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.

Regional Girls Schools Festival

U15 tournament:
All 4 semi finalists were from Hertfordshire - Hockerill, Presdales, Chauncy and Nobel.
Presdales beat Hockerill in a very close final.

U13 tournament:
3 out 4 semi finalists were from Hertfordshire – Beaumont, Presdales and Hitchin.
Beaumont won the final.

51 school teams took part with schools from London North (Herts, Essex, and Eastern Counties)

Girls Schools Festival, Friday

Hertfordshire is hosting the London North Girls Festival on Friday. Part of this competition (Tag+) will send the finalists to the Army v Navy Day at Twickenham where the girls will play showcase games on the pitch. We have also put in place a Lon North v Lon South Finals for U13 Contact and U15 Contact on the same day (although not playing on the pitch).

The Regional Finals on Friday is taking place at Jobbers Wood, The Bishops Stortford High School, Great Hadham Road, Much Hadham, SG10 6JE.

Matches start at 11am.

If anyone from any of the clubs is available to come and assist with some refereeing, we would be very grateful for some extra help, as 51 teams are expected!!!

Referees will need to arrive by 10am, and the event should be completed by 2:30pm.

If anyone is willing and able....! please let me know : clarecooper@Rfu.com

Herts schools festival: report and full results

Over 400 schoolgirls representing 26 schools from across Hertfordshire took part in one of the largest girls rugby tournaments ever organised last week. Organised by the Herts rugby development team and sponsored by Hertfordshire Fire & Rescue Service, the day included two competitions – a tag rugby tournament for girls in Years 7 and 8, and a full-contact tournaments for teams of girls from Years 9 and 10

Teachers and girls enjoyed a “quality event” – to quote Laura from Presdales - and it was her Hertford school that dominated the event, winning both the tag and contact events. Their junior side took the tag tournament with style winning every game and scoring 39 tries in their six games. Only Monks Walk (Welwyn) in the semi-final, and Nobel (Stevenage) in the final came within a try of the champions.

In the full contact event Presdales older girls were almost as all-conquering, beating Chauncy 10-0 in the final. Only Knights Templar (Baldock) spoilt their 100% record, forcing a 20-20 draw that was good enough to send the north Herts school into the final of the consolation shield competition, where they beat Queens 10-0.

Gareth Bradbury, Station Commander at Hertford Fire Station, presented the awards, but wining was not everything. Karen, from Dame Alice Owen, was delighted to see her girls “improve with every game”, while the real highlight of the day for many of the girls was the chance to meet England’s rugby superstar Maggie Alphonsi, who was also very impressed:

“It was a great day. To have so many teams present on the day all demonstrating great skill and ability was fantastic. It is good to see events like this as I feel they all contribute to helping build the women and girls game and promoting the sport within schools.”

Results

U13 Tournament


Group 1
John Warner 10, Presdales 20; Sele 5, Simon Balle 45; John Warner 30, Sele 10; Presdales 30, Simon Balle 10; John Warner 25, Simon Balle 25; Presdales 40, Sele 0

Group 1	W	D	L	F	A	PD	Pts
Presdales	3	0	0	90	20	70	9
Simon Balle	1	1	1	80	60	20	4
John Warner	1	1	1	65	55	10	2
Sele	0	0	3	15	115	-100	0

Group 2

Monks Walk 25, Sir Fred Osbourne 10; St Mary's Catholic B 0, Rickmansworth 35; Monks Walk 30, St Mary's Catholic B 0; Sir Fred Osbourne 10, Rickmansworth 10; Monks Walk 15, Rickmansworth 15; St Mary's Catholic B 5, Sir Fred Osbourne 25

Group 2	W	D	L	F	A	PD	Pts
Monks Walk	2	1	0	70	25	45	7
Rickmansworth	1	2	0	60	25	35	5
Sir Fred Osbourne	1	1	1	45	40	5	4
St Mary's Cath B	0	0	3	5	90	-85	0

Group 3

Francis Combe 0, Queens 15; Hertswood 20, Dame Alice Owens 10; Westfield 15, Francis Combe 5; Queens 20, Hertswood 10; Dame Alice Owens 0, Westfield 30; Francis Combe 5, Hertswood 5; Queens 30, Dame Alice Owens 0; Westfield 10, Hertswood 5; Francis Combe 5, Dame Alice Owens 0; Queens 10, Westfield 15

Group 3	W	D	L	F	A	PD	Pts
Westfield	4	0	0	70	20	50	12
Queens	3	0	1	75	25	50	9
Hertswood	1	1	2	40	45	-5	4
Francis Combe	1	1	2	15	35	-20	4
Dame Alice Owens	0	0	4	10	85	-75	0

Group 4

Hitchin Girls 0, Nobel 0; Knights Templar 5, John Henry Newman 5; St Mary's Catholic A 5, Hitchin Girls 0; Nobel 15, Knights Templar 0; John Henry Newman 0, St Mary's Catholic A 5; Hitchin Girls 10, Knights Templay 0; Nobel 15, John Henry Newman 0; St Mary's Catholic A 10, Knights Templar 0; Hitchin Girls 20, John Henry Newman 0; St Mary's Catholic A 0, Nobel 10

Group 4	W	D	L	F	A	PD	Pts
Nobel	3	1	0	40	0	40	10
St Mary's Cath A	3	0	1	20	10	10	9
Hitchin Girls	2	1	1	30	5	25	7
Knights Templar	0	1	3	5	40	-35	1
John H Newman	0	1	3	5	45	-40	1

Group 5

Nicholas Breakspear 5, Loreto 0; Beaumont 0, Tring 20; Sir John Lawes 5, Nicholas Breakspear 5; Loreto 5, Beaumont 10; Tring 0, Sir John Lawes 15; Nicholas Breakspear 5, Beaumont 5; Loreto 10, Tring 15; Sir John Lawes 10, Beaumont 0; Nicholas Breakspear 5, Tring 10; Sir John Lawes 10, Loreto 5

Group 5	W	D	L	F	A	PD	Pts
Sir John Lawes	4	0	0	40	5	35	12
Tring	3	0	1	45	30	15	9
Nicholas Breakspr	1	1	2	15	20	-5	4
Beaumont	1	1	2	15	40	-25	4
Loreto	0	0	4	20	40	-20	0

Quarter-finalsPresdales 30, Sir John Lawes 5; Monks Walk 15, St Mary's Catholic A 5; Westfield 10, Tring 15; Nobel 5, Queens 0
Semi-finalsPresdales 10, Monks Walk 5; Tring 5, Nobel 5 (Nobel qualify on group performance)
Third place play-offMonks Walk 0, Tring 10
FinalPresdales 15, Nobel 10
U15 Competition
Presdales 25, Queens 0; Nobel 0, Chauncy 5; St Mary's Catholic 0, Knight's Templar 20; Queens 10, Roundwood Park 5; Presdales 10, Nobel 5; Chauncy 20, St Mary's Catholic 5; Knight's Templar 10, Roundwood Park 0; Queens 0, Nobel 5; Presdales 10, Chancy 0; St Mary's Catholic 5, Roundwood Park 5; Queens 0, Chancy 10; Presdales 20, St Mary's Catholic 0; Nobel 10, Roundwood Park 5; Queens 10, St Mary's Catholic 0; Presdales 20, Knight's Templar 20; Chancy 15, Roundwood Park 5; Nobel 20, Knight's Templar 15; Presdales 5, Roundwood Park 0; Chancy 10, Knight's Templar 10; Nobel 15, St Mary's Catholic 0; Queens 25, Knight's Templar 5

	W	D	L	F	A	PD	Pts
Presdales	5	1	0	90	5	85	16
Chancy	4	1	1	60	30	30	13
Nobel	4	0	2	55	35	20	12
Queens	3	0	3	45	50	-5	9
Knight's Templar	2	2	2	80	75	5	8
Roundwood Park	0	1	5	20	55	-35	1
St Mary's Catholic	0	1	5	10	90	-80	1

Trophy final

Presdales 10, Chancy 0

Shield final

Queens 0, Knights Templar 10

Herts Schools Rugby Competition for Girls 20th Oct Hertford RFC Results

U13 (Years 7 + 8) Trophy

Winners: Presdales.
Runners-up: Nobel.
3rd: Tring.
4th: Monks Walk.

A total of 23 Schools took part in the U13 Tournament.

U15 (Years 9 + 10) Trophy

Winners: Presdales.
Runners-up: Chauncy

U15 (Years 9 + 10) Shield

Winners: Knights Templar
Runners-up: Queens

A total of 7 Schools took part in the U15 Tournament.

World cup heroes support record-breaking schools tournament

Every school year begins with headlines about the decline of school rugby, with claims that fewer and fewer schools play the game, and children choosing less traditional activities. That may be true in some places, but in Hertfordshire one part of the game is expanding – and expanding massively.

A couple of years ago Hertford RFC hosted the county’s first girls’ schools tournament. There were only four entrants. But on 20^th October Hertford will host a girls’ school rugby festival which will feature an incredible 38 school teams across two age bands. Over 400 girls from every part of the county are expected making it one of the largest girls’ state school rugby festivals ever staged – anywhere.

27 teams will take part in a tag rugby tournament for Years 7 and 8, while another 11 take part in a full-contact tournament for Years 9 and 10 – including the Presdales school team that won the national championship in 2009 (full list below).

Representatives from several of the county’s club teams will also be present. Girls’ rugby is now well established at many rugby clubs across the county as the game continues to grow, helped by the summer’s massively successful Women’s Rugby World Cup.

And if the girls want an incentive to take up the sport then they could no do better than learn from two of the country’s World Cup heroes, who will be watching the event. England and Saracens superstar Maggie Alphonsi – one of the greatest female rugby players in the world – will be joined by international team-mate Michaela Staniford, whose rugby career began thanks to her being introduced to the game at her Hertfordshire school.

With Hertfordshire’s girls picking up the ball in record numbers, how many will be following Maggie and Michaela into the England team?

Come to Hertford and see the future of Herts schools rugby – and maybe even some future England champions!

·  

• The event would not have been possible without the work of the county’s School Sport Co-ordinators (SSCos) and Partnership Development Managers (PDMs), who ensure that inter-school tournaments like this can take place – and that the talented players that the schools unearth can move on to become the sports stars of tomorrow.

Event details

Hertfordshire Schools Girls Rugby Festival, At Hertford Rugby Football Club, Highfields, Hoe Lane, Ware, Hertfordshire SG12 9NZ, 20^th October 2010, from 1- 5pm.

Entrants:

Years 7 & 8:			Years 9 & 10
Turnford John Warner Presdales Chauncy Sele Simon Balle St Mary's Catholic A St Mary's Catholic B Birchwood Rickmansworth Queens	Westfield Monks Walk Hertswood Sir Frederic Osborn Hitchin Girls Nobel Knight's Templar John Henry Newman Adeyfield Hemel Hempstead Tring	Sir John Lawes Nicholas Breakspear Loreto Beaumont Dame Alice Owens	Queens Presdales Nobel Chauncy St Mary's Catholic Sir John Lawes Knight's Templar Westfield Roundwood Park

Festival of Girls' Rugby, October 2010

Herts RFU are looking for schools to enter a Festival of Girl’s Rugby we will be running at Hertford RFC on Wednesday 20th October 2010.

Start time will be 1:00pm with a finish time of approximately 4:30pm – exact timings to be decided once we know how many Schools enter.

There will be two separate tournaments taking place on the day ….

Year 7 / 8 (combined) Touch Rugby tournament:
Teams will be 7-a-side on a half size pitch. No limit on squad size.
Teams made up of pupils in years 7 & 8.
Games will be based on “6-down” touch rugby rules.
At the halfway stage of the tournament, there will be a coaching session for all year 7 & 8 girls to introduce them to the early concepts of tackling and contact rugby.

Year 9 / 10 (combined) Contact Rugby tournament:
Teams will be 10-a-side on a half size pitch. No limit on squad size.
Teams made up of pupils in years 9 & 10.
Games will be full contact except for scrums (5 man) which will be uncontested.
At the halfway stage of the tournament, there will also be coaching for all year 9 & 10 girls in an aspect of contact rugby – ie: rucking/mauling.

Please can you all send your entries by email to mikeharrison@therfu.com.

Closing date for entries is Friday 1st October. The earlier entries are received, the better please.

Thank you for your support.

Harry Harrison
Herts RFU Community Rugby Coach
Tel: 0789 448 9249

Girls Schools Age Bands: Important changes

The competition structure of the RFUW aims to support all players and teams with clear guidelines to enable participation at all levels.

It was agreed last season that the for the forthcoming 2008-2009 season the age-bands in schools would mirror those played in the club environment.

The following age-bands apply to schools, clubs and a colleges playing girls rugby in England. Any breach of theses age bands could lead to disciplinary action of coaches and clubs.

Age at 1^st September of the year playing

U12 Schools– playing to continuum guidelines	Year 7 – can be mixed sex , but we encourage the playing of girls only rugby at this age group where possible
U15	Aged 12,13 or 14 on the 1st September 2008 (normally School Years 8, 9 and 10) – laws as shown in RFUW handbook
U18	Aged 15,16 or 17 on the 1st September 2008 (normally School Years 11, 12 and 13) – laws as shown in RFUW handbook
FE / HE Colleges.	Under 19- 3 year age band OR Under 20 - 3 year age band Both teams MUST be playing the same band. Laws as shown for U18 in RFUW Handbook

All laws and regulations covering the RFUW age bands are available through the RFUW Hand book and through the Women’s rugby section of www.rfu.com/women resources section.

New and Emerging Schools Under 14 Competition - East Region

4 Schools took part in the Regional Section of the New and Emerging Schools Tournament including Nobel (Stevenage) and Chauncy (Ware). Unforfunately neither were able to progress to the National Stage of the Competition as Chauncy were 3rd and Nobel were 4th.

New and Emerging Schools Under 14 Rugby Festival - Hertfordshire Section Results

A total of 75 Girls from 5 Schools took part in the Herts Section of this National Tournament held at Welwyn RFC.

The 5 Schools participating were Marriotts (Stevenage) Nobel (Stevenage) Turnford (Broxborn) Chauncy (Ware) and Chancellors (Hatfield / Potters Bar) and the Winners were Chauncy, whilst the Runners-Up were Nobel. Chauncy now represent Herts at the Regional Section of the Tournament at Bishops Stortford on 12th March. We wish them the best of luck.

For many of the Girls it was their first experience of playing competitive Rugby and it is expected that some will continue to play at one of the choice of Girls Rugby Clubs in Herts.

'New and Emerging' Schools Girls Under 14 Rugby Festival - Hertfordshire Section

Following the success and enjoyment of the event last year, this seasons New and Emerging Schools Girls Under 14 Rugby Festival (Herts Section) is being held at Welwyn RFC, Handside Lane Playing Field, Hobbs Way, Colgrove, Welwyn Garden City AL8 6HX on Friday 29th February 2008.

Teams are classified as Under 14 which means that you may include players up to and including Year 9, and consist of 12 players with a maximum squad size of 15.

Actual timings will be advised once we know how many Schools are taking part, and there will also be some coaching available on the day. If you would like some help or want to ask questions please get in touch.

Final date for School Entries to be considered is Friday 8th February 2008.

Schools in Herts are invited to get a side together; it will form a Development Day for Girls Rugby; and it will also allow the Winning School to represent the County in the Regional Finals on 12th March 2008.

Please return either by email to: paulfreestone@rfu.com

or

by post to: Peter Engledow, Rugby Football Union, Hertfordshire Sports Village, Hatfield Business Park, Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL10 9EU

We look forward to hearing from you.

Paul Freestone
Community Rugby Coach
07738 029262

Girls Under 14 Competition Squad size & rules

Years 7,8 & 9 each School should only bring 15 players
· 12-a-side
· 6 Player uncontested Scrums (3 front row, 2 second row, No.8 (No.8 may NOT
Pick up from base of scrum)
· Midi Rugby Pitch (Half a full size pitch)
· Hand-offs allowed
· No kicking out-of Hand or for touch
· Kick-Offs replaced by scrum not drop kick
· Lineout – no supporting , 5 players in lineout, scrum half may not join, no “quick” or “Long” throws
· Rolling substitutions
· An Under 14 team can be made up of Yr 7s,8s &9s. However, it is worth remembering that some squads will be made up of all Yr 9 while others may be all Yr7s. Please take this into account when selecting your squads.

Please ensure that mouth guards are worn, and that players have warm clothing and a change of clothes.

Full RFUW Rules, Regulations and Guidelines for Under 14 Girls Rugby can be found on http://www.rfu.com/ (click on Women’s Rugby)

Girls' Contact Rugby: Age Groups for Clubs and Schools

RFUW have issued the following summary of age group rules for girls rugby from U12 to adult level:

Age Group	U12’s	U13’s	U14’s	U15’s	U16’s	U17’s	U18’s
A player’s age grade is determined by their age at midnight on 31st August at the beginning of each season. Therefore if a player is aged 11 on 31st August then they are U12’s for the season.
School Year (for most players these age groups relate to these school years.)	Year 7	Year 8	Year 9	Year 10	Year 11	Year 12	Year 13
Clubs	a. Mixed rugby with the boys (1 year only) b. Girls Only sides comprising U11’s and U12’s (RFU Continuum U10’s rules)*			Girls only – can comprise of players who are U13’s U14’s and U15’s. (RFUW U15’s rules)**			Girls only – can comprise of players who are U16’s, U17’s and U18’s. Once players are 18 they can also play senior rugby. (RFUW U18’s rules)
Schools	a. Mixed rugby with the boys (1 year only) b. Girls Only sides comprising U11’s and U12’s (RFU Continuum U9 rules)*	Girls only – can comprise of players who are U11’s, U12’s and U13’s. (RFU Continuum U12’s rules but uncontested scrums and reduce numbers if necessary)*	Girls only - can comprise of players who are U12’s, U13’s and U14’s. (RFU Continuum U12’s rules but uncontested scrums and reduce numbers if necessary)*	Girls only – can comprise of players who are U13’s U14’s and U15’s. (RFUW U15’s rules but uncontested scrums)**	Girls only – can comprise of players who are U14’s, U15’s and U16’s. (RFUW U15’s rules but uncontested scrums)**	Girls only – can comprise of players who are U15’s, U16’s and u17’s. (RFUW U15’s rules but uncontested scrums)**	Girls only – can comprise of players who are U16’s, U17’s and U18’s. (RFUW U18’s rules but uncontested scrums unless both schools agree to play contested. Only players trained in the front row should participate in contested scrums)**
Emerging Schools (The girls age group for Emerging Schools will be reviewed at then end of the season)			Girls only - can comprise of players who are U12’s, U13’s and U14’s. (See Emerging Schools information for tournament rules and regulations)

* RFU Continuum rules and Regulations can be found on; www.rfu.com under regulations and then Continuum Regulations and Continuum Rules of Play.

** RFUW age group rules can be found at www.rfu.com women’s rugby and then follow links to “youth” and “rules and regs 2007/08” (http://www.rfu.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/RFUHome.Community_Detail/StoryID/17291 )

For further safety guidance please see the new IRB Resource “Rugby Ready” at: http://www.irbrugbyready.com/irbrr/en/home.jsp