Kirkham Grammar School at Twickenham

1st XV National Cup Under 18s Cup Final at Twickenham

Kirkham Grammar School 1st XV recently travelled to Twickenham to participate in the National Schools U18s Cup Final, for the first time since 1997, to play Trinity School, Croydon. The atmosphere at Twickenham was electric; both schools had huge support and the teams started nervously. Trinity appeared less nervous and dominated KGS in the early exchanges which resulted in them eventually take a 5-0 lead. In typical Kirkham tradition, a response was immediate and the KGS forwards started to use their power. Both second rows, William Riley and Huw Davies, started to dominate the lineout and were forceful in the loose and they made inroads into the Trinty defence, which lead to an opportunity for prop, Patreece Bell, to crash over near the posts. Captain, Aaron Pope, converted for KGS to take a 7-5 lead which they kept until the half time break.

The second half started with both teams trying to attack despite the poor weather conditions. The KGS forwards, again dominated by Harry Thompson and Yande Nkonge, started to influence play with some strong carriers. However, with around 16 minutes to go, a mistake was made by Kirkham, which lead to Trinity regaining the lead 10-5. KGS tried desperately to force the game and, with the weather getting worse, another mistake was made which Trinity capitalised on and increased their lead to 15-7. 

Despite this setback, the team dug deep and against the odds started on a comeback of giant proportion. As time started running out, Kirkham forced Trinity to concede a penalty at the breakdown and Captain, Aaron Pope, stepped up to calmly kick a penalty to close the gap to 15-10 with just 6 minutes left on the clock. Kirkham gave everything in these last few minutes and gained momentum with Josh Lynch, Huw Davies and William Riley gaining yards. Suddenly, the KGS crowd realised there was a chance as KGS reached the Trinity 5 metre line with just seconds left. A KGS lineout gave the team their last opportunity for glory. Unfortunately, a mistake was made and the ball bounced into the hands of a Trinity player who kicked the ball off the pitch. Trinity celebrated a famous win as the KGS boys sunk to their knees knowing their chance was over.

A sterling effort from this talented group of KGS players and an unforgettable experience.

25 years ago…

The success of this season's KGS 1^st XV in reaching the final of the National Schools' Cup came almost 25 years to the day since the last such success by a KGS 1^st team.

It was on Saturday 22 March 1997 that a stellar KGS senior squad reached the final of the Daily Mail Cup at Twickenham, and was cheered on by a vast travelling army of pupils, parents and friends of the School. It was a glorious spring day as they went head to head with Colston's School, Bristol, who won, on what remains one of the proudest days in the School's long history. This was very much a highlight of Brian Gornall's time as 1^st XV coach and of Barrie Stacey's headship - two true KGS legends who cheered their successors as Aled Trenhaile's 2022 squad followed in their footsteps, hoping to go one better.

All who were at KGS at the time remember that squad with great respect and affection. Captained by Rob Porteous, it was a team bristling with talent and character, with the star name being Alex Sanderson, now Head Coach of Sale Sharks RUFC. Alex went on to be First Team Captain the following season, as well as School Captain.

In some ways, it feels like only yesterday, but in other ways it seems like a totally different world and a different game. 1997 was just before mass access to the internet shrank our world and brought us all into such constant contact, with our every moment captured on smartphones and shared to social media. There is little trace of that final on the internet, and photos taken at the match were taken on analogue cameras, not hi-res smartphones. However, coverage in traditional print media was in remarkable depth, with those ordinary Fifth and Sixth Form lads briefly elevated to the status of local superstars, getting their 15 minutes of fame.

Rugby Union was still at the dawn of the professional era, and top schoolboy teams like KGS were the nurseries where sporting talent was fostered, most often alongside boys' other career ambitions. Members of that 1997 team are these days engaged in a variety of professions across the country and indeed the world, and many are active and supportive members of the Old Kirkhamian community. Their togetherness as a group was reinforced that summer when they undertook the School's first South Africa tour, paving the way for KGS's links and exchanges with South Africa, which have flourished to this day.

In the true spirit of rugby union, the boys of 1997 were the first to hope that their successors could go one better by bringing the trophy home to KGS as the school prepare to celebrate the centenary of the School's adoption of the rugby code in 1924.