Grosvenor In View Magazine 2025

78

SPORTS TEAMS

1st XV Boys Rugby

Back Row (L-R): B Rea, S Taggart, H Moore, J Ellis, O Bradley, F Henry, M Cunningham, J Campbell, Mr M McDowell Middle Row (L-R): Dr F Vasey, W Marsh, M Press, S Neill, J Wright, A Lin, E Roberts, N Burcombe, R Cooper, Mr P Thompson Front Row (L-R): C Wood, O Boyd, H Huntley, J Cusin (Captain) S Buick, A Osborne, R Hargie

Belfast High School, and it was a delight to see our months of hard work, and taking a few licks along the way, pay off with a commanding performance. We won the game comfortably and dominated all aspects of play, earning ourselves a spot in the Schools’ Cup Group Stages. Following this game we departed for our eagerly anticipated tour to Valencia, alongside our 1 st XI Boys Hockey Squad. I have provided more detail on the tour in a separate report ( in Trips section ); however, I can say that the challenge and enjoyment of playing abroad against an excellent CAU Valencia side was enjoyed by all. Due to a number of factors, our initial Schools’ Cup Group Stage fixture was forfeited against Dromore High School, this left us with two remaining matches against Bangor Grammar School and Rainey Endowed. We entered the Bangor Grammar game determined to put on a good performance and during the warmup I believed it was the sharpest we had looked. Unfortunately, this did not translate into a positive performance, with the first half, in particular, being the worst we had put together all season; the game was effectively over by half time. This was a humbling result, and a significant setback, making the game against Rainey Endowed effectively a ‘dead rubber’. We travelled to Rainey on a cold December day,

The 2024/2025 season was a difficult one for the 1 st XV, there were highs and lows, and throughout it all, the team endeavoured to compete and perform for their school. I must commend the wider squad on persevering through a difficult season and their maturity to deal with several distractions that took place during the year. We started the season with the annual Graham Cup competition which we started with a bang. Reaching the last game of the league format with a chance to win the Cup for the first time in over a decade. A close 7-0 loss to a hugely physical Rainey Endowed side meant we finished runners up. It was a great start to the year, and testament to the work over preseason from players and coaches. Our fixture list always starts with tough encounters; we took heavy losses to Dalriada and Cambridge House, alongside a narrow defeat to Royal School Dungannon. It was apparent from early stages of the season that we were struggling from a physicality standpoint, with many of our opponents using their size advantage to great effect. It must be said that our players never shirked, never ran, and always attempted to front up; players regularly left the field battered and bruised, often with little to show for their efforts. We built towards our Schools’ Cup Qualifier against

GROSVENOR IN VIEW > 2024/25