Welcome to Maidenhead RFC's news and events page
There is lots going on at the club and here we hope to keep you up to
date with what's coming up and reports on recent events.
Events
Summer Camps
Week 1: August 1st-5th
Week 2: August 15th-19th
£125 per week includes lunch
Discount for siblings/multi week
Games-skills-fun-competitions-awards
For booking form & information contact: Jean Kingsley 07966490374 or
kingsley38@btinternet.com
Sportsman's Dinner
Venue - Braywick
9th September
Speaker Martin Corry - Comedian Roger Dakin
Book early to avoid dissapointment - lawtonk@sky.com
News
Latest Reports
U17s in Wales 2011
Under 14s' Tour to Tenby
1st XV lose tough encounter at
Old Redcliffians
4ths gain promotion at Aylesbury
Colts impressive victory over
Amersham
U13Bs win thriller with Tadley
Good quality game for U13s against
John Hampden
U12s 'chipper' at Chippenham
Ladies back to winning ways
v Bracknell
Comic Relief game Boys v Girls
Impressive U9s finalists again
U6s' first competitive tournament
at London Irish
U7s win London Irish Tournament
Excellent performance for U8s at
Chippenham
Maidenhead RFC in Rugby World
Maids feature prominently in Stephen Jones's column in this month's Rugby
World. Steve interviews John Wanklyn and discusses the issues around paying
players at our level and the finanicial implications of promotion to the
National leagues.
The arrticle can be downloaded here (Page1&2
Page3&4)or you could go out and buy
Rugby World.
MURFC 'Alumni' in Twickenham BUCS Final Victory
Joe Thomas (left) and Guy Sears (right) both played in the Durham University
side against UWIC at the BUCS (British Universities and Colleges Sports)
Final in Twickenham on Wednesday 27th April 2011. After trailing
for much of the game Durham eventually came back to defeat UWIC by 25
points to 23. The victory came after a tense game with Durham winning
with a try in the last 15 minutes and a penalty in the last 3 minutes.
This victory makes Durham, arguably, the best University side in the
country. The side is undefeated this season - including a win against
Cambridge University for the first time in 10 years (they did not play
Oxford this year).
Joe has played for Maidenhead Juniors, Berkshire Juniors, Colts and
1st XV, he has also played for County Durham and was'capped'
by them after the team of which he was a member the national County Championship
Plate in 2009. Guy has played for Maidenhead Juniors and Colts, Berkshire
Juniors and County Durham U20s. Both attended Reading Blue Coat School
and played for the 1st XV there.
Tom Guest donation to Maidenhead RFC
On Friday 8th April 2011 a contingent of 14 volunteers, players
and parents from the MRFC Youth section descended upon Harlequins' Stoop
Memorial Ground to receive a donation of playing equipment from one of
its famous old boys, Tom Guest.
Tom was recently awarded the Man-of-the-Match award whilst playing for Harlequins
in a recently European Challenge Cup match. The sponsor, Amlin Insurance,
set aside around £1,000 of equipment for Tom to donate to a rugby
cause of his choice. Maidenhead RFC was chosen as the recipient.
In addition to receiving complimentary tickets for their match against London Wasps,
the group were invited to form the guard of honour, and at half time took
part in a special presentation on the pitch.
Julian Rainford, Director of Youth Rugby at Maidenhead commented 'We are grateful for Tom
remembering his old club in this way and take the opportunity to thank
him for his kindness. The players who attended enjoyed their time at The
Stoop.'
'400 Club' Winners for March
1st Peter Prior
2nd J Welch
3rd Tony Doolan
Mike Dance
Following a very short battle with Pancreatic Cancer Mike
Dance sadly passed away on Friday 1st April surrounded by family. Mike
had a long association with the club and was Club Steward for many years.
The service for Mike will be held at St Lawrence Church, Waltham St Lawrence
at 2pm on Friday 15th April, followed by a brief service at Caversham
crematorium. We will then be gathering at Maidenhead Rugby Club to celebrate
the life of Mike Dance (the Silver Fox).
As Maidenhead Rugby Club formed such an integral part of our Mike's life,
the family would welcome all of the Maidenhead RFC family to attend both
service & celebration.
The whole club sends their condolences to the Dance family.
Family flowers only. Donations to Pancreatic Cancer UK at www.justgiving.com/Heidi-Dance
Congratulations to the U15s
U15 A and B teams were both crowned Berkshire Youth League champions after
wins at Newbury under lights on Friday. The A team were top of Div1 and
the B Team topped Div 2.
COMIC RELIEF GAME - MAIDENHEAD RUGBY CLUB BOYS V GIRLS
Maidenhead Rugby Club held a charity game between their
Men's and Ladies' teams for Comic Relief last week.
It was a real family occasion with an age range from six to forty-six,
and with many of the club's minis and juniors also involved.
Making up the Men's side were various representatives of all four senior
teams, including Chief Executive John Wanklyn who showed off his pace.
In a light-hearted game of touch rugby, the Boys were only permitted to
run 10 metres at a time with the ball! With many interested spectators
watching, the Girls ran out winners by 5 tries to 2.
Ladies player Helen Evans, who initiated the idea and also raised money
herself for Comic Relief with a baked bean eating challenge afterwards,
said: "I'm delighted so many took part and also watched - it was
a really fun evening for a really good cause. It will be even bigger and
better next time!"
More pictures in the report here.
Maidenhead Under 14s Tackle a big challenge!
Members of Maidenhead RFC Under 14 Squad faced up to a big challenge
this Sunday at Braywick. As part of the fund raising effort for their
forthcoming tour to Tenby this spring. Boys had collected sponsorship
pledges in the hope of completing 2000 tackles in one hour. Each tackle
included a 10 metre run up and a tackle of a heavy weight tackle tube
bravely held by parent volunteers. On the hour the grand total was a massive
2685, smashing the target.
Head coach Dave Morgan said "this was a great event and I am very proud
of all the commitment shown by the boys during the challenge..they actually
went faster towards the end. It was a great opportunity for the parents
to get involved on the day and I would like to thank all the volunteers.
If anyone would like to sponsor or donate to our tour please contact our
manager at Maidenhead.fixtures.96-97@hotmail.co.uk"
Maids' players selected for Berks U20 squad
Congratulations to Elliott Brown and Colts Jamie Townsend, Jack McNally and James Brooks
on selection for the Berkshire Under 20 squad.
The squad will play 3 matches in February and March
Welcome to our new home
After many years of the Advertiser hosting our website we have a new
home kindly arranged by John Langstone at Enigma Marketing. Hopefully
the transfer will be seamless and if you are reading this then it probably
has been!
Ladies Team First Fixture
Maidenhead's Ladies Team has their first fixture on Sunday 12th Dec against
Oxford at home. Kick off 2pm.
Captain Louise Walker says "Thank you to everyone in advance for
all your support and assistance, we are certainly very excited about our
first little outing and the clubs co-operation and support is much appreciated."
Come down and cheer them on.
BodyZone Braywick Gym offer
The BodyZone gym at Braywick would like to offer all members of the rugby
club a huge discount on their gym membership. For just £10 per month
you can have full access to the 45 station at BodyZone Braywick, which
normally costs £19.99 per month. The offer is subject to the gyms
terms and conditions and is open to rugby club members aged 16 years and
over. To take full advantage of this offer, simply produce your rugby
club membership card and book an induction at BodyZone Braywick gym reception.
If you require more details please email Tim Grove on tim.grove@rbwm.gov.uk
Theresa May opens refurbished Clubhouse
 HOME
Secretary Theresa May opened the newly extended and refurbished clubhouse
on 15th October and praised the club for the 'imaginative' and 'amazing'
transformation.
The whole club house has been refurbished top to bottom. The new changing
rooms have en-suite showers, and the whole place just looks brand new.
 With
funding for the £400,000 project from private donations and help
from the RFU the smart new transformation includes upgraded male and female
cloakroom facilities, disabled access as well as improved social areas,
function rooms and bar. Work to build the clubhouse began in April after
'very generous' benefactors paid for the majority of funding and CEO John
Wanklyn was also able to top that up with a grant from the Rugby Football
Union.
President Keith Lawton welcomed everyone to the opening and outlined the
club's achievements and future plans. Nick Bunting from the RFU spoke
about the RFU's support and recognition of Maidenhead's achievement. Mrs
May complimented the club owners and contractors for finishing the project
on time and to budget and formally cut the ribbon.
Completed one week early and on budget the extension and refurbishment
work was undertaken by award winning contractor Beard who specialises
in new builds, restorations and refurbishments. Typical projects range
from £10k to £10m. To learn more about what Beard can do please
email lucie.elliott@beardoxford.co.uk or ring 01865 860000. See the news
on their website.
More
pictures in the Gallery
Wasps support Youth Tournament
Our tournament this year was supported by the London Wasps Community
Team, with their famous mascot, "Stinger" giving all of the
players great encouragement during the day. Wasps players Jack Wallace
& Christian Wade present trophies and medals to some of the winning teams.
Wasps own report on the visit can be found here.
Full results of the Youth Tournament on 10th October are now available
on the Tournament web page.
Youth Section News and Welcome Pack
We are delighted to see the new season under way.
The feeling of seeing so many of our youth players returning to Braywick
for rugby sessions is hard to describe.. All indications are that the
numbers within the mini section will increase which is a testament to
the reputation for social development and coaching excellence which we
have built over the years. We hope that many of you have already taken
the opportunity to check out the magnificent changes to the facilities
that have taken place during the off-season.
Our junior age groups are gearing themselves up for another tilt at the
Berkshire Youth and BBO Leagues. For the first time ever all Junior age
groups are running 2 squads and all players will enjoy League rugby. Many
of our players have the opportunity to represent Berkshire at County level
and we have 3 players in the London Irish Academy. This season also sees
the introduction of an Academy Structure, which is intended to optimise
the level of coaching available for players at the top end of the Youth
section and to provide a commonality of approach across the U17s and Colts
to make the transition through from Junior Section to Colts and beyond
as smooth as possible. Download Full
Newsletter here.
Welcome Pack
The Youth section is pleased to make available a Welcome Pack to
new and existing members.
The document provides an overview of the club with particular emphasis
on the Youth section to provide the opportunity to;
- Review the club's values
- Understand the structure of the Youth Section
- Highlight joining details and Membership benefits
- View the Fixture Schedule
- Be aware of Child Safeguarding responsibilities
- Find Key contact details
Download
Welcome
Pack here.
Online membership and Subscriptions
We offer two online facilities to make it easier for members to pay subscriptions.
Existing members can pay subscriptions
via PayPal using debit/credit cards or a PayPal account. A pre-filled
membership form will be supplied by the club either directly or via the
Age Group Manager.
New members joining the club can complete
their application and pay at the same time.
Full details on the Membership page.
MRFC Launch new Academy Structure
The new Academy structure was launched at Braywick on Sunday 1st August
as the new season's U17s shared a first training session with the 2010/11
Colts. Led by Head Coach Tony Brooks and Manager Gareth Andrews-Jones,
the Academy aims to raise the standards of both the top Junior age group,
and of the youth feeder section of the senior club. Tony and Gareth can
call on 3 other RFU Level II coaches, a further 3 supporting coaches,
a dedicated fitness trainer and physio team as well as the keen attention
and support of the elite squad coaching and management teams.
The U17s will compete in the Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire
(officially "OBB" but known here from now on as "Bob")
U17 League. The only club ever, we believe, to enter two teams, Maidenhead
will play both in Division 1: facing Newbury and Redingensians from Berkshire,
Marlow and Aylesbury from Bucks, and Chinnor and Witney from Oxon, and
in Division 3: with Tadley, Chesham and Chipping Norton, and Bicester
and Gosford All Blacks. Division 2 clubs will be Windsor, Amersham & Chiltern,
High Wycombe, Henley, Oxford Harlequins and Reading Abbey, as well as
two clubs beaten by Maidenhead U16Bs last season, Bracknell and Drifters.
After playoffs in February 2011, successful sides will be able to compete
in the National U17s competitions in March and April. Don't plan any holidays
then.
The Colts will compete in Division 2 of the Bob Colts league against Abingdon,
Amersham & Chiltern, Aylesbury, Beaconsfield, Bracknell, High Wycombe
and Windsor. There is a National Colts Cup competition starting in September.
Needless to say, we will be aiming for a spot in Bob Colts Division 1
in 2011/12.
Tony and Gareth explained that the new structure would preserve the identities
of the two age groups and that the separate league campaigns would be
prioritised. Outside of their own league dates, however, U17s will have
opportunities to play up for the Colts, and Colts their own opportunities
to appear for the 1st and 2nd XVs. If players are good enough, and physically
capable, there will be early chances to experience the next level of club
rugby.
The Academy will also recognise and promote the needs of players on the
Aspirational paths identified by the RFU for those wishing to play at
the highest levels they can without necessarily seeking professional careers.
One thing the Academy structure will facilitate for instance will be positional
workshops for halfbacks, say, or for back row forwards, as well as the
unit skills training essential to team preparation. The new structure
has already attracted previous Maidenhead players back from other clubs
and we will continue to recruit as the news, and the results, get out.
This is the club to play for if you live close to Maidenhead and were
born between September 1991 and August 1994.
Training is every Wednesday from 19:15 until 21:00 and Sundays from 10:00
until 12:00. First League games are on 3rd October for the two U17s sides,
at home to Newbury and Tadley, and on 19th December for the Colts, at
home to Aylesbury.
Maidenhead RFC U16 Argentina & Uruguay 2010 - Daily Tour Blog
After a massive fundraising drive and memorable evenings with Sir Ian
McGeechan, Lawrence Dallaglio and Stuart Barnes, along with a new indoor
tackling World Record, our tour is finally upon us.
Leaving on Thursday 8th July we are straight into action on
Friday 9th with 2 matches against Buenos Aires Cricket &
Rugby Club. We then have a few days of local activities including working
with a couple of orphanages before playing 2 matches against St Brendan's
College, also in Buenos Aires. (St Brendan's will be visiting Maids in
September).
We then travel to Rosario and play 2 matches against Universitario de
Rosario before crossing the River Plate and heading for Montevideo where
the final matches of the tour are against the Uruguayan national U16 and
U17 sides. Hopefully all in one piece, we then cross back to Buenos Aires
and fly back, arriving in the UK on 20th July.
We'll be posting match reports and updates as often as we can so please
check our Daily updates here.
MRFC awarded RFU Whole Club Seal of Approval
Maidenhead Rugby Club is proud to announce they have been awarded the
RFU Whole Club Seal of Approval.
The pathway to the award followed weeks of intensive work from the club
committee to demonstrate to the RFU they have built on the standard achieved
in obtaining the Mini & Youth Seal of Approval in 2008.
By expanding to include all playing activity within the club we can now
proudly show the local community we are a club that is fully inclusive.
The Seal of Approval and the Sport England Clubmark accreditation scheme
are based upon a three-year rolling award system in which the club will
be assessed on its continuing ability to provide a safe and effective
club environment.
Maidenhead qualified by the completing and assessment file and the writing
of a three-year development plan. By implementing the development plan,
with an annual review, it will continue to be accredited and ensure continuous
improvement in provision for the players at the club.
The award is indicative of the quality of provision the club offers, and
its commitment to the continued development and growth of rugby. The club
now displays certification to confirm accreditation, both from the RFU
and Sport England.
Sean Egan, Director of Finance, who coordinated the club's submission
said, "We are proud to have achieved the Seal of Approval, but as
importantly, see this now as a springboard to enhancing the quality of
the services we provide to our members and the wider community".
Your News and Events
If your squad or age group has any events or news to promote please send
information and details to 
and we will add them to the web site.
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