SUCCESS has come at the double for a school with a regional reputation for rugby.
Both the U13 and U14 squads from Ripon Grammar School have ended their seasons with victory in the White Rose Rugby Series, which saw them playing teams from across Yorkshire.
The U13s accumulated enough points in their local cluster matches to qualify for a finals tournament played at Otley against the best teams from around the region, ending in triumph for the Ripon boys.
Captain Ted Wainwright, 13, of Helmsley, who is a boarder at Ripon Grammar School, said: "The team are all friends with each other and a lot of us play at Ripon Rugby Club too so we know each really well as players."
The squad, who won the Yorkshire Cup last year, have not lost a single match in two seasons.
For the U14s their 17-12 victory against Brighouse in the final brought home the White Rose trophy for the third time in three years.
Captain James Willis, 14, of Ripon, said: "We had quite a few games early in the season when we played really well and that qualified us for this cup and got us to the final.
"There's a lot of character in our squad and we work really well as a team."
Try scorers in the final were Ted Wainwright, Oliver Bowett and Ben Payette, and joint men of the match were Ted Wainwright and Will Langford.
Coach and head of boys’ PE at Ripon Grammar School Mike Garvey said around 50 schools took part in the U14s competition.
"The RFU considered us to be one of the best teams and invited us to face Brighouse in the final. It's fantastic that this team have now won the competition three years in a row.
"It's been a good season for all our teams. Our U12s came third in their regional finals and the U18s were runners-up in the final of the Yorkshire Cup.
"I believe the success is down to the focus we put on handling skills. When these boys leave school they don't take the team with them, they can only take what they have as individuals. So we move the ball around a lot to develop their passing skills and their ability to make quick decisions."
