With pre-season training for the senior men’s and ladies’ teams already underway, it seemed a good point to reflect on the activities of the club’s members over the summer break.

The big highlight of the summer came soon after the close of the regular rugby season in the form of the annual NRUFC touch rugby tournament. Now a staple in the local sporting calendar across six weeks, this year saw the expansion of the tournament to feature fifteen teams from across the county comprising a range of ages and abilities. This increased participation allowed the development of younger players to go alongside the social teams taking part, whilst the more serious contenders battled it out for the title, prize pot and of course, the all-important bragging rights. Congratulations to the Borrowby Broncos who managed to retain their title from last year and will undoubtedly be up for the challenge of a “three-peat” next time around.
The festival atmosphere around the club each evening made for a spectacle to look forward to and, with teams already putting their name forward for next year’s iteration, it seems set to continue as a great way to have fun, stay in shape and throw a bit of “joué” around. Make sure to contact the club on social media for anyone looking to get involved.

Continuing on the rugby theme it seems the ladies’ team couldn’t wait to get stuck into coach Robbo’s pre-season training and entered a team into the Ripon RUFC 7s tournament in early July. Competing against local teams from Ripon and Wensleydale alongside touring teams the Viper 7s and Filthy Fifths they acquitted themselves admirably in a setting not usually suited to the style of play favoured by Northallerton teams. In their opening fixture against the hosts Ripon Bluebelles, North were clinical in their finishing with the tries going to Ali O’Brien, Trinity Earnshaw, Amy Parker and Emma Lawson in a 5-43 victory to get them off the mark.
The second match for North, this time against the touring side Viper 7s gave the ladies a taste of what an experienced sevens outfit can do. Having to defend a constant onslaught of attacking play from a team who knew how to keep the ball and find the spaces meant that tries did start to leak for North and, despite a sensational solo score from O’Brien, the game finished with a final score of 7-52 to the Vipers. Their last group game was against Wensleydale RUFC, a match up that has produced many close fought contests over the last few years and this short form of the game proved to be no different. Dale opened the scoring with a try soon after the kick off. North fired back with a brilliant try down the wing after a stolen line out. Much of the game was an even affair as the strengths of each team cancelled the others out. The turning point of the match came when Gina Fothergill intercepted a loose pass inside her own half and set off into the unfamiliar territory of wide open space. Despite being hauled down close to the try line, she managed to reach out an arm and dot the ball down to win the game and take North into the semis with a final score of 7-14.
The last match of North’s day came against the well drilled and skilful opposition of the Filthy Fifths. Rain delays and scheduling had meant that two hours had elapsed in the interim between fixtures and North’s team of predominantly forwards took to the pitch well aware of the challenge facing them. From the kick off the Fifths showed their class and ability, moving the ball swiftly around the pitch to exploit spaces and overpower the battle weary North side. Some heroic efforts and stubborn tackling foiled several of the Fifths attacks however, the volume of possession enjoyed by the tourists meant that the tries began to mount and the semi-final ended with a score of Northallerton 0 – Filthy Fifths 41. Despite this last result the team had thoroughly enjoyed their day and did the club proud on all fronts. Many thanks to Ripon for hosting and to all the supporters of the team who went along the cheer on the girls.
It's not only rugby that NRUFC can play, as has been the case for many years now the club turns its hand to the bat and ball on the cricket field. NRUFCCC has been running for many years as a way for the club members and many others to keep in touch over the summer with some sociable games of evening league on Thursdays during the summer months. Last year’s iteration of fixtures saw the team play valiantly and thoroughly enjoy their time at the crease, however winning matches wasn’t the flavour of the season. This time around it was a similar group of players who, whilst still continuing to enjoy their relaxed approach to cricket, were determined to get a few W’s on the board for their efforts.
Renovations to the pitch at Brompton Lodge meant that the team played all of their ten league fixtures away from home for the second season running. This gave the opportunity to travel to many delightful settings in the local villages to display their skills with the bat and the ball. A huge upsurge in performance this year saw the team win a whole game in a stark improvement on the previous season. A handful of close-run scores often had the team coming in valiant losers however, it leaves plenty of room for building again next time around. It is always encouraging to see how many players of a wide range of abilities want to take part and for any readers who would like to get involved in the cricket team next
season, please do contact the club on social media or call in during the rugby season to find out more. Many thanks go to Vicki Phillips, Jonny Baker, David Baker and Jack Tart for organising the team as well as the many other volunteers who commit so much of their time to making it such great fun.

So now the attention turns once again to the upcoming rugby season and for all teams pre-season training is well underway with turnouts looking promising so far. With the ladies’ first XV promoted to NC2 and the men’s first XV competing again in Yorkshire 2 there is a sharp focus on building the fitness levels to withstand the trials ahead. For any readers looking to join the club either to play rugby, get fitter or simply make new friends, please contact the club on social media to find out more.

Training for the men’s teams is as always on Tuesdays and Thursdays 7pm, the ladies train on Wednesday 7pm and the juniors play on Sundays 10am. All ages and abilities welcome.