Ealing Trailfinders will host Doncaster Knights in the Championship Cup Semi-Final on Saturday 6th May.

MATCH DETAILS:

Ealing Trailfinders v Doncaster Knights

Date: Saturday 6th May

Kick-Off: 3pm

Location: Trailfinders Sports Club, W13 0DD

Tickets: Click here to purchase tickets (U12s free)

Coverage: Live coverage via Twitter: @EalingTFRugby

PLEASE NOTE: As this is an additional game, the Semi-Final is not included in the Season Ticket package. Season Ticket holders will need to purchase tickets.

CHAMPIONSHIP CUP SEMI-FINALS:

  • Cornish Pirates v Jersey Reds – Friday 5th May (KO 7:30pm)
  • Ealing Trailfinders v Doncaster Knights – Saturday 6th May (KO 3pm)

Book your tickets for a great evening of local rugby at St Benedict’s Sports Fields.

A charity match between a ‘Joe Simpson Barbarians XV’ and an ‘Ealing Trailfinders Academy XV managed by Jonah Holmes’ will be played at St Benedict’s School Sports Field, Perivale on Friday 31st March (Gates open at 6pm, KO 7pm).

Players selected by Joe Simpson and Jonah Holmes, who have been capped by England and Wales respectively, will take part in the charity showpiece, with proceeds from the event going towards the bursary program at St Benedict’s School and a local Ealing based charity.

The winning team will be presented with the Ray Codd (OP 66) Memorial Cup. Food, entertainment and full bar will be available all evening.

Tickets for the match are £5, with U12s free. Click here to purchase match tickets.

Location: St Benedict’s Sports Fields, Perivale Lane, Greenford, London UB6 8TL

 

Joe Simpson and Jonah Holmes are both former students of St Benedict’s School.

The first edition of the Ealing Trailfinders Foundation Newsletter is out now!

Inside the newsletter we bring you up to speed with the latest Foundation news, project updates, community activities, sports camps and fundraising opportunities.

CLICK HERE to read the newsletter.

Upcoming Event: Our 2023 Race Night is taking place on Saturday 25th March (following the Ealing Trailfinders v Cornish Pirates game). The event is raising funds and awareness for the Ealing Trailfinders Foundation, with opportunities to sponsor a race and horse.

To book email: info@etprm.com / click here for event details.

After three fixtures in February that saw us claim top spot in our Championship Cup Pool, and crucially a home semi-final, it’s now time to vote for your Player of the Month.

The four nominees are:

George Davis (Prop)

David Douglas Bridge (Second-Row/ Back-Row)

Max Bodilly (Centre)

James Cordy-Redden (Wing)

CLICK HERE to vote for your February Player of the Month.

Voting closes at 5pm on Monday 6th March 2023. The winner will be announced via our website and social media channels in the days after voting closes.

Don’t miss any of the action as we finish our 2022/23 Championship league season with three blockbuster home matches at Trailfinders Sports Club!

EALING TRAILFINDERS V LONDON SCOTTISH:

Date: Saturday 11th March

Kick-Off: 3pm

Tickets: Click here to book

HospitalityClick here to book your table (delicious two course meal)

Post-Match: England v France LIVE on the big screen (KO 4:45pm)

EALING TRAILFINDERS V CORNISH PIRATES:

Date: Saturday 25th March

Kick-Off: 3pm

Tickets: Click here to book

Hospitality: Click here to book your table (delicious two course meal)

Post-Match: LIVE DJ in clubhouse, followed by 2023 Race Night – fundraising for Ealing Trailfinders Foundation. Click here to book your tickets.

EALING TRAILFINDERS V CALDY:

Date: Saturday 15th April

Kick-Off: 3pm

Tickets: Click here to book

Hospitality: Click here to book your table (delicious two course meal)

Our Championship Cup Semi-Final against Doncaster Knights has been confirmed for Saturday 6th May at Trailfinders Sports Club (KO 3pm). Click here for tickets.

Ealing Trailfinders will host Doncaster Knights in the Championship Cup Semi-Final.

The RFU have confirmed the Championship Cup semi-final fixtures. The two highest point scoring clubs play their semi-finals at home, with the top points scorer playing the 4th, and the 2nd and 3rd ranked clubs playing one another.

Semi-finals:

  • Cornish Pirates v Jersey Reds (1st v 4th place)
  • Ealing Trailfinders v Doncaster Knights (2nd v 3rd place)

The semi-finals will take place over the weekend of 5-7 May. Precise fixture dates and timings for the games will be confirmed in due course.

If there is a draw after 80 minutes, extra time will take place consisting of 10 minutes each way with a minute interval. If the scores remain equal after extra time, the winner will be the team which has scored the most tries in the game (including extra time). If the scores are level and the number of tries scored is equal, then there shall be a place kick competition to determine the winner.

The Final of the Championship Cup takes place the weekend after the semi-finals, 12-14 May, and will be played at the home ground of the club with the best playing record in the semi-finals.

We’re excited to invite you to our 2023 Race Night, raising vital funds for the Ealing Trailfinders Foundation.

The Race Night will take place on Saturday 25th March, following the Ealing Trailfinders Championship match against Cornish Pirates.

Kicking-off at 6:30pm in the Olympic Pavilion at Trailfinders Sports Club, you will have the opportunity to sponsor a race, horse or jockey, or simply place a bet on individual races. The races will be shown on the big screen in the Pavilion, with all money raised going towards the Foundation, supporting their mission of ‘making lives better through sport’. Click here to learn more about their projects.

Click here to watch an example of what a Race Night involves (we will put our own Ealing Trailfinders spin on the event)!

Individual tickets are on sale for just £5 or you can book a table with your friends, family or fellow supporters.

To book or for further information please email: info@etprm.com.

We look forward to welcoming you to our Race Night!

Ahead of our final round of the group stages, Ben Ward and his coaching team have named another strong side ahead of this crucial Championship Cup tie.

With the Trailfinders just a point ahead of Jersey Reds in Pool 1, they know that only a bonus point victory will see them top the group and guarantee a path through to the knockout stages.

This however will be easier said than done, as they travel to the ALPAS Arena to face a strong Hartpury side who will be looking for revenge from last month’s 13-26 defeat.

The team which will look to qualify for the next round will see Kyle Whyte and Ross Kane start upfront, either side of Alun Walker.

After his successful impact off the bench, Andrew Davidson will start for the first time as he partners Simon Linsell in the second-row.

The back-row remains unchanged, as Rob Farrar captains the side from the blindside, with Simon Uzokwe and David Douglas Bridge continuing at openside and number 8 respectively.

After a dominant display last weekend, Jordan Burns and Dan Lancaster continue at halfback as they look to develop their partnership further.

There is only one change to the backline, as Steven Shingler drops out due to injury, allowing James Cordy-Redden to start from the outset. This does however require a bit of reshuffling of positions, as Max Bodilly shifts to back to the centres where he partners Reuben Bird-Tulloch. This then allows Jonah Holmes to move back to fullback, with Cian Kelleher and Cordy-Redden on the wings.

Among the replacements, new signing Rhys Anstey is in line to make his Trailfinders debut as he is named in the number 19 shirt.

Ealing Trailfinders team to face Hartpury:

 

15. Jonah Holmes

14. James Cordy-Redden

13. Max Bodilly

12. Reuben Bird-Tulloch

11. Cian Kelleher

10. Dan Lancaster

9. Jordan Burns

1. Kyle whyte

2. Alun Walker

3. Ross Kane

4. Andrew Davidson

5. Simon Linsell

6. Rob Farrar (C)

7. Simon Uzokwe

8. David Douglas Bridge

Replacements:

 

16. Shaun Malton

17. James Gibbons

18. George Davis

19. Rhys Anstey (Debut)

20. Ollie Newman

21. Craig Hampson

22. Craig Willis

23. Jack Digby

Make sure you’re ready for our crucial trip to Hartpury on Friday night as we look to secure top spot in the final round of the group stages.

 

RFU CHAMPIONSHIP CUP – ROUND 6

Date: Friday 17th February

Kick-Off: 7.45pm

Location: The Alpas Arena, Hartpury

Tickets: Available from £5 – click here to purchase

Coverage: Live coverage of the game will be available via our Twitter feed

ABOUT THE OPPOSITION:

Hartpury are always a tough team to face, and they are a side that we know well this season, having already faced them three times this year – twice in the league and once in the cup!

The university are known for their incredible production line of talent that goes on to play at the highest level. Among their alumni are British & Irish Lions Louis Rees-Zammit, Jonny Hill and Ross Moriarty; England Internationals Jonny May, Ellis Genge and Dan Robson; and Italian International Sebastian Negri.

LAST TIME WE MET:

It was only a matter of weeks ago that we last travelled to the ALPAS Arena, in a game that almost didn’t happen due to the wintery conditions. With the stadium pitch frozen over, the game was moved to the next-door 4G training pitch to ensure the match could still be played.

Amid dense fog, Trailfinders got the game underway, however it was Hartpury who got the first score after a quarter of an hour. Trailfinders remained calm however and went back to a real strength, the rolling maul. Two Simon Uzokwe scores and a penalty try, all from the maul, was only cancelled out by a solitary Hartpury penalty, meaning the score at half-time was Hartpury 10-21 Ealing Trailfinders.

In the second-half, and as the fog became denser, the opportunities for attacking rugby became even less. The hosts slotted an early penalty, before Carlo Tizzano secured the bonus point score as we ran out 13-26 victors.

FORM GUIDE:

Ealing Trailfinders:

W: Ealing Trailfinders 71-14 (Saturday 17th February)

Click here to watch match highlights.

L: Jersey 28-27 Ealing Trailfinders (Saturday 4th February)

Click here to watch match highlights.

L: Ealing Trailfinders 19-22 Coventry (Saturday 28th January)

Click here to watch match highlights.

Hartpury:

L: Hartpury 7-47 Jersey Reds (Friday 10th February)

L: Nottingham 24-12 Hartpury (Friday 3rd February)

W: Hartpury 26-14 Richmond (Saturday 28th January)

MATCH OFFICIALS:

Referee: Mike Hudson

AR1: Ryan Collier

AR2: Kevin Williams

POOL STANDINGS (AHEAD OF ROUND 6)

 

The team who tops each pool will qualify for the semi-finals, as well as the best runner-up across the three pools

Pool 1

1. Ealing Trailfinders – 21pts – PD: +126

2. Jersey Reds – 20pts – PD: +89

3. Nottingham – 6pts – PD: -92

4. Hartpury – 6pts – PD: -123

Pool 2

 

1. Doncaster Knights – 20pts – PD: +60

2. Coventry – 16pts – PD: +55

3. Bedford Blues – 10pts – PD: 0

4. London Scottish – 5pts – PD: -115

Pool 3

 

1. (q) Cornish Pirates – 25pts – PD: +143

2. Ampthill – 16pts – PD: +23

3. Richmond – 6pts – PD: -74

4. Caldy – 6pts – PD: -92

 

 

 

 

Ealing Trailfinders are delighted to confirm the signing of second-rows Rhys Anstey from Cardiff Rugby and Andrew Davidson from Gloucester Rugby.

Andrew came through the ranks of Glasgow Warriors and featured for the Scotland U20 side, before signing with Gallagher Premiership side Newcastle Falcons in 2016. After an impressive string of performances, Davidson returned north of the border in 2019 with Glasgow, before signing with Edinburgh for two seasons.

In 2021, the 6ft 7in lock moved over to Gloucester and has constantly impressed for the Cherry & Whites, as he made 30 appearances for them during the past 18 months.

On discussing his move Andrew said: “I’m really pleased to have the opportunity to play for Ealing Trailfinders. Their first half of the season has been really impressive and I’m looking forward to helping finish the season strong!”

Director of Rugby Ben Ward said: “We’re delighted to have been able to bring someone of Andrew’s experience and quality to the club. Having previously played in both the Premiership and URC, we’re confident that he has strengthened our squad and we’re all excited to see what he can do.”

Ealing Trailfinders have also completed the signing of young second-row Rhys Anstey.

Rhys came through the Academy at Cardiff and made his competitive, first-team debut for the club during last season’s Heineken Champions Cup against defending champions Toulouse. He then backed up this display by running out at the Stoop against Harlequins a week later.

Coming in at 6ft 6in, the 21-year old second-row has spent time at Welsh Indigo Premiership Cardiff RFC, as well as representing Wales at age-group levels.

Speaking about his move to TFSC, Rhys said: “I’m delighted to be joining such an exciting and ambitious club in the heart of London.”

“The drive and competitiveness of all the boys and environment created by the coaches and the staff will only improve me as a player and I can’t wait to get started!”

Director of Rugby Ben Ward said quote: “Rhys is a really exciting young lock with great potential. He’s big and physical, despite being just 21 years-old, and I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do in a Trailfinders shirt.”

Andrew and Rhys have already begun training with the squad and is available for selection for this weekend’s game against Nottingham. Tickets for this game are available here.