RNRU Royal Navy Rugby Union

RN U23s 1st Game of the Season v Chichester Select XV

This Wednesday the 10^th of October sees the Royal Navy U23s continue their preparations for the 2012 Interservices Championship, by taking on a Chichester Select XV at their home ground of Oaklands Park.

Having established a strong link with the club early last season, a subsequent fixture between the 2 sides proved a spirited and high scoring fixture that saw the RN U23s come out with a 45-16 win. However, with "Chi" currently riding high in London League 1 South, the fixture this Wednesday holds the promise of yet another lively and keenly contested encounter.

With several U23 players currently on Commonwealth Cup duty with the Senior Squad in Australia, this is a welcome opportunity for those players fresh to Navy Rugby to start staking a claim for that coveted Royal Navy U23 shirt, along with a starting position in the XV to meet the RAF U23s on Fri 16th Nov. With 2 training weekends now under their belt, the Squad has developed well under the tutelage of Coaches Capt Scott Ashley RM (NCHQ) and WO1 Billy May (HMS NELSON). With pleasing strength in depth in a number of positions throughout the squad, the players now have a good understanding of the physicality and levels of commitment required for Navy Rugby.

Hd Coach Capt (Scott) Ashley said of the fixture ‘This will be our first game of the season and a very important one in the build-up to the games against Oxford and Cambridge Universities. Training has gone well and we hope to take that off of the training pitch and put it into the game on Wednesday'

Kick-off is at 7.30 pm at Oaklands Park, and all are welcome to support the U23s in this their first warm up game of the season. You can also follow the game on Twitter@RNRugby