Friday Night Lights is the most hotly anticipated event of the rugby season: pupils, staff, friends and family gear up to support the Shiplake 1st XV as they take on a rival under the floodlights at the Henley Rugby Club. This year on Friday 11 November, the 1st XV, led by Captain Finn Arbuckle, took on the 1st XV from King’s College School, Wimbledon, surrounded by the biggest crowd that the FNL event has ever drawn. As well as the finale game between Shiplake and KCS, the U12A and U13A teams also played, taking on teams from local rivals Gillotts School. It was a freezing evening with frost on the ground, but this did little to deter spectators and players alike.
Mr George Miller provided the following report of the victorious U12A match: ‘Friday Night Lights marked the biggest game of the season for the U12s this year: it is an event that the whole school looks forward to and on this occasion it was a game that the U12s will never forget. Under the spotlights of Henley Rugby Club, the boys lined up to play the biggest game of their season and facing them was a very strong Gillotts School team. The game started at a fierce intensity and the Shiplake boys found themselves camped on their own try line for the first 10 minutes of the game. However, the work rate and tackling display from Lucas Ferrer De Arriba, Zack Morrison, Ollie Roullier, Louis Poundall and many others kept the Gillotts team at bay. This valiant display of defence was something that continued throughout the game and was ultimately a decisive factor. From defence inevitably came attack, and the boys were quick to capitalise, with Finlay Woods getting over to score the first try of the game. Gillotts came back strong and fought hard, but the fitness levels of Shiplake and the hard work around the breakdown proved too much for them and ultimately allowed Flynn Wilson, Charlie Moss and Finlay (for the second time) to score. When the final whistle blew the score was 4-1 and the Shiplake boys were left to bask in the glory of a momentous victory.’ Please click here to view a highlights video of the U12A match.
For the U13As, the story was not so rosy; although a great game was played by the team, they were not able to catch up to the early lead that Gillotts had gained, and the match ended with a 9-1 loss.
The 1st XV filed out of the changing rooms to much applause and cheering. The opening of the match was a little sloppy from the Shiplake side; despite starting with a high intensity and the best of intentions, KCS quickly chalked up two penalties down to some silly mistakes from the Shiplake team. KCS scored another try before the half time whistle, making the score 13-0 at half time.
After a rallying speech from Director of Rugby Mr Sam Beckett, the 1st XV headed back out onto the field, full of renewed vigour. The steam rising off the scrum was indicative of how hard the boys were working – determined not to let the blow of the first half shape the course of the second. KCS scored an early try within seconds of the second half starting, which took Shiplake by surprise. However, the team fought back, and through quick hands in the back line from Els Frisby, Joachim Ridley-Barker and Louis Ashcroft, Sam Wisely was able to get across the line and score the first Shiplake try of the game. From here, the team felt very much back in the game, until a try from Joe Booth was disallowed and morale was in danger of slipping. However, Finn Arbuckle scored another try in the corner, and Joe Booth followed with the conversion. KCS had good possession of the ball towards the end of the game, but the Shiplake players kept pinning them down in their half, staying on the attack. Despite this, the opposition managed to score again 10 minutes before the whistle, which put the final score at 23-12 to KCS.
The Shiplake team were disappointed but proud to have played a strong match against a challenging opponent. Captain Finn Arbuckle commented: ‘it was a great game for us and we were all so pleased to be playing in Friday Night Lights. We could have worked on our spacing, playing out wide more – but this is something that we will take forward onto the Friday Night Lights match against Merchant Taylors’ on Friday 18 November. KCS were a very strong opposition; their forward pack was dominant and ultimately they were deserving winners. I think we were all guilty of letting nerves and adrenaline get the better of us unfortunately – so in future we’ll know: don’t play the occasion, play the game.’
Amongst staff, parents and friends were a number of Old Vikings, who had returned especially to offer support to their peers and former classmates. Mr Beckett commented: ‘it was a tough game but it was brilliant to see the Shiplake side raise their game against King’s College School. Everyone played well, but particular mention to Els Frisby, Sam Wisely, Finn Arbuckle and Joe Booth for a great game. Here’s to winning back the title next year!’ The highlights video is below; please click here to view the full match.