10 of Warly’s U14 squad bravely headed to sunny Richmond for what was to be a great encounter with Welsh Ironsides – a combined team made up of London Welsh and Battersea Ironsides. For our part, Warly have joined forces with Sutton & Epsom to create a Surrey XV, making the game a true “for the love of rugby” affair, writes Head Coach Scott Toomey.

Despite the boys only having met once before, they put on a courageous performance against a very well-drilled side composed of 15 Ironsides and just two Welsh players! An early try from the home side set the tone for what was a battle of two halves, with Welsh Ironsides establishing a sizable lead in the first half, but then barely able to add to the scorecard in the second thanks to the heroic efforts and self-belief of the Surrey XV. Watching these boys grow together, dig deep, and battle for one another to halt the onslaught from Welsh Ironsides in that second half was a pleasure to watch.

Remarkably, for three of the Warly lads it was only their second ever game of rugby, which tells you everything about this true tale of bravado. Happy faces coming off the Welsh's first team pitch captured it all; a great morning of rugby with the score insignificant to the fight.