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International

English schools emerge as some of the favourites for World School's Festival 2023 with new teams announced

By Tom Parker

07 Dec 2023

English schools could be seen as the favourites to win the WSF this year....

England’s Eton College have been unveiled as the next School to join the stellar line up at the 2023 WSF.
They travel alongside Hartpury College who retained their English Champions title yesterday with their 10th AASE National Champions title.
Hartpury’s distinguished alumni include Louis Rees Zammit (who missed playing in the 2018 WSF due to International call-up), England’s Jonny May, Alex Cuthbert and Ross Moriarty from Wales.

We are delighted to be invited to the 2023 edition of the @WorldSchoolFest taking place at @pattanasports in Thailand!
A great experience for our @Hartpury students and worthy recognition of our @HartpuryRugby programme being able to compete on the world stage!
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🔴⚫️#DNA pic.twitter.com/bsIKMaYLbv
— Hartpury Rugby (@HartpuryRugby) May 19, 2023

The 2nd year of the new format for the WSF promises to build of the excitement and interest of 2022.
This international event which will feature 8 top schools from across the world competing in the Cup competition, with an Open Trophy and a Girls 7s Tournament being played alongside.
The World Schools Festival will be an incredible showcase for schoolboy rugby between 12th – 17th December.

Eton College, currently lying 6th on the English Order of Merit league ahead of the likes of Sedbergh and Millfield, have had a fantastic season with only 1 narrow loss so far (coming against 2022 WSF participants, Trinity), but also having played more matches than any of the other teams ahead of them in the league table, and their water-watering fixture against Harrow being cancelled.
Eton now join the previously announced schools…
St Michael’s College, Ireland
Westlake Boys’ High School, New Zealand
Cardiff & Vale College, Wales
Oakdale Landsbou, South Africa
Hartpury College, England
Hoërskool Dr. E.G. Jansen, South Africa

Day 1 of the coverage for the festival can be found here on Tuesday 12th December

The who’s who of global school’s rugby is not only limited to the schools travelling to Thailand.
In the Open tournament, the Odyssey squad will field 2 teams, and be coached by 2 of the very best schools rugby coaches in the world.
Katleho Lynch, the South Africa Schools Head Coach (and Director of Rugby at St Johns College in SA), and Sean Graham, the Director of Rugby from Nudgee College in Queensland, wh0 have one of the best rugby programmes in Australia.

Sean was the mastermind for Nudgee in the RugbyPass series of The Season in Australia.

The Festival promises to once again embody the true spirit of rugby with 2023 and will host 24 teams and over 475 players representing 12 countries, building on the reputation as the most international schools rugby festival in the world.

For further information or any questions about the WSF, contact us at www.worldschoolsfestival.com

LIVE

Comments

3 Comments

Andrew 380 days ago

Southland Boys High are the NZ Champs. Westlake werent even in the Top 4. Ham Boys beat Greys College for last yrs title.. Must have been left to whoever wanted to go to the tourney this yr.

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Comments on RugbyPass

GrahamVF 14 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

There is a continued murmur in local circles about reciprocal bi annual tours between SA and Argentine. Whether it's full blooded test tours or development tours or a mixture - ie touring with a "test" 20 and a development 20 the cream of which will be used in tests. We actually really enjoy playing the Argies and I believe they enjoy playing us. It goes back seventy years to the Junior Bok tours to Argentine involving Isaac van Heerden.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 22 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

About 500K of those are schoolboys 90% of which will not go on to play club rugby.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 23 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

Exactly. Shoo would that it was so easy to develop competitions.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 27 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

SA wealthy? Compared to which countries. The economy is in tatters unemployment is at record low numbers and you think SA has money to spend on rugby development -0 and remember the SARU was technically bankrupt and was only saved by the COVID tour of the B&I Lions. No Sa doesn't have spare cash lying round for rugby development and given the resources SARU is doing just fine.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 30 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

South African domestic rugby is in great shape. Four top tier franchises fed by a series of competitions ranging from national schools competitions through Varsity Cup to Currie Cup and then to top four franchises is a model Australia would do well to follow. SA should never have more than four top domestic teams.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 35 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

That might be the best spin off from SA's involvement north of the line.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 35 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

Of course not Nick 😉

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 39 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

We have our own theories about The Sharks. Plumtree is a good coach but he has not done anywhere near the best he could with the talent and money he has at his disposal and it doesn't help to have a marquee director of rugby who has spent by far the majority of his career playing and coaching sevens.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 44 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

Don't worry - you'll win again soon then you'll feel a lot better. Right now get on with your SH comps and we'll get on with being barely the best in the world.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 47 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

JW you really have no idea of how Africa works. It will take generations not decades no matter how much SA puts into it. The poverty in Africa is something that is obviously beyond your understanding. Do you think the governments of impoverished nations are going to watch happily as rugby pours massive investments into infrastructure to promote what is essentially a white western game? And SA was trying hard to develop the game in Africa until the African vote blocked our "23 bid after the independent consultants to the RFU voted unanimously for SA? The Confederation of African Rugby virtually excluded South Africa.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 57 minutes ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

Nick, our association with Argentina Rugby runs very long and deep. We are exploring reciprocal two/three test tours in the future - and even more games at neutral venues such as in Europe where a lot of both teams have players anyway.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 1 hour ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

"has SA actually EVER helped to develop another union to maturity like NZ has with Japan," yes - Argentina. You obviously don't know the history of Argentinian rugby. SA were touring there on long development tours in the 1950's

We continued the Junior Bok tours to the Argentine through to the early 70's

My coach at Grey High was Giepie Wentzel who toured Argentine as a fly half. He told me about how every Argentinian rugby club has pictures of Van Heerden and Danie Craven on prominent display. Yes we have developed a nation far more than NZ has done for Japan. And BTW Sa players were playing and coaching in Japan long before the Kiwis arrived. Fourie du Preez and many others were playing there 15 years ago.

"Isaac Van Heerden's reputation as an innovative coach had spread to Argentina, and he was invited to Buenos Aires to help the Pumas prepare for their first visit to South Africa in 1965.[1][2] Despite Argentina faring badly in this tour,[2] it was the start of a long and happy relationship between Van Heerden and the Pumas. Izak van Heerden took leave from his teaching post in Durban, relocated to Argentina, learnt fluent Spanish, and would revolutionise Argentine play in the late 1960s, laying the way open for great players such as Hugo Porta.[1][2] Van Heerden virtually invented the "tight loose" form of play, an area in which the Argentines would come to excel, and which would become a hallmark of their playing style. The Pumas repaid the initial debt, by beating the Junior Springboks at Ellis Park, and emerged as one of the better modern rugby nations, thanks largely to the talents of this Durban schoolmaster.[1]"

After the promise made by Junior Springbok manager JF Louw at the end of a 12-game tour to Argentina in 1959 – ‘I will do everything to ensure we invite you to tour our country’ – there were concerns about the strength of Argentinian rugby. South African Rugby Board president Danie Craven sent coach Izak van Heerden to help the Pumas prepare and they repaid the favour by beating the Junior Springboks at Ellis Park.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 1 hour ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

Which country do you think was instrumental in developing rugby in Argentina which then spun off into the rest of Latin South America? South Africa was touring Argentine in the 50's with their Junior Bok side on three months development tours. And they didn't do it to cultivare players for the Boks. Regarding Africa you are not taking into account that South Africa itself is an emerging nation. The rugby union has prioritised the development of rugby in South African rural communities with outstanding success.

It has taken 15 years to build the participation of rugby both in playing and watching. For South Africa on its own to build a viable international rugby competition in africa will take generations - not decades. New Zealanders seem to resent the fact that SA has doubled the income of the URC since their inclusion. If New Zealand Rugby hadn't insisted on have a disproportionate slice of the pie in Super Rugby, SA might not have fled the coop.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 1 hour ago

Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

I think this debate is avoiding the elephant in the room. Money. According to the URC chief executive Martin Anayi, the inclusion of SA teams has doubled the income of the URC. There is no doubt that the SA teams benefit from the URC but so do the other countries' teams. Perhaps it doesn't affect a club like Leinster but the less well off clubs benefit hugely from South African games' TV income. I don't think SA continued inclusion in the URC is a slam dunk. They don't hold all the cards by a long way - but they do have an ace in the hole. The Ace of Diamonds.

157 Go to comments

GrahamVF 1 hour ago

How Wallace Sititi humbly reacted to All Blacks Player of the Year honour