St Paul’s Sports Roundup, 16 March 2026

Last week was a busy and successful one for Paulines with strong performances across basketball, football, rugby, and rowing.

Basketball

On 11 March, SPS hosted the inaugural U18 Clarendon Cup, marking a special occasion for the Upper Eighth in their final home fixture for the School. The team delivered an outstanding performance throughout the tournament.

SPS secured convincing victories over Merchant Taylors’ (61–13) and Charterhouse (57–26), finishing top of the standings. Captain Eli Darko lifted the trophy, while Wenjia Huang was named tournament MVP, as voted by the officials.

Football

Against Hampton, the senior fixture programme was disrupted by cancellations, with both the 1st XI and 2nd XI matches called off. The 1st XI fixture has been rearranged for a later date. Of the matches that did take place, the 3rd XI were involved in an entertaining 3–3 draw away from home, while the 4th XI were narrowly beaten 2–1 in a closely contested encounter.

In the U16 age group, both the A and B sides faced strong opposition and were narrowly defeated, losing 1–0 and 2–0 respectively, with the A team producing a particularly high-quality performance, showing excellent shape and threat on the counter-attack. The U16C and U16D fixtures were cancelled. There were several positive results among the U15 teams, who were unbeaten across the block: the U15B secured an impressive 2–0 away win, the U15D delivered an excellent attacking display in a 5–2 victory, while the U15A and U15C drew 3–3 and 1–1 respectively.

The U14 teams also produced some strong performances, with the U14B recording a convincing 5–1 win and the U14D securing an impressive 4–0 victory and clean sheet. Elsewhere, the U14A were beaten 2–0, while the U14C narrowly lost 3–2 in a closely fought contest.

Rugby

On 15 March, the U14s travelled to the Reigate Sevens Tournament and produced an excellent performance to finish as runners-up in the main competition. They topped their group with impressive victories over QE Barnet (33–0), Reeds (14–0) and Seaford College (24–7).

Two hard-fought wins followed in the knockout stages, overcoming John Fisher 24–19 and Eltham College 7–5, before facing a strong Bedford side in the final, where they were defeated 26–0.

Rowing

At the Schools’ Head of the River on 13 March, SPS delivered an outstanding performance, equalling a school record with six event wins and securing the prestigious Thames Team Trophy, awarded for the lowest aggregate time across a school’s fastest three crews (1st VIII, 2nd VIII and J16A).

The 1st VIII finished 2nd in a highly competitive field, while the 2nd VIII placed 4th and the 3rd VIII claimed victory. There was further success in the junior events, with a clean sweep of wins in both the J16 and J15 categories.

Despite cold conditions, strong support lined the towpath, and the performances across all crews reflected the exceptional depth, skill, and determination within the Boat Club.