Navy Players help CS U23 to a Comfortable Victory
A number of the Navy U23's were part of the Combined Services U23 team that beat Middlesex U23 52 - 12 at Aldershot on Sunday 17 April. Upfront SLt Tom Blackburn (HMS Sultan) moved across to the tighthead side having only on Wednesday won his first Senior XV cap as a loosehead. He was joined in the CS pack by AET Kyle Beasley (824NAAS, RNAS Culdrose), who played out of position in the second row. Both contributed significantly to a dominant display of driving rugby from the Combined Service pack that provided a first class platform from which the backline could shine.
Through the course of the game 5 Navy backs were on display. In the first half Navy wing, NA Aaron Hunt (RNAS Yeovilton) and inside centre, Mne Setareki Raumakita (42 Cdo RM) were all hard running and power, though Aaron also showed some of his more subtle passing skills in setting up CS's second try before going on to score himself. After the break Seti was joined by the more elusive skills of AETs Ben Clark (RNAS Yeovilton) and Jon Humphrey (848 NAS, RNAS Yeovilton) that provided an all Navy wing partnership. Unfortunately, with both sides tiring in what had turned out to be a very warm afternoon the opportunities out wide slowly dried up as the game's structure degenerated. The final Navy player to take the field was scrumhalf, AET John Clay (848 NAS, RNAS Yeovilton) who was quickly in to his stride and ensured that a brief Middlesex fight back, early in the second half, was well and truly snuffed out.
The next Combined Service U23 match is on Sunday 1 May against the Osprey's before they play the Combined Oxford Cambridge Universities Varsity team at Twickenham as the curtain raiser to the Army v Navy game on Saturday 7 May.