Taylorian

Sport

Rugby

a pulse. Mansfield was an assured and classy performer at scrum half, whilst Adeoye-Showole, Moneke, and Adeeyinwo ran everyone they encountered off their feet. They were ably assisted by some excellent Lower Sixth. Williamson, Hely Hammond, Lakin and Cawthorne were all sinew and gristle and bad intentions. Leitch hit harder than a freight train, Otibo and White left opponents clutching at thin air, and Ault ran with guile and tremendous fortitude. When all is said and done, what remains are memories of a fine group of young men, some inspirational rugby, and an unbeaten season; no more, no less. Mr M. W. S. Hale Squad: D. Murphy-O’Connor, T. Cheetham, S. Pankhania, K. Kenny, J. Marsden, J. Hely-Hammond, H. Williamson, B. Lakin, S. Mansfield, T. Ford, T. Adeoye-Showole, M. Ault, S. Popat, A.

Richard Hale were cut to pieces a week later. There then followed two contests that defined this side and their season. Reed’s were beaten after an enthralling, seesaw match that shredded the nerves of all who witnessed it. However, the finale at a bitterly cold St Albans was remarkable. The home side had secured a slim lead with only seconds remaining but were penalised shortly after the restart. With time up, Taylors’ worked their way into the opposition’s 22, recycled the ball, and conjured enough space to score and take the spoils. Huge credit should go to a strong contingent of Upper Sixth Formers. The skipper Murphy-O’Connor and Marsden, twin towers in the engine room, ruled the line outs. Cheetham, Kenny, and the inspirational Yip smashed anything with

2nd XV The American novelist William Faulkner in Absalom, Absalom! suggested that ‘there is no such thing as memory: the brain recalls just what the muscles grope for: no more, no less: and its resultant sum is usually incorrect and false and worthy only of the name of dream.’ That might well be so, but the Invictus 2nd XV should surely cry to dream again after a monumental and fantastical season. All began tentatively with a stodgy, hard-fought win at St George’s in the late summer sunshine. WGS, London Oratory, Mill Hill, and MCS were then blitzed before half term, by which point the 2nd XV had scored 227 points and conceded just 14 in their first five matches of the season. November brought stiffer challenges. RBC were defeated after a mammoth arm wrestle under Friday night lights before

68

Taylorian 2023