try. The pattern continued with Zoe Harrison scoring the tries, and Sapphire Bennett kicking the points. Herts ended the game with a tally of 14 tries and 10 conversions to Essex's two tries. All in all a fantastic display by the Herts girls in their first match together and a good start to the county season. 

Team: Isabella Allison, Sapphire Bennett, Alexandra Bentley, Katie Boggas, Hannah Botterman, Jessica Duncan, Tian Figg, Zoe Harrison, Millie Kay, Anna Liddelow, Chloe Olliffe, Rosanna Moynihan, Ellena Perry, Charlotte Robinson, Lillian Ross, Rhiannon Rouch, Helena Rowland, Chelsea Singfield, Izzie Sloan, Antonia Soldana, Jeanine Stephenson, Cara Wardle, Rebecca Wye

Picture from Herts vs Kent November 2012 (with thanks to the Wardle family)

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Divisional CB Festivals Postponed

We have received the following from the RFU:
"Due to the inclement weather across the country a decision has been taken to postpone all Divisional CB festivals this weekend for both the Junior and Senior programmes. We are very disappointed to have to make this decision but a number of the venues are currently waterlogged, there are over 200 flood warnings across the country and travel warnings have been issued. We do not wish to put any player at risk through unnecessary travel. We felt it was important to make an early decision to keep any inconvenience to a minimum and to an ensure a consistent message was given to everyone.

We will look at the possibility of further CB activity after Christmas depending on local and national need and will be in come back to you on this in the New Year. Please feel free to contact your WRDO if you have any thoughts on this."

The Herts county training session due to be held at Welwyn RFC on Wednesday 28 November has also been cancelled - though the U15s training may still go ahead if the pitches are suitable..

The coaches would like to thank the players and parents for their support at the two matches we have played, and the training sessions.

Herts U18s draw with Kent

In the second of the county friendly matches in the run-up to the London and South East county festival Hertfordshire U18 Girls drew 12 – 12 with Kent U18s in an absorbing fixture at Old Albanians RFC on Sunday.
The match started late after Kent had managed to sink their original coach in the field at Aylesford, not having sufficient space to turn around in the car park, and so had to wait for replacement transport to turn up. Despite the difficult start off the field, Kent took the lead in the match after barely three minutes. They turned over Herts around ten metres out and moved the ball across rapidly to give an overlap for an easy way in.
Herts fought back immediately and in the twelfth minute Saracen’s Marie Beaufils made a strong run from the Kent 22, fending off one back before being pulled down just short of the line. Welwyn flanker Harriet Austin was right on her shoulder and the ball was popped up to give her an easy try.

The next ten minutes saw a tense stand-off in the middle of the field, as the two packs got to grip with each other, with a growing sense that the next score could be decisive. The deadlock was broken when Welwyn centre Stevie Farrow found a great line through Kent’s defence to run in from their 22-metre line. She topped this with her own conversion.

Once they got going Herts began to dominate their counterparts and had the advantage in the first half. At half time several changes were made to give all players game time, and to help the Herts coaches to assess all members of the squad for selection for the upcoming festival. This seemed to have a profound impact. Immediately from the restart Herts were on the back foot and spent several minutes with Kent pounding them around the 5-metre area, with the ball held up twice in the try area. Eventually the pressure told and after a penalty Kent shipped the ball out wide to give Kent the equalising score.

The two teams were very evenly matched in all aspects of the game, with Kent perhaps looking the more threatening in the second half. Nonetheless it was remarkable, given the talent and commitment being shown, that there were no further scores over the next twenty-five tense minutes.

This was a match which Bob Dawson, Herts backs coach, thought that Herts certainly could have, and probably should have, won. Commenting after the match he said, “While there was some great defensive tackling, Herts failed to play the game at sufficient pace and with variety in order to make their opponents have to think. Against such a tough opposition, as expected, this was a positive performance and with the first half in mind, bodes well for the festival coming up.”

Herts team: Harriet Austin, Marie Beaufils, Catrin Bowser, Lotte Clapp, Katy Cook, Elizabeth Crake, Emily Davis, Hayley Everett, Stevie Farrow, Melissa Gargaro, Ellie Hurer, Florence Jones, Hannah Jones, Rosie Kay, Abbie Maxwell, Corinne McDonough, Pat Metcalfe-Jones, Sidney Nurthen, Bryony Pomfret, Megan Smith, Olivia Stembridge, Aleah Townsend, Katy Walker.

Staniford and Alphonsi witness Herts girls’ strength in depth

RFU Press Release

HERTFORDSHIRE was the place to be for another example of the growing interest in girls’ rugby when 28 teams and more than 400 players from 17 schools took part in the Girls’ Rugby Festival for Schools at Hertford RFC.

Two of the most prominent faces of England Women’s rugby, Maggie Alphonsi and Michaela Staniford, were on hand to add to the excitement.

Michaela is a teacher at Rickmansworth School who entered two teams in the competition and Maggie, of course, is the RFU’s Divisional Talent Development Officer in London & South East.

Maggie said: “Many girls have the ability to play at a higher level, and the key is to let them know what opportunities are available to them and to help them progress.

“The talent is out there and it’s exciting to come to a school event like this and see their potential.”

In the Under 13 competition, 16 teams took part in the pool stages, with the top two from each of four pools progressing to the Trophy knock-out stages and the bottom two to the Shield.

The 12 teams in the U15 category followed a similar format, which meant all teams enjoyed a good number of matches.

Competition was fierce but every game was played in fantastic spirit, culminating in four finals as follows:

U13 Shield: Knights Templar 15 Queens’ 0;

U13 Trophy: Presdales 30 St Mary’s Catholic 5;

U15 Shield: Sir John Lawes 10 Knights Templar 10 (Sir John Lawes win on countback);

U15 Trophy: Beaumont 30 St Mary’s Catholic 10.

Mark Elliott, President of Hertfordshire RFU, presented the trophies and said: “The numbers taking part were unbelievable and it was good to see so many smiling faces of the girls clearly enjoying their rugby.”

Beaumont and St Mary’s U15 teams will be attending the QBE International between England and South Africa on Saturday November 24, to showcase the RFU National Girls U15 Schools Competition, which this year is being introduced in addition to the U13 Girls Competition.

The girls will play on the pitch before the match, and will form the Guard of Honour as England and South Africa run out – a marvellous day for everyone involved to look forward to.

For more information about Girls’ Rugby in schools please contact Clare Cooper, Women’s Rugby Development Officer clarecooper@rfu.com .

Calling all students and past players

Not played rugby since the U18s? Or back from university? Then there is special festival for you!

19th December is normally the date for the boys students festival at OAs, for players who've gone off to Uni and are back for Christmas. However for the first time a senior ladies match has been organised - if there are enough people interested in playing! 

If you are interested contact philipkearns@rfu.com - by 16th November. It takes some planning so please please let him know if you are interested.

Senior CB Results 4th November 2012

Senior
Cheshire 17 12 Yorkshire
Cumbria 12 34 Lancashire
Durham 12 5 Northumberland
Staffordshire w/o EastMidlands
North Mids 20 0 NLD
Warwickshire 0 45 Leicestershire
Essex 34 20 Hertfordshire
Middlesex 27 10 Eastern Counties
Kent w/o Surrey
Hampshire 32 0 Sussex
Cornwall 3 7 Devon
Gloucestershire Dorset & Wilts
Oxfordshire P Waterlogged Somerset
Berkshire 15 24 Buckingamshire

Herts U18 Girls overwhelm Essex (and junior county result roundup)

Hertfordshire U18 Girls acheived an overwhelming 87 – 0 victory over Essex at Upminster on Sunday.
The Herts girls scored fifteen unanswered tries, along with six conversions.

With the match so early in the season, it was largely seen as a friendly warm-up for the London
and South East county tournament in December. Regrettably Essex were unable to field a full team
and so Herts loaned them a couple of their players, with the match set up as four quarters with
regular change-overs. While this allowed the coaches to try out a series of different combinations,
particularly in the forwards pack, it also made for a somewhat disjointed match with no real pattern
emerging other than Herts domination in both the forwards and backs.

Try scorers were Sydney Gregson with six tries, Marie Beaufils with three tries, Harriet Austin with
two tries, Corinne McDonough with two tries, and Bryony Pomfret and Elizabeth Crake each with
one try. Abbie Maxwell added five conversions with Stevie Farrow contributing one. Though tries
were fairly regular throughout, the opening five minute period in the second quarter proved telling
as Sydney ran in three tries, running some fine lines picking up the ball at speed from the centres to
find big holes in the Essex defence.

It’s fair to say that Essex weren’t able to provide the strength of opposition to really test the Herts
girls and a sterner test can be expected in the next match against Kent – always a tough fixture.

Herts team: Harriet Austin, Marie Beaufils, Catrin Bowser, Katy Cook, Elizabeth Crake, Hayley
Everett, Stevie Farrow, Melissa Gargaro, Sydney Gregson, Ellie Hurer, Chloe James, Emilie James,
Florence Jones, Hannah Jones, Abbie Maxwell, Corinne McDonough, Pat Metcalfe-Jones, Bryony
Pomfret, Megan Smith, Olivia Stembridge, Katy Walker

Other results:

U18s:

Cheshire 17 Yorkshire 12

Cumbria/Durham 5 Northumberland 7

Cumbria/Durham 0 Lancashire 10

Lancashire 7 Northumberland 12

Staffordshire 43 EastMidlands 7

North Mids 38 NLD 5

North Mids 50 Leicestershire 0

Leicestershire 0 NLD 21

Essex 0 Hertfordshire 87

Middlesex 15 Eastern Counties 32

Kent 7 Surrey 12

Hampshire 24 Sussex 5

Cornwall 0 Devon 51

Gloucestershire 36 Dorset & Wilts 17

Oxfordshire 24 Somerset 5

Oxfordshire 5 Berkshire 27

Berkshire 26 Somerset 0

U15s:

Cheshire 10 EastMidlands 17

Cumbria/Durham 19 Northumberland 5

Cumbria/Durham 5 Lancashire 29

Lancashire 38 Northumberland 7

North Mids 12 NLD 22

North Mids 10 Leicestershire 5

Leicestershire 34 NLD 5

Essex 10 Hertfordshire 86

Middlesex 34 Eastern Counties 5

Kent 40 Surrey 0

Hampshire 20 Sussex 25

Cornwall 14 Devon 46

Gloucestershire 17 Dorset & Wilts 15

Oxfordshire 12 Somerset 5

Oxfordshire 0 Berkshire 17

Berkshire 20 Somerset 0

Last opportunity to trial for Herts Ladies county team

Warm up friendly county match v Bucks

Venue:  Ayslebury rugby club
Date: Friday 19th october (but due to refurbishment they do not have a bar or food available, which is a shame but those supporters wishing to come can take their own beer!!!)
Kick off is 7.30pm so meet 6-6.30pm.
it is a friendly and there will be rotation of players and new players being trialed as they could not make trial date. 

Action:
1. confirm to Natalie ( head coach) if you will be there  07740 354476

2. backs specifically wanted, but all interested players welcome.
3.. tell your team mates in case anyone else is interested

Girls Girls Girls! Hemel Hempstead RFC hosts some terrific girls rugby!

Girls rugby is still a growing sport so its not unusual to see clubs join forces to make up a team and today was no exception.  The U15 girls team  entered into this seasons  RFU U15 girls league was made up of girls from Camelot  RFC, Luton RFC and Royston RFC , all wearing the Camelot shirts. ( Their next match will be at Royston where they will run out in Royston kit.) The opponents were also a  cluster team comprisng girls from Newmarket, St Neots and Harlow. It was the first time the girls from Hemel Hempstead had joined forces with Royston and  Camelot team manager  Debby Klyen and Royston coach Kevin Green were wondering if they would weld together as one team. Their concerns were groundless, the Camelot/Royston/luton girls played brilliantly, winning  their first RFU league match 58-27, with the four girls from Camelot all scoring 1 try!

On the other pitch at the club the brand new Herts U18 girls Baa Baa's team, also entered into the RFU U18 girls league, were playing their second warm up match against the Berkshire U18 Baa Baa's.  The Herts Baa Baa's is made up of girls from Camelot, Old Albanians, Bishop Stortford and Hertford . Girls who would have left the game if this new team had not been formed. "Its going to be a tremendously successful project" said Amanda Bate County Volunteer Co-ordinator. " We have tireless support from some amazing volunteers,  Kevin Green who is sorting out the fixtures and Debby Klyen of Hemel Hempstead is the team manager for the Baa Baa's and Jane Everett (former England, and OLd Albanians Ladies,) and  Julie Gibbs ( Hertford and Tabard Ladies) providing excellent coaching. Credit must go to these 4 volunteers who have gathered 25 girls so far, and in a few short weeks shaped them into a team. So good are these girls that 7 of them were selected last week to be part of the Herts U18 county team!!  

Any girl at senior school who would like to play rugby at Camelot should contact Debby Klyen debra.klyen@gmail.com

Royston girls don Hemel Hempstead shirts all for their love of rugby

Many would think its a strange thing to do, wear another clubs shirts! But the Royston RFC girls know better. 

Kevin Green who has been coaching the girls explained, "because girls rugby is still a growing sport, clubs cluster to make up teams and this season Royston girls are clustering at U15 with Hemel Hempstead and Luton . 

The cluster team is entered into the RFU U15 girls league, and today we played our first league match against another cluster team ( St Neots, Newmarket, Harlow). The girls played fantastically well, especially as it was the first time they'd been together this season. 

The final score reflected how well they'd played, 58-27! The next home match will be at Royston next week and we will all be proudly wearing Royston shirts.!"

Any senior school girl wishing to play rugby at Royston should contact  Jamie Johnson -ccc@roystonrugbyclub.co.uk

Herts schools girls' rugby festival

We have a record entry to the Schools Girl’s Rugby Festival being held on Wednesday 17^th October at Hertford RFC.

This is a fantastic recruitment opportunity and I would encourage as many clubs as possible to attend and talk with teachers and girls on the day.

Games will commence at 1.00pm and presentations are scheduled to be made at 4.15pm.

U13 teams will play 7-a-side, and U15s will play 10-a-side. Assuming squad sizes of 12-15, that means in excess of 400 girls will be there playing contact rugby.

The teams that are confirmed to be there are as follows:

U13	U15
Kings Langley	Beaumont, St Albans
Knight’s Templar, Letchworth	Herts & Essex, Bishops Stortford
Presdales, Hertford	John Warner, Hoddesdon
St Mary’s A, Bishops Stortford	Knight’s Templar, Letchworth
St Mary’s B, Bishops Stortford	Presdales, Hertford
Goffs, Cheshunt	Roundwood Park, Harpenden
Herts & Essex, Bishops Stortford	St Mary’s, Bishops Stortford
Sir John Lawes, Harpenden	Sir John Lawes, Harpenden
Edwinstree, Buntingford	Queens, Bushey
John Warner, Hoddesdon	Kings Langley
Monks Walk, Welwyn	Rickmansworth
Queens, Bushey	Freman College, Buntingford
Beaumont, St Albans	Nobel, Stevenage
Hertswood, Borehamwood
Rickmansworth
Nobel, Stevenage

Directions to Hertford RFC can be found at http://www.hertfordrfc.co.uk/map.htm

Looking forward to a great festival.

U15 and U18 Herts Squads

Following the Herts trials on Sunday 30th September, the following were selected for the U15s Herts squad:

• Bella Allison
• Sapphire Bennett
• Alexandra Bentley
• Katie Boggas
• Hannah Botterman
• Jessica Duncan
• Zoe Harrison
• Millie Kay
• Anna Liddelow
• Chloe Olliffe
• Daisy-Mae Parker
• Ellena Perry
• Lilian Ross
• Rhiannon Rouch
• Helena Rowland
• Chelsea Singfield
• Izzie Sloan
• Jeanine Stephenson
• Cara Wardle
• Rebecca Wye

In the U18s age group the following were selected:

• Harriet Austin
• Marie-Louise Beaufils
• Catrin Bowser
• Lotte Clapp
• Victoria Cogger
• Katy Cook
• Elizabeth Crake
• Emily Davis
• Hayley Everett
• Stevie Farrow
• Sydney Gregson
• Elle Hurer
• Chloe James
• Emilie James
• Florence Jones
• Hannah Jones
• Rosie Kay
• Abbie Maxwell
• Corinne McDonough
• Pat Metcalfe-Jones
• Sidney Nurthen
• Bryony Pomfret
• Megan Smith
• Olivia Stembridge
• Aleah Townsend
• Katy Walker

Herts Girls County Trials Sun 30th Sept Welwyn RFC 1.00

The Herts Girls county trials for U18s and U15s will take place on Sunday 30th September at Welwyn RFC, Hobbs Way, Welwyn Garden City, AL8 6HX. 

Registration will be at 1pm, with the session starting at 1.30pm and ending by 4pm. Girls should arrive dressed ready for rugby as the changing rooms may not be available until later. 

Girls in Year 8 who wish to play in the U15 age group must bring evidence that the RFU has granted them dispensation. 

Eligibility:

A girl is eligible to play for Hertfordshire if:

(a) she attends a school situated in Hertfordshire;

(b) She resides in Hertfordshire;

(c) She was born in Hertfordshire; or

(d) She is a member of a Club affiliated to Hertfordshire

The registration form (see right) must be completed and brought along by each player on the day. It must be signed by a parent for any player under the age of 18, to give permission for the player to take part.

It would be a great help if club coaches could email a list of girls intending to attend the afternoon by Friday 21st to help with planning, though girls who just turn up on the day will still be allowed to take part: 

• names of U15s should be sent to Adrian Pomfret, U15s manager, at adrian.pomfret@virgin.net
• names of U18s should be sent to Colin Summerfield, U18s manager, at ca.summerfield@btinternet.com

Girls will be notified whether or not they have been selected by email by Wednesday 3rd October.

Fixture dates are as follows:

28 October Essex v Hertfordshire at Upminster RUFC

18 November Hertfordshire v Kent at Old Albanians RFC

2 December CB festival

We look forward to meeting you all.

Regards

Adrian Pomfret, U15s manager 07906 863550

Colin Summerfield, U18s manager 07913 141207

Open county training session

I would like to confirm that there will be a training session at Welwyn this Sunday for all U13s, U15s and U18s.

This is open to all girls whatever their experience. It will give the coaches and players a chance to get to know each other before the Trial on the 30th September

Please arrive ready to start at 1.30. 

Kind regards.

Adrian Pomfret

Herts Girls' Rugby

07906863550

Herts Ladies County Trials

Date: Sunday 30th September meet at 2pm, trials end 4pm
Venue: Tabard RFC Cobden Hill, Radlett WD7 7JN

Eligibility criteria:1. 18years or over, no upper age limit.
2.A trialist needs to either live in, or play rugby in, or have been born in, Herts.
3.A trialist must not have been awarded a full international cap for another country within the last 3 years.

We are hoping to arrange  a warm up match (venue TBC) on Friday October 19th under floodlights against Buckinghamshire Ladies county team.

The county fixtures are:1. 4th November away to Essex
2.18th November at home against Kent. venue will be OA's and the U15's and U18's will be playing the same day, so a wonderful day of female rugby!
3.a Festival on either 1st or 2nd December- details TBC.

Training will take place the Friday evening before each match.(excluding the warm up match.)

Your coaches will be Nat Granger and just waiting on confirmation of a fowards coach.

You do need to Register your intention to trial before Monday 24th September.
Please e-mail me, Amanda Bate, Team Manager the following essential details.
1.Name
2.Address
3. mobile number
4.date of birth
5.County of birth if you do not live in  or play rugby in Herts
6.Club you play for.
7. please give your 2 most preferred positions you would like to play in.

Any questions, do please ask.

OA Saints Looking Good!

There was great excitement at Old Albanians RFC recently due to the ladies team, best known as the OA Saints, attending the official launch of their new 7s touring kit.  The kit was won as a competition prize after Kate Barnes submitted the winning tiebreaker:

''Our team should be models for the TRU/London College of Fashions Women's Range:
because the OA saints are happy and the OA saints are free. The OA Saints are happy when the opposition flee. We smash and crash, our wingers dash until we score a try. We are a bunch athletes that would never eat a pie! We play at premiership level, against the best players in the world. Our battered bodies have seen better days, we still give those Saracens boys a sexy twirl ''

The OA Saints worked in partnership with TRU Sportswear and the London College of Fashion BA (Hons) Fashion Sportswear course to develop the kit specially engineered to fit the female form. The shirts have been styled to include tailored necklines, longer length of shirts (to prevent riding up during play), bust fit, smaller arm hole sizing and new ladies fit ‘SXY’ shorts that include lycra undershorts as part of the design. Kate Barnes, submitter of the winning entry commented “It was an awesome experience for us to be involved in shaping the new TRU kit. As a ladies rugby team we know how our kit needs to perform and now we have played in it we absolutely love it! It’s great to see TRU getting behind ladies rugby and supporting the game with specific ladies fit kit. It means there is now more choice for female rugby players!”.

OA Saints have used their new kit already, at recent Bournemouth, Manchester and Solstice 7s competitions. If you are interested in playing for OA Saints they train on Mondays and Wednesdays at 7.15 at the Old Albanian Rugby Club on Harpenden Road, or contact oasaints@gmail.com for more information. Or if you want to see the kit in action it will next be worn by the team at Southwold Beach 7s on 28th July.

Girls County Trials

Girls county trials for 2012/13 have been confirmed for 30th September at Welwyn. This is a couple of weeks later than usual in the hope that schools will send more girls along.

However, because the trials are later, an extra county-wide training session will take place on the 16th September, also at Welwyn, where everyone will get the chance to play in full-sized games. Even if you are the only player at your club in your age band this will be a great chance to play some rugby - and even find out more about plans for a cluster team for the season.

The county's home games this year will be against Kent on 18th November, probably at OAs.

County Coaches 2012/13:

U15: Gareth Bowser (Lead Coach) John Harrison and Kevin Green (Assistant Coaches)

U18: Jeff Stembridge (Lead Coach) Greg Maxwell, Alan Watson, Bob Dawson and Mick Clapp (Assistant Coaches)

County Managers 2012/13:

U15; To be appointed.Volunteers to contact Adrian Pomfret.

U18; Colin/Carol Summerfield

WANTED: New Youth Activator for Hertfordshire

vRugby is the RFU’s Young Volunteer offer for 14-24 year olds.  We aim to provide support through kit, training and identifying opportunities for young people who want to get involved in Volunteering within Rugby Union.

We are currently looking to recruit Youth Activators across the country.  As a Youth Activator connected with the RFU vRugby Programme, you will be responsible for promoting the RFU’s vRugby Young Volunteer Offer in your local area. 

With the support of RFU professional staff you will be responsible for the recruitment, retention and recognising of young volunteers. 

The focus of the role will vary depending on locality however it will largely involve creating links clubs, schools, colleges and universities to identify and provide opportunities for young volunteers.

Click here for an application form

Application Deadline

06 July 2012

Closing Date

06 July 2012