Rugby activities were quite limited this weekend as the Senior Men did not have any fixtures and due to the adverse weather conditions which meant that the Senior Women’s match away at Fullerians was cancelled.

However, Friday night witnessed a very successful Beerfest Night at Windsor RFC which was attended by over 90 people. The night was a great success with there being very positive feedback about it.

Well done to Jen for all her hard work putting the event together and the bar and kitchen staff that worked on the night. Its much appreciated.

Many thanks also to those who supported the first big social event of the season.

Lets hope the next one will be an even greater success!

On Saturday , although there was no rugby, the clubhouse was used to host Club First Aid Training Session for 17 parents from the Minis and Junior sections.
Many thanks to Anisha Oram for arranging the course, to Paul Markham who delivered the course and the volunteers who attended.

As stated above rugby activities were curtailed largely on Sunday due to the weather.

The Colts Extra XV travelled to Wallingford for their latest OBB League Match and were narrowly defeated.

Report from Jason Stone Colts Manager.

Wallingford Colts RFC A 29 Windsor Colts Extra XV 28

Tough, wet, cold, and miserable day over at Wallingford RFC in this OBB Division 3 fixture. Unsure if the game would actually go ahead, and having travelled nearly an hour to get there, our hosts found a playable pitch, and everyone agreed to play.

From the off Windsor competed well, and immediately put Wallingford under pressure. A lovely kick, chase & regather from fly half Jowan Bailey sent him under the posts for an opening try, which he duly converted for a 0-7 lead. Unfortunately in the build up to the score, Jabbar Adekunle-Lawal took a knock, and had to leave the field. Without any forward cover, Jacko Stone moved into the back row for the duration of the game. The game waxed and waned in the mud, and in one concerted attack, Wallingford levelled the scores with a well taken try. With their confidence up, Wallingford played some of their best rugby, and shortly after took the lead 12-7 with an unconverted score on 20 mins. This sparked Windsor to life, and in worsening conditions, Jowan Bailey made a clean break, and after a couple of phases, Gabe McIntyre drove over for a score, converted for a 12-14 lead. With the half closing, another forward rumble led to Joe Rodgers pummelling over for Windsor’s 3rd converted try, and a 12-21 lead at the break.

The 2nd half started in very similar, deteriorating conditions but Windsor appeared to be cruising in the mud and rain, and a break by Jowan Bailey, led to an excellent solo effort on 55 mins, for a bonus point try, again converted by himself for an impressive 12-28 lead. Everything seemed good in a miserable day! Wallingford then lost a prop, and the scrums went uncontested, and with some interesting interpretation of the laws, the game seemed to change. Wallingford took advantage, crossing for two converted scores, to narrow the scores to 26-28 with still 20 mins to go. Windsor seemed to increasingly come on the end of the referee’s whistle, resulting in a yellow card for Jacko Stone. With the minutes ticking away, Windsor were defending their 2-point lead, before a dubious penalty was awarded to Wallingford, which allowed the hosts to bag 3 points and a 1 point lead. With just a minute remaining this could not be clawed back and whilst 2 bonus points were picked up in this narrow defeat, the feeling was this was a win that got away!

Big thanks to the many family and friends who made the trip to support the team. Admirable considering the conditions!

After Junior Training had finished the U13s were presented with their club ties marking their transition from Minis to Juniors. The players can now where their ties with pride when representing Windsor RFC.

With over 70% of the Senior Men’s squad coming from the Youth Section , hopefully some of these players will be representing Windsor RFC through the Junior age groups and into the Seniors.

This Weekend’s Rugby Activity

Saturday 30th November 2024:

The Senior Men’s 1st XV and Dev XVs both have league matches. The Men’s 1st XV travel to Chinnor to play Chinnor 3rd XV, who are unbeaten in the league, whilst the Men’s Dev XV are at home to Shire Hall.

• Men’s 1st XV AWAY vs Chinnor 3rd XV ( Tribute Southern Counties North)– Kick Off 2.30pm.
Contact Chinnor Rugby Club.

• Men’s Dev XV HOME vs Shire Hall ( Counties 3 BBO League) – Kick Off 2.00pm

Sunday 1st December 2024:

The Dames were scheduled to play Trowbridge Women in the next round of the Papa Johns Women’s Community Plate. This game has been cancelled which is a great shame. On positive note they are now through to the Quarter Finals of this competition.

Home Park will be busy on Sunday with the U12s Festival where there are 13 sides and over 350 players taking part. Many thanks to the U12s coaches and parents who will be involved on the day to make it a big success.

A big thank you also to Windsor Boys School for allowing the Club to use their pitches for the U13s and U14s.

• U6s - Training at Home Park
• U7s to u11s – Training Away
• Damsels - Training at Home Park.
• U13s - Playing Newbury at Stovel TWBS
• U14s – Training at Stovel TWBS
• U15s – AWAY vs London Irish
• U16s - OBB Div 1 match @ Home Park v Bracknell. KO 10.30am
• Colts - Training at Home Park

Have a great weekend.

Michael Crawshaw WINDSOR RFC Chair
On Behalf of the General Management Committee