Pre-season rugby

Rugby pre-season concluded on Saturday with training sessions for all age groups, alongside matches for the U16 and U18 teams against Reed's School. This year's pre-season kicked off for the senior players on 19 August, with the primary objectives of boosting physical fitness, sharpening rugby-specific skills, and building team cohesion. The early results on the pitch have been highly encouraging. Our senior team impressed during a strong performance against Bloxham School on 31 August, demonstrating their potential for the season ahead. This past weekend, the U16 and U18 squads showed significant progress and promise during their matches away at Reed's School in Surrey.

A major factor in this early success has been the exceptional level of participation in rugby throughout the school. This season, over 100 Sixth Form students have chosen to play rugby, highlighting both the sport's popularity and the depth of talent at Abingdon. Notable individual achievement has also occurred with Upper Sixth student Jacob representing the Gloucester Rugby U18 Academy in an August match against Northampton Saints. This achievement underscores the strength of our performance pathway links and the opportunities available to our pupils.

Looking ahead, our 1st XV will open their season with a home fixture against Dauntsey's School in Tuesday's first round of the National Cup, kicking off at 4.30 pm at Waste Court. Following this, our teams from U12 to 1st XV will participate in the first full-block fixture of the season against Solihull School. Please refer to the fixture list for venue details and timings.