Basingstoke vs Portsmouth, Saturday 11th March 2023, Counties Hampshire 1 League
Basingstoke 41- 43 Portsmouth Match report by Jim Dixon Firstly I must apologise for my error in last weeks’ match report on the Alton fixture. I mistakenly reported that Tim Rollett had been taken to Hospital with a suspected broken ankle where-as it was actually Josh Howell-Williams and it has since been reported that he has sustained ligament damage and not a broken ankle. My apologies to all concerned Today’s game is the penultimate fixture of the season for League matches with the delayed fixture against Gosport & Fareham to be played at Rugby Camp next Saturday with a 3.00.p.m.K.O. This will be followed by the new Cup Competition, start date and fixtures to be announced. This was a rather unusual game with the lead changing 12 times throughout the match, Lots of penalties for both sides made it a rather disjointed match but it was, never the less exciting…
Alton vs Portsmouth, Saturday 4th March 2023, Counties 1 Hampshire
Match report by Jim Dixon Alton 21 – 24 Portsmouth With two last minute late changes to the original selection, Aaron Beesley and Greg Jansen, Portsmouth moved Ollie Simpson from No.6 to No.8 and Lee Chandler came on to the bench in place of Jansen. Max Clarke was moved from the second row to No.6 and Bryn Rainford moved off the bench to No.5. Ben Gordon came onto the bench. Portsmouth were hoping to carry on from last week’s success but the game never really sparked into life. Whether it was the sloping pitch or some other factor was not clear but this proved to be a rather fractious affair throughout the game. Alton got the match underway and a Portsmouth knock-on gave Alton a penalty kick resulting in a 5 metre line-out. A catch and drive by Alton was thwarted by Portsmouth as they defended well. Alton kept the…
Portsmouth vs Eastleigh, Saturday 25th February, Counties 1 Hampshire , rearranged match
Portsmouth 38 – 17 Eastleigh Match report by Jim Dixon On a rather chilly blustery day Portsmouth had to make one or two changes as this was originally a blank weekend and some players had made other arrangements. This re-arranged fixture was caused by the game being postponed in January due to weather conditions. Eastleigh got proceedings underway and Portsmouth showed their intent with a great run by Finn Parry who took the ball into Eastleigh’s half of the pitch involving Max Clark and Ollie Simpson . The move was eventually stopped after Portsmouth were penalised for not releasing after the tackle. All the pressure was coming from Portsmouth and eventually they scored through Anthony Fooks following a good move involving Aaron Beesley and Finn Parry. Morgans conversion was true and the score was 7 – 0. Portsmouth had a chance to increase the lead but the penalty kick…
Past Players Reunion Lunch, Photo Gallery, Saturday 18th February 2023
Link to The News article
Portsmouth vs Havant 2nds, Saturday 18th February 2023, Counties Hampshire 1 League
Match Report by Jim Dixon Portsmouth 10-38 Havant 2nds Portsmouth’s day started with a Former Players Lunch where there were just over 100 past players/current members present and a 3 course lunch, provided by the Club’s resident Chef and former player Jimmy Martin, plus copious amounts of ale consumed meant a very enjoyable time was had by all. With quite a strong wind blowing down the pitch, Portsmouth found themselves playing with the wind in the first half having lost the toss. Havant got the match underway and shortly after Gareth Davies put a good touch kick down to the Havant 22. Sam Foster managed to steal the ball but a subsequent knock on gave Havant a scrum. A penalty against Havant for not releasing the tackled player saw Simon Morgan line up a kick at goal from just inside the 10 metre line but the kick went wide. This…
Tackle Height update from Terry Burwell
Dear All Please circulate widely within your club the communication below from our Hampshire RFU Council representative Terry Burwell regarding the Tackle height changes. Any comments or those people wishing to be included in the consultation – Contact Terry direct by 23rd February on – terryburwell@gmail.com Thank you Yours in rugby Julie Greenslade Executive Director Update from TB arising from Steerco and Council Meeting I promised to update you on discussions at the ‘Tackle Height’ Steerco last Thursday and the RFU Council meeting on Monday 13th February. The Steerco meeting looked closely at the potential law changes and how they might be implemented to achieve the objective to reduce the risk of head injury by addressing the legal height of the tackle and the related responsibilities of both tackler and ball carrier. It also discussed in detail how we could ensure that all stakeholders in the game had an opportunity to be involved…
Bournemouth 2 vs Portsmouth, Saturday 11th February 2023, Counties 1 Hampshire League
Match Report by Jim Dixon Bournemouth 2nd Xv 28- 20 Portsmouth Firstly I must apologise for the late publication of last weeks game v Andover , it got lost in transit and has now been published ! Portsmouth travelled to their second fixture out of Hampshire, Jersey being the other one, to take on Bournemouth 2nd’s. Their last game against them at home saw Portsmouth sneak a narrow win so they new it would be a tough match, especially as they are stronger at home. Portsmouth kicked off and managed to re-gather the kick but as the ball as spun wide it got knocked on. A couple of penalties against the home side saw Portsmouth gain ground and with the second penalty Simon Morgan was able to kick a goal giving them a 0 – 3 lead with just a few minutes on the clock. Bournemouth soon hit back with…
Andover vs Portsmouth, Saturday 4th February 2023, Counties 1 Hampshire League
Match Report by Jim Dixon Andover 50 – 10 Portsmouth This Saturday was officially a rest day but due to the Competition Committee re-arranging postponed fixtures Portsmouth found themselves with this fixture and several 1st Xv players missing due to either making other arrangements or due to injury. Andover had already got a fixture v Havant 2’s so they just had to change their opponents. With a team made up of 7 second team players plus the remaining 1’s regulars the squad looked somewhat different to the usual one. The main point of interest was prop Ian French making his rare appearance for the 1’s and in so doing celebrating his 350th. appearance in all 1st XV competitions. Last week he was playing for the Vets which he says is played at a much more leisurely pace! Andover soon had Portsmouth defending their own try line and only good defence…
A huge thank you for taking part in our 2023 Sock Takeover Day!
January 27th and 28th January 2023 It has been another successful takeover day and whilst we tally up the total fundraising amount, we wanted to say how much it meant to us, as a charity, for teams to switch out their traditional colours for our pink and blue socks. Over the weekend, each pair of socks worn made an impact – from raising money to raising awareness that our charity exists. The money raised from the sales of the socks will help provide support kitbags that are designed to help adults or children who are undergoing cancer treatment, they contain exclusive items from our charity range and provide a pick-me-up for their recipients. These remain absolutely free thanks to the generous donations of you and the rest of our wonderful charity supporters. And thank you to away teams who donated on the day towards the cause, and who are now followers…
Portsmouth vs Winchester, Saturday 28th January 2023, Counties Hampshire 1 League
Portsmouth 20 – 47 Winchester Match Report by Jim Dixon At long last rugby is back! After the Christmas break and 3 games postponed due to either waterlogged pitches or frozen grounds we are hopefully back to normal. Portsmouth got the game underway and Winchester gathered and kicked down field. Ollie Simpson caught the ball and made ground before passing to Jashan Solanki who made inroads into the Opposition half. A penalty against Winchester saw Portsmouth kick to touch. From the lineout Portsmouth spun the ball wide but lost possession enabling Winchester to take the ball back into the Portsmouth half. Play was then stopped as flyhalf Lee Chandler who had been caught in a double tackle, was lying prone on the ground with the Portsmouth physio attending. Eventually he was able to get up and was helped off the pitch. Cam McGuigan came on to fullback with Solanki moving…