U18 Schools Cup Final Preview: Stewart’s Melville v Merchiston Castle School

The U18 Schools Cup Final is always an exciting event for any aspiring rugby player. 2022 will be no different, as Stewart’s Melville College will take on Merchiston Castle School in this year’s Boys Schools Cup show-piece finale.

Stewart’s Melville’s campaign started with an away win over Glenalmond College 7-41, before edging out George Watsons 10-7 at the semi-final stage to booking their place in the final.

Merchiston Castle’s journey to the final saw them beat St Aloysious’ College 0-31 in the quarter-final stage, before claiming their spot in the Cup final by beating Dollar Academy 15-5.

On reaching the final, Stewart’s Melville captain Elliot Young said: “I feel like we have prepared as much as we can up to this point and we now just need to put it into play on Wednesday night. The boys and I are excited to go in front of what hopefully will be a packed BT Murrayfield. After the season we have had to lift that trophy in front of the school would be incredible.”

Robbie Deans and Matthew de Villiers co-Captain the Merchiston Castle U18 side. Robbie added: “We are extremely excited to finish the season on the ultimate high. Playing on the international pitch is a very special privilege for young players such as ourselves. Many of us have played rugby together since Junior School, so it would be one of the greatest feelings to be able to lift the U18 trophy.”

​U16 Schools Cup Final Preview: Dollar Academy v George Watson’s College

This year’s U16 Schools Cup Final will be contested by two schools with a rich rugby history. Dollar Academy and George Watson’s will go toe-to-toe at BT Murrayfield to determine who will be lifting the U16 Cup trophy.

George Watson’s go into today’s final having scored 113 points on their way to the final with convincing wins over Robert Gordon’s College and Merchiston Castle.

Dollar were made to work hard for their final berth, as they edged out Stewart’s Melville by just three points in the semi-final, hosted at Oriam in Friday 4 March.

Ahead of the final, Dollar captain Archie Jaffrey-Smith said: “In preparation for the final, we have had a light session as the semi-final was only 3 days ago, as well as discussing what went well from a team and individual perspective.

“Of course, the team is excited to be playing at BT Murrayfield, but we are trying to think of this as just another game – focus on our strengths and how to execute our plays with precision.

“Lifting the trophy would be a very special moment, but I represent the team in that moment; it’s all of their hard work and commitment over the season which has taken us to this position and it would be the icing on the cake to cap off an already great season.”

George Watson’s captain Michael Connor said: “We are very excited about playing at BT Murrayfield and want to make sure we all enjoy the occasion. Our coaches have prepared us well and winning the Cup would be just reward for all the hard work we’ve put in this season.”

​U18 Schools Shield Final Preview: Queen Victoria School v Loretto School

The DAM Health Stadium will be the home of the U18 Schools Shield Final as Queen Victoria face Loretto High School for this year’s finale.

Queen Victoria’s path to the final started off with a 46 -12 win over Strathendrick/Balfron High School and before they went onto to defeat Morrisons Academy in the semi-final.

Loretto High School made their way to the final by winning 31-12 against their Lothian counterparts, Knox/Haddington, and went on to beat Preston Lodge High School 34-0 to earn their place in the final.

Loretto captain Harry Bone said: “It is a great honour for the boys to play in front of the
school and parents at the DAM Health Stadium, this is testament to the hard
work put in by the players and coaches in the last few years and we are very
excited about the future of Loretto rugby.”

​U16 Schools Shield Preview: North Berwick v Queen Victoria

The U16 Schools Shield Final returns as North Berwick take on Queen Victoria at the DAM Health stadium.

North Berwick High School kick off their Shield campaign with a 62-12 win against St Columba’s School (Kilmacolm). The East Lothian side progressed to the final after Loretto were withdrawn from the competition in the semi-final round.

Following in the footsteps of the U18 counterparts, Queen Victoria’s School also made it to the Shield final. The Dunblane-based side made their way to the final following wins over Linlithgow Academy and Strathendrick/Balfron High School.

Finals Day Timings

U16 Shield, DAM Health Stadium – North Berwick v Queen Victoria, KO: 2.30pm
U16 Cup, BT Murrayfield – Dollar Academy v George Watsons, KO: 4.15pm
U18 Shield, DAM Health Stadium – Queen Victoria v Loretto, KO: 4:45pm
U18 Cup, BT Murrayfield – Stewart’s Melville v Merchiston Castle, KO: 6:30pm