BSRFC OFFICAL MATCH PROGRAMME BISHOP’S STORTFORD RFC vs CINDERFORD THE ‘WINTER’ WELCOME SOLDIER BACK SAM WINTER THE CHANGING ROLE OF THE 1ST XV CAPTAIN CATALYST FOR CHANGE CLUB & COUNTY PhotoVikki by Lince (£5.00 FOR BSRFC MEMBERS) £10.00 CINDERFORDRFC Helpfully Productive Bringing together print technology, digital wizardry and marketing mastery to help you work wonders with your communications. Talk to us about why it really is better printed. #makingmagichappen 01279 757 333 proco.com PRESIDENT’S WELCOME Well that two week break soon flew by! Seasonal felicitations to you all & welcome back to Silver Leys for our first game of the New Year, one which holds great promise for our club. Welcome also to the players, officials and supporters of todays opponents Cinderford RFC. ‘2016’ has received a lot of bad press but it was pretty good to us! Bonus point victories in our last four games whilst others surprisingly dropped points, meant we finished the year on top of the heap, which was an unexpected and very pleasant early Christmas present. Last time out here we overcame a spirited Exmouth team 38-7. They certainly didn’t play like they were bottom of the table, which illustrates the competitive nature of this league. In the pre-Christmas game at Bury St Edmunds, our large and vociferous band of travelling supporters helped negate any benefit the Suffolk side may have expected by being at home. Ultimately though games are won and lost on the pitch and once again our guys produced a polished performance to run out comfortable 33-16 winners. So we’re top of the league. The $64,000 question is of course can we stay there? We really shouldn’t get too far ahead of ourselves though. It may be a cliché but I’m sure the players are just taking it ‘one game at a time’. We’re only just into the 2nd half of the season and we have some very tough games ahead of us, but I can’t deny the satisfaction gained from occupying our highest ever league placing. We are though not the only team here today experiencing a rich vein of form. Cinderford have only lost one of their last six games and that was by the closest of margins away at Elthamians. Indeed that day they outscored their hosts in terms of tries, only to be pipped to the victory in the final few minutes. So be warned we’re likely to witness another close fought encounter this afternoon. Almost every game in National Two South seems to be keenly contested. Great for the neutral observer. Less so for the partisan. Before the break our Colts sneaked home 20-15 against Old Rutlishians in the 4th round of the National Colts Cup and have been ‘rewarded’ with a trip to our friends at Chinnor on 5th March & our Returning Students beat hosts OA’s twice on the way to winning the annual Herts Festival. Congratulations to both squads. Thank you to all those that supported our recent fundraising efforts in aid of our Presidents Charity – Ellies fund. The auction sale of two paintings & four Saracens tickets, along with a raffle, the sale of Mulled cider & a donation from the organisers of the Mini & Youth parents Christmas party, meant that we were able to donate another thousand pounds to help Ellie get the most out of life. Finally one of our Minis Dad’s Greg Coates aka Spiderman sustained a nasty break to his knee cap whilst participating in the Coaches vs Parents Fancy Dress match the weekend before Christmas. After undergoing an Op to put a few bits back together, he is now braving an extended period of R&R. We of course all wish him well in his recovery and hope he’s soon up and running around on all 8 of his legs. Perry Oliver President BMW Elms The Ultimate Stansted Driving Machine ELMS STANSTED, YOUR LOCAL BMW RETAILER. SPONSORS OF BISHOP’S STORTFORD RFC. As an authorised BMW Retailer, Elms Stansted offers the highest levels of service and expertise to the local area. Whether it’s a new or BMW Approved Used Car, or even a service, our commitment is to maintain the highest of dealership standards. For more information or to arrange a test drive*, call us on 01279 755906 or visit www.elmsstanstedbmw.co.uk ELMS STANSTED Stansted Road, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire CM23 2BT 01279 755906 www.elmsstanstedbmw.co.uk *Test drive subject to applicant status and availability. BMW Elms The Ultimate Stansted Driving Machine D.O.R SAYS Having two weeks off means you have to balance things, the guys have had some time off but we had them in for a few sessions as well. It is about ticking over, but the guys are raring to get back into the swing of it and focussing on what we need to do before the next break in seven weeks or so. Cinderford may be disappointed with how they started, but they have found their feet and from the footage I have seen they have pushed teams close. They are going to be well up for it and to avenge the defeat from earlier in the season. We will have to be at our best again, but it is a big weekend for the league. Chinnor go down to Redruth and Old Elthamians at Clifton, we know that if we put a good performance together it could be an opportunity for us. We were going well and then you get two weeks off, so it is about how you react. This week’s training has been really focussed and we are just looking to get the momentum going. We feel we have been playing well and have multiple threats in attack. We have just got to go out there and put it into place against Cinderford. ELMS STANSTED, YOUR We are really fortunate that we have no further injuries and we are lucky to have Will Roberts back with us from Blackheath. He will be back for the rest of the season and it really helps us out in the front row. Rory Young is out on a longer term basis with a chest injury and Will can LOCAL BMW RETAILER. cover at prop and hooker. The exposure he has had in National One is really going to help us out. It increases our competition for places and he SPONSORS OF BISHOP’S STORTFORD RFC. is one of us. He is physical and adds to the group. We have put ourselves in a great position, having worked really hard and the prize at the end of it is massive. We can’t get too far ahead, it is about keeping focussed. As an authorised BMW Retailer, Elms Stansted offers the highest levels of service and expertise to the local area. Whether it’s a new or BMW Approved Used Car, or even a We are lucky that we have quite an experienced group. With Tom service, our commitment is to maintain the highest of dealership standards. Coleman and Mark McCraith, but we also have the likes of Steve Ball, Matt Tomlinson and Jon George who have played a lot of games now. The front row are pretty experienced and with guys off the bench. The For more information or to arrange a test drive*, call us on exciting thing is that being top of the league shouldn’t stop us, it shouldn’t 01279 755906 or visit www.elmsstanstedbmw.co.uk feel like a weight on our shoulders. It should spur us on and that is how we are going to use it. We have to use each game as an opportunity to cement our place there. ELMS STANSTED We have some tough games, but we need to see it as a positive. I think Stansted Road, Bishop’s Stortford, each week we still have to get better and that is our mantra as a coaching group. Hertfordshire CM23 2BT We are never the finished article and that is something that excites me. 01279 755906 www.elmsstanstedbmw.co.uk We prepare for a new battle, a new opponent and that keeps me on my toes. I personally couldn’t be more motivated. *Test drive subject to applicant status and availability. ELMS STANSTED Proudly support BISHOP’S STORTFORD RFC. As an authorised MINI Dealer, Elms Stansted offers the highest levels of service and expertise to the local area. Whether it’s a new or Cherished MINI, or even a service, our commitment is to maintain the highest of dealership standards. For more information or to arrange a test drive*, call us on 01279 216770 or visit www.elmsstanstedmini.co.uk ELMS STANSTED Stansted Road, Bishop’s Stortford Hertfordshire CM23 2BT 01279 216770 www.elmsstanstedmini.co.uk *Test drive subject to applicant status and availability. 31646_bs193435 Elms Stansted Press Ad 210x148_v3.indd 1 20/08/2014 11:21 TODAY’S OPPOSITION ACTION FROM THE GAME EARLIER THIS SEASON. Cinderford RFC was formed in 1886 and was soon playing many leading clubs in England and Wales. The club’s fortunes and that of the local mining community were closely linked and both declined during the inter-war years with a number of local rugby heroes ‘going north’ to seek their fortunes in what is now ‘The Rugby League’. Cinderford RFC re-emerged after the Second World War and regained its Dockham Road home in 1956. Fifty years of hard work and the foresight of a few individuals have furnished the club with a splendid ground that is the envy of many .