St Peter’s vs St Paul’s, Central North Island Rugby
St Peter’s School Cambridge remains the only unbeaten rugby team in the Central North Island first XV competition after a 26-0 win over previously unbeaten St Paul’s Collegiate at Cambridge last Saturday.
The team, which also won the Rick Francis Memorial Shield and the Jed Rowlands Cup on the day, was watched by about 400 people at the ground, including New Zealand Rugby Union chief executive Mark Robinson, and thousands more live on Sky TV.
The players selected ‘I Am Hope’ as their charity of choice for the game to highlight the mental health issues of boys and men today. Supporters collected money in buckets during the match and raised $300 – and also referred people to a website to make donations.
In a nod to the wide range of communities the team’s players originate from, each St Peter’s player wore their club socks on the day after training all week in their club jerseys.
Former Black Ferns and Auckland Blues coach Jed Rowlands, director of boarding at St Peter’s, presented the trophy named after him to team captain Dawson Smith.
Rowlands worked at St Paul’s for nine years and coached the St Paul’s 1st XV. When he left, he donated the trophy for competition between the two sides.
While he does not coach the St Peter’s first XV, he offers advice when asked and shows a keen interest in the team’s performances.
The Rick Francis Memorial Shield was donated by Feilding High School in 2014. The shield is played for each time the holder plays a fixture. St Peter’s will play St John’s College, Hamilton for the shield in Cambridge on Saturday at midday.
St Peter’s is second equal on the table with a game in hand.
