NEWARK COLTS YR 12/13
Matches
Fri 28 Oct 2022
Armistice Rugby Festival - Paris
TBC
Newark RUFC
NEWARK COLTS YR 12/13
Newark u16's tour to Compiegne France

Newark u16's tour to Compiegne France

DAVID HAYLE7 Nov 2022 - 20:12
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A Tour that will be long remembered for all the right reasons...

As GCSEs loomed for the Newark U16s in spring next year the team were fortunate to be invited to tour early in the season with a fantastic tour to France to complete in the Armistice international rugby festival along with teams from France, The Netherlands and Wales.

The tour is part of the World Rugby Memorial Project and not only offers the chance to play against teams from across Europe but also to visit sites on both the Aisne & Somme to remember those former rugby players who served and fell in WW1.

The team met early ready for the long trip to the channel tunnel and France and thankfully for many of the coaches, left the music and singing until first light, but it then continued until the arrival at the magnificent ground of our hosts Compiegne Rugby Club. Some early match practice and acclimatisation was rounded off by a magnificent rendition of the 'Can-Can' by our boys!

Back at the hotel Court was held on a nightly basis and the decisions from the first round of cases certainly gave the Newark squad food for thought for the coming days!

Day 2 started with a visit to the WW1 sites Cavern du Dragon and Plateau de California where the players were told and shown some of the horrors of the first World War, which was a very sobering moment for many, especially when they realised that some of the combatants where no older than themselves.

The tour also went on a pilgrimage to the World Rugby Memorial, set up in memory of the fallen rugby players in WW1 - it is a little known fact that rugby lost more international players than any other sport in WW1.

Soon it was time to get back to the rugby club where we were greeted by a merry band of loyal Newark supporters and set out play some rugby in 2 warm up matches against Den Haag and Llandovery school. Newark remained undefeated and played some fantastic rugby to shake off the cobwebs. The evening saw a memorial service and laying of wreaths at the commemorative monument with words of thanks spoken by the Newark captain Sam H.

Day 3 and at last Festival Day was upon us and on a sunny and very warm day we left the hotel by coach full of croissants and expectation. The format was 7x 10 minute games with the ‘local’ FFR regulation adjustments of no tackling above the ball and no pushing in the scrums, meant that probably one try would seal the win! The Newark boys played fantastic rugby throughout the festival and competed and defeated some very strong sides, the strongest coming from our neighbours in Wales against whom Newark remained undefeated. The games were played with intensity and led to many memorable tries and garnered many new supporters of Newark Rugby Club, with good sportsmanship being shown throughout.

The final day involved a visit to the Lochnagar crater which was detonated during the battle of the Somme in 1916 and was one of the largest non-nuclear explosions the world has seen and was a final sobering sight of the weekend before we returned to Newark to the sound of the tour anthem for the hundredth time, especially written for us by John Denver: "Take me home country roads" !

A fantastic time was had by all in what was an excellent educational experience coupled with some great rugby, in which the Newark U16s excelled throughout and were a credit to the club and their families.

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Fri 28 Oct 2022

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