This week we descend into December and with only 1 home game this month we're making the most of it! We want everyone to be wearing a Christmas Jumper and join us in celebrating the festive season!

Our 1st XV host Eton Manor, a team that Colchester relish playing! There's no love lost between these two teams so brace yourself for a physical encounter and help cheer our boys to victory! The squad is frustrated after a heartbreakingly close game last weekend against Amersham & Chiltern. They've been working incredibly hard this week at training and are determined to put their skills on show in front of the ever loyal Mill Road crowd. The game kicks off at 3pm and we hope to see you there decked out in your best Christmas outfits- the more extravagant, the better!

Our Ravens are also at home as they take on Ealing Amateurs on pitch 2 at 1.30pm. After managing to put 30 points on top table Hertford last weekend, our Ravens are in fantastic form, so make sure you come and lend them your support!

All our other senior sides take a much deserved rest this weekend as they heal from the countless injuries they've suffered these past few weeks.

Our clubhouse will be bursting with festive cheer so come up and join us for a mulled wine and a hot cider to get yourself in the spirit, before watching our fantastic senior sides rampage on the pitch!

The clubhouse will be open from 12pm onwards.

#COMEONCOL

Youth on Sunday

We unite with Shelford this weekend for our Youth fixtures with most teams either traveling to Cambridge or hosting them at Mill Road. Our Colts Academy take on Shelford in a friendly on Pitch 1 at home, kicking off at 12pm. Our Colts team is growing in strength every week so come down and check them out- with many Colts making the step up to our Ravens squad- this team really is the future of Colchester RFC. All the weekend's activity below:

A Huge Accolade for Youth Chairman Ross Cowie!

Our very own Youth Chairman Ross Cowie was invited to attend the RFU Mitsubishi Motors Recognition Luncheon last Thursday in the Members Lounge at Twickenham. Approximately 20 volunteers were recognised at the event which was hosted by John Spencer, with other speeches from CEO Steve Brown, Steve Grainger and Keith Kent.

The evening's programme stated that Ross was commended for his roles at club and CB level, but mostly for being a key contributor to the development of the Age Grade game. Ross provided key insight into the youth game which is helping to positively impact rugby in clubs, schools and colleges across the country.

Ross is a valuable asset to Colchester RFC and Youth Rugby at a National level. Well done Ross!

Bring in the New Year with Colchester RFC- buy tickets online

2017 has been a great year for CRFC and we're determined to get 2018 off to the best possible start with a huge New Year's Eve party up at Mill Road.

From 7.30pm until 1am we're providing special drinks deals at the bar to rival every venue in Colchester including a free glass of prosecco on arrival. We’ve got a brilliant DJ to supply the tunes, a delicious buffet and a photo booth, all we need is YOU! Gather your friends and family and join us for this mega event. Colchester RFC knows how to have a good night- and our New Year’s Eve Party will be no exception!

We also have extremely reasonably priced taxis available exclusively for this event which you can pre-book with Claire beforehand, saving you the headache of finding a taxi.

You can buy your tickets at the bar with Claire now, and at only £15 for an adult and £7 for a child you’re getting a real bargain! You can buy your tickets online here, but please note there will be a admin fee applied- for fee free tickets (try saying that after a few pints!) come up to the bar to buy your ticket direct with us!

1st XV: The Review, with John Smith

Every week Senior Chairman Jon Smith writes 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. This week, Jon reviews the 1st XV's game against Amersham.

"Despite scoring more tries than our opposition (Amersham & Chiltern) we couldn't help but be disappointed with the overall result. The lessons from this game were clear for all to see - against capable sides we simply cannot concede a significant number of penalties (especially within kicking range) and expect to win. Facing a 13-0 deficit at half time we came out in the second half with a renewed purpose and launched several relentless attacks on the Amersham try line, scored two tries and could have scored more, but ultimately ran out of time.

Although we accept complete responsibility for the result, the game was not without controversy. Deep into the second half our pack piled forward and, according the the referee touched down for another 'try' but no sooner had the referee raised his arm and signalled the try, he proceeded to reverse his decision. It remains a little unclear as to why this decision was reversed, but after awarding the try, the match video clearly shows the Amersham players offering some form of protest, followed by a conversation between the home touch judge and the referee. The decision was then rescinded; something I have never seen on a rugby pitch and something that I doubt falls within the laws of the game. It was an interesting series of events and I would hope that the incident sparked some discussion between the referee and the RFU assessor who was there to monitor the referee and his performance.

Not longer after the 'try that was not a try' incident, Matt Wadling caught the Amersham defensive line flat-footed and shimmied over the try line to open the scoring for Colchester. Every member of the 18 man squad took part; Jack White came off the bench to replace Brett Cutbush who came off with an injury and at this point we re-shaped the backline. Wadling continued at scrum half, Jack White went to fly half, Will Brown to outside centre, Crozier to full back and Shelford Meads switched to the right wing. Some space on the left hand side gave Jack White some space, he took this opportunity to launch a perfectly weighted cross-field kick that James Crozier quickly gathered and side stepped over the line.

The bottom line is a 13-0 half time deficit was not insurmountable, but in order to chase the game we were undoubtedly going to leave a few gaps that a top-four team like Amersham could exploit. The 'gaps' came in the form of two penalties and these were readily dispatched between the posts by the Amersham scrum half without hesitation. We finished the game the stronger side as two Amersham players received yellow cards in the last few minutes for deliberately scuppering our assault on their try line. The attacks were just out of range to constitute a penalty try; our opponents played the perfect percentage game and sacrificed a couple of players rather than risk a score. Amersham were not only desperate to defend their lead, they we pulling out all the stops to prevent a rival side from picking up a bonus point. It was, in truth, smart rugby. "

You can read Jon's full report on our website here.

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! You can see all of the four amazing tries from our game against Old Priorians here.

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!