Our 1st XV had a tough day at the office last weekend away at Ruislip, and the players were the first to admit that their performance wasn't good enough. However, a new week is upon us and with two successful training sessions under their belts our 1st XV are prepped and ready to host Letchworth Garden City. After last week's loss the 1sts have slipped to 5th in the table so need to use this weekend to earn some much needed points and boost themselves back up. This is going to be a great game to watch so make sure you're up at Mill Road tomorrow for the 3pm kick off.

After a monumental win at home last weekend our Ravens are hoping to ride that high this weekend as they travel to Old Albanians. Despite Old Albanians being tough opposition, our Ravens have come close to beating better teams, so with this new found confidence after their win, who knows what could happen! It's a trek round the M25, but if you're going the kick off is 2pm, and the directions can be found here.

Our A XV also had a fantastic win last weekend, beating Sudbury by a huge 40 points to nil. The boys hope to replicate that tomorrow as they travel to Mistley for this weekend's fixture. Our As are a great team to watch so if you fancy popping up the road to see them in action, they kick off at 3pm and the directions to Mistley RFC are here.

Our Cavaliers are back on home soil tomorrow as they host to Sudbury IIIs. After a brilliant win away at Ipswich Y.M. last weekend our Cavs sit proudly at the top of the Eastern Counties 2 table. This weekend is set to be another brilliant game so make sure you're at Mill Road for the 3pm kick off!

Our Roundheads are also at home this weekend as they welcome Aldeburgh & Thorpness at 3pm. A&T currently sit a few places above the Roundheads in the table so this could be a tough fixture, but after their 20-40 win last weekend against a youthful Clacton side, we know our Roundheads have got it in them to secure a victory!

As always our fantastic bar will be open from 12pm for you to grab a drink before cheering on our home sides.

#COMEONCOL

Youth on Sunday

It's half term which means most of our youth section take a break from fixtures. However our Colts Academy side and the U13s both take to the road as they travel to Southwold for friendly fixtures. All of our other teams will remain at Mill Road for a morning of expert coaching from their dedicated coaching staff. See below for all the fixtures you've got to look forward to this weekend.

#AllOneClub
Colchester RFC is a vibrant and ever expanding club and we like to make sure that it still feels like the family, community club it's always been.

This week, as part of our #AllOneClub initiative, we had six 1st XV players running a coaching masterclass for our U15s and U14s. Fresh from their game the previous day, Shelford Meads, Brett Cutbush, Lee Soper, Rob Pickard and Simon Gray all took part in the session, each running their own skills station. Dave Higgins, who is currently resting with a hamstring injury, also helped run the sessions.

Rob Pickard, a jackling expert, ran a session on the breakdown, sharing his expertise on how best to compete for the ball and technique on how to counter-ruck most effectively.

Lee Soper and Simon Gray lead scrum sessions, aiding the players on body position and how to exert their maximum power when engaging in the scrum. Each player's body position considerably improved and we're sure their core strength took a battering as Sopes had them planking to improve their stability. Simon helped the props maintain their straight backs and strong body position whilst moving, and therefore improving the players strength in a mobile scrummage situation.

All these sessions combined left our U14s and U15s with key skills that will benefit them for their upcoming fixtures. Better still it was a great opportunity for senior and youth sections to come together and both sides benefited equally.

The success of these sessions will hopefully lead to the occurring more often, with both senior players and youth coaches praising the morning's set up. Jon Smith, our Senior Chairman, and Ross Cowie, the Youth Chairman, will be collaborating more often to ensure that similar sessions can take place in the future.

Read more about the morning and see all the photos on our website here.

Upcoming Events at CRFC

Fireworks Extravaganza!

We are putting on a fantastic fireworks evening exclusively for you; our dedicated club members and supporters. The evening of Sunday 5th November will include a professional fireworks display taking place on the 1st XV pitch, a delicious BBQ run by our superb in house caterers as well as sumptuous home made paella, and of course Claire and her sparkling crew of bar staff will have all the best drink deals available for you.

We'll have inflatables and fairground rides for children to play on and our cheerleaders from Community day are back to provide the build up for the main event; the FIREWORKS! For more details of what you can expect, join our Facebook event here.

Buy your ticket now to bag your place for you and your family and friends, at the best fireworks event in Colchester (if we do say so ourselves!), you won't want to miss out! Reserve your tickets by emailing us here, or purchase them at the bar when you're next at the club.

Family Tickets (2 adult, 2 U18s): £20
Adult Tickets: £7
Child Tickets (U18): £5

Gates open at 4.30pm, we can't wait to see you there!

A barrel of laughs at our Comedy Evening

We’re hosting a comedy night on the evening of November 18th for you and your friends. Come and join us for a good laugh as we host a comedian at Mill Road, and then... it’s your turn!

We’re inviting anyone brave enough to come onto the stage and share a joke or two with us- the person which gets the most laughs on the night will be awarded with a prize.

The open mic doesn’t stop there as we follow the comedy acts with a karaoke session, and hopefully the laughter will continue!

Come and join us for a chuckle, tickets are £12 each and includes a pulled pork burger and your chance to have the room roar with laughter- hopefully for all the right reasons! Tickets are available to reserve at the bar now or email us here! Please note this is an over 18s event.

Pick up a copy of our match day programme tomorrow to see more of the exciting events we've got coming your way in 2017!

1st XV: The Review, with John Smith

From now on, Senior Chairman Jon Smith will be writing a review of the 1st XV's last game and a separate preview to the next game. These articles will give you the behind the scenes low down on what goes on with our 1st XV and in an insight into the inner workings of our club. Jon's review of last weekend is already up on the website here and includes a look at all 5 senior games and the coaching masterclass session run by our 1st XV. This week, in his preview, Jon explains the 1st XV selection process.

"This is a massive weekend for our 1st XV as we will get back on track after our rough day at Ruislip.

We have made a few changes this week. In the front row Joe McMillan moves from hooker to loose head prop, James Mitchell retains his place at tight head. This week we welcome back Rhys Hartley at hooker. Rhys made a fabulous start to preseason with an excellent performance at the Gravesend festival but also picked up a knee injury that has kept him out of contention for two months. Rhys is a really experienced and well-travelled player and crucially as a hooker, he's an excellent communicator on the pitch.

After a powerhouse performance for the Ravens last weekend, it's a reassuring sight to see Eli Castle at second row. Eli has struggled with availability so far this season, but when he's back, he's back 110% and always makes his presence felt on the pitch. With Liam Pickett missing through injury we need leaders and experience on the pitch and Eli will definitely provide that.

We have a different centre partnership this weekend. George Liversidge returns to the side at outside centre and Joe Flexman will make his first 1st XV start of the season at inside centre. Joe has plenty of experience playing at 12 - in fact Joe was an established 12/13 before he made the switch to the back row a few years ago. With just three replacements permitted at this level (an inadequate number in my opinion!), players like Joe that can cover a range of positions are extremely valuable."

You can read Jon's full report including an exclusive look at the 1st XV line up on our website here.

Our big October Jackpot is drawing closer- join now to be in with a chance of winning!

If you join the CRFC Double Centurion Club then you can choose one of our club lunches to attend*, and we’ll treat you to a three-course meal- on us!

We still have plenty of numbers available in the DCC so grab your spot now in order to ensure you’re in with a chance to win our big jackpots!

Why would you want to join?

+ It’s only £5 a month (less than an [expensive] cup of coffee!)
+ You’ll be entered into monthly draws with prizes of £250 and £50
+ The October draw 1st prize is £750 and April’s draw 1st price is a whopping £1,500!
+ Best yet, all the profits go straight back into Colchester RFC

So now’s your chance, email Kim at kim@amnesiaflowers.com and bag your ticket now!

*Subject to availability

Stock up on all your CRFC stash at our Clubhouse Shop

Our CRFC club shop is open Thursday evenings 7pm-8pm and Sunday mornings 9.30am to 12.30pm for you to grab all the CRFC goodies you need.

We've got playing kit, hoodies, socks, gumshields, new hats and scarfs and much more all ready for you to buy. With the weather getting colder, we recommend you check out the shop so you can stay warm in CRFC style!

Colchester Rugby Club gets social...

There's plenty going on across our social media all the time. Keep up to date with all CRFC news, rugby content, events, and video highlights. We announce the Man of the Match every weekend over on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter so make sure you're following us to keep up to date!

So, make sure you follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay in the loop. You can also find videos of all the tries from this season and last on our YouTube channel and all the behind the scenes action and live game highlights are on our snapchat: colchesterrugby.

Good luck to all our players in action this weekend and we look forward to seeing you at Mill Road soon!