Another hugely busy weekend at Raven Park included a triumphant cup semi-final, the 2s confirming their league status and a big gathering of former players and supporters to mark the end of the club’s centenary season.

It all started on Friday night with victory for the As, who secured yet another Suffolk Silver Cup final appearance with a nail-biting 31-29 win over Stowmarket 2s.
Leading 21-12 at halftime with three tries in the bag, the 3s seemed on course for victory.

But the visitors from Suffolk then hit back with three quick-fire tries of their own to lead 29-21.

However, the As finished the stronger, tries by Ben Bates and Zachery Matthews sealing the win, which sets up a final against Ipswich 2s at Raven Park next weekend.

“Ultimately the boys’ desire and passion won through, due to fitness,” said Dave Gostling, a member of the 3s coaching team. “That’s something which is uncoachable.”

Saturday saw a big gathering of ex-players from across the country and from as far afield as France, and from all eras from the 1960s to the present day, to celebrate the conclusion of the club’s centenary season.

Organised with military precision by former club captain Richard Parker, more than 150 players and supporters sat down to lunch after some gentle ribbing from ringmaster Parker for the assembled company.

The match which followed, between the Ravens and Ipswich, turned out to be another humdinger, the teams sharing 11 tries and the lead changing hands six times.

When Jack Edwards kicked a penalty to put the Ravens 34-32 ahead with just one minute left on the clock it seemed that the hosts were home and hosed.

But from the restart, play went up the other end and Ipswich’s converted try clinched a 39-34 victory to break Colchester hearts.

Ravens coach Charlie Shepherd was left to rue another close, high-scoring defeat for his team, but can take satisfaction from the campaign as a whole, during which the team have fielded 51 different players including 22 debutants, demonstrating the strength of the Colchester club squad.

As a further boost, results elsewhere this weekend mean the Ravens are now secure in Counties 1 Eastern Counties for another season, with one match to go at Shelford next week.

Elsewhere the Cavaliers lost 31-15 to Mersea Island Rhinos, but with one match to play the 4s can still finish in the top three of their league.

The day concluded with the presentation of “players of the century” awards to various stalwarts from down the decades: Dr Alfred Fell (international representation – past), Richard Acland (international representation – present), Roy Abrehart (biggest contribution), Brett Cutbush (overseas player), Danny Whiteman (1st XV player) and Mark “Morph” Scarf (longest service).

Richard Parker worked tirelessly to make the day a success, and must be congratulated for organising a fabulous event, which also raised a significant sum for charity.

The drama continued on Sunday, as the club’s stars of the future travelled to Woodbridge and won the Eastern Counties Colts Shield, coming back from 12-0 down at half-time to beat the Suffolk side 24-22.

Meanwhile back at Raven Park, the club played host to the Colchester Under-14s rugby festival, with 19 teams from clubs across the south of England having fun in the sun and playing some good rugby in the process.