U18 Academy League

[Mellsblue]

Good wins for Tigers and Tigers North.

[Which Tyler]

Quin's 8 - 16 Bath
I feel we're definitely one of the teams to hear this year - rather surprisingly given Ford's de-investment in the academy.

[Tigersman]

Academy shouldn't really need that much investment to get them going.
Just a good scouting system and a couple of good coaches who know how to talk to da youth.

The money cost is more post 18's

[Which Tyler]

Fair point, and Todd did specifically hire a new scout last year sometime, who's been talked as having done a good job (aside from Delmas > KPN, but the decision is hardly the scout's fault)

[fivepointer]

Bath very good this year. Young Ojomoh is one to watch apparently.
Other results -
Exeter 7 Saracens 49
Tigers 28 Yorkshire 14
Newcastle 33 Worcester 21
Irish 62 Bristol 12

[Tigersman]

So Tigers are the first confirmed finalists pretty much.

The south though is a bit more uncertain.
Glous have 18 played 4
Quins have 17 played 5
Bath have 16 played 4

Gloucester play Irish away and Exeter at away
Bath play Sarries away and Irish at home
Quins play Exeter away.

Big couple of weeks.

[Epaminondas Pules]

Tigers mixed it up a bit this week and still cane away with maximum points. Their looking favourites for a repeat title at the moment.

[Which Tyler]

Sarries 21 - 29 Bath
This coming weekend is the last of the pool stages, with Bath Vs LIrish in a rather confusing academy match - probables versus possibles?

Bath currently topping the Southern conference on points difference (+132), 5 behind Leicester

[Raggs]

Wasps vs Saints:

[Tigersman]

Sarries 21 - 29 Bath
This coming weekend is the last of the pool stages, with Bath Vs LIrish in a rather confusing academy match - probables versus possibles?

Bath currently topping the Southern conference on points difference (+132), 5 behind Leicester

Southern conference is really hotting up for the final spot v Leicester.
I can see both Gloucester and Bath getting TBP wins next weekend, so that points difference could be huge.

2 and 3rd for the northern is tight.
Wasps are 2nd with 15 points and points diff of 40.
BUT Falcons and Sale who have 15 and 13 points have a game in hand and play each other.
My bet would be a Sale 4 point win with Falcons getting a LBP

Which would make
2. Sale 17
3. Falcons 16
4. Wasps

With Sale playing winless Worcester and Falcons v Wasps in a potential winner goes to the finals day

[Which Tyler]

Bath fail to secure the TBP, beating LI 21-7 in the final pool match.
Still searching for the Glos result.

ETA, they kicked off an hour later, so may not have quite finished yet.
Ex 21 - 41 Glos is the latest score I've found, safe to assume they're taking all 5 league points and topping the conference

[Tigersman]

Glous got a TBP win.

Tigers final game v Worcester was postponed so lost their TBP win streak but finish top. (Played Nottingham U19 and won 47-0 instead).

Finals are
Glous v Tigers
Bath v Wasps
Quins v Sale

[fivepointer]

Should be 3 cracking games.
Tigers have been the team of the year but Glos have put in some big performances.
Bath have been very good and Wasps appear to be coming good at just the right time (they beat Newcastle 63-33 today)
Similarly Quins have had some good results. Sale won 41-7 at Wuss today so wont be pushovers.
Other results - Bristol 5 Saracens 33, Saints 17 Yorkshire 5

[Tigersman]

Leicester Tigers Under-18s (v Gloucester Rugby, Allianz Park, Sunday 4.00pm)
15 Freddie Steward (Norwich School)
14 Leo Gilliland (Brooksby Melton College)
13 Ronnie Du Randt (Denstone College)
12 Sam Costelow (Oakham School)
11 Joe Browning (Denstone College)
10 Harry Glynn (Oakham School)
9 Jack Van Poortvliet (Oakham School)
1 James Whitcombe (Woodhouse Grove School)
2 Archie Vanes (Brooksby Melton College)
3 Rob Hardwick (Rugby School)
4 George Martin (Brooksby Melton College)
5 Tom Manz (Denstone College)
6 Emeka Ilione (Rugby School)
7 Samuel Eveleigh (Leicester Grammar School) (c)
8 Ollie Ashworth (Langley School)

Replacements:
16 Shaun Allsopp (Stamford School)
17 Alex Maxwell (Brooksby Melton College)
18 Jack Rowntree (Leicester Grammar School)
19 Will Backhouse (Brooksby Melton College)
20 Kit Smith (Oakham School)
21 Jonny Law (Rugby School)
22 Matt Potts (Leicester Grammar School)
23 Ollie Smith (Denstone College)

[Tigersman]

Big pack, and big backs in that Tigers team.

Browning and Steward must be 6ft 3/4

[Puja]

Ollie Smith's a bit old to be playing youth rugby, isn't he?

Puja

[Gloskarlos]

Gloucester team:-

15. Brooke Turner, 14. Louis Hillman-Cooper, 13. Isaac Marsh, 12. Tommy Mathews, 11. Louis Rees-Zammit; 10. George Barton, 9. Stephen Varney; 1. Harry Fry, 2. Ethan Hunt, 3. Jenson Boughton; 4. Archie Benson, 5. Joe Howard (capt); 6. Jack Clement, 7. Josh Gray, 8. Harry Taylor

Replacements
16. Leyton Chambers, 17. Marcus Reading, 18. Harry Daynes; 19. Freddie Thomas, 20. Seb Blake, 21. Matty Jones, 22. Oli Parmar, 23. Max Fletcher

[fivepointer]

https://www.rugbypass.com/news/premiers ... nd-collide

Good review from Alex Shaw, who really does know his stuff about age group rugby.

Not sure if the RFU site are doing any live streaming on Sunday.

[Tigersman]

Unfortunately. The RFU/Prem never seem to do it.

Not sure why not.
Would honestly pay for a NFL game pass type streaming service that did all the U18 and A league games.

[Tigersman]

Bath v Wasps sounds like a heck of a game
15 mins in and its 17-12 Wasps
5 tries scored already.
make that 6 tries in 17 mins.
Bath score another one.
And another one by Wasps
24-19 in 20 mins.

Why isn't this being streamed!!!!!

24-24 now 25 mins gone.

[Tigersman]

Half time 10 tries scored
43 - 24 to Wasps.

[Tigersman]

55 mins played scores
43-38 to wasps.
58 mins 43-45

The final score is 52-48 to Bath
16 tries!

So
1st/2nd TBD
3rd Bath
4th Wasps
5th/6th TBD

[Tigersman]

15-10 Quins

[Tigersman]

31 - 15 Quins
1st/2nd TBD
3rd Bath
4th Wasps
5th Quins
6th Sale

Not a good day for the north.

[Epaminondas Pules]

7 v 0 to tigers after 7 mins. Costello with the try and conversion.