Men’s 1st XV – Sandown & Shanklin 21 – Basingstoke 27
Basingstoke returned from the Isle of Wight this Saturday with five big points, putting in a big second half display to overturn a ten point deficit. Sandown were the league’s form side going into the fixture, having been unbeaten in 2026 up to this point, showing a marked improvement since the reverse fixture and ‘Stoke would need a big performance to come away with the win.
Playing into a strong wind in the first half, scores from Oscar Worsfold and Oscar Rowley helped Basingstoke into a 10-7 lead, before the hosts used the conditions and the slope well to score two more tries, going into the break 21-10 to the good.
Basingstoke, however, were up for the fight, as three scores from Alfie Rowley, Matt Mairs and Matt Wise saw the scoreboard turn in Basingstoke’s favour. The final 15 minutes saw a raucous home crowd gee Sandown on, but impressive defensive resolve saw Basingstoke hold on for a 21-27 win.
Men’s 2nd XV – Basingstoke II 60 – Alresford 5
In the Dragons’ final run out of the season, the side put in a near-complete performance in swatting aside Alresford in a ten-try display.
A strong defensive effort saw Alresford hold the hosts out for a period, but as time went on, the searing pace through the Basingstoke backline exploited the holes which appeared. Playing into a strong wind, Rhys Fletcher and Tom O’Driscoll crossed before Alresford reduced the arrears to 9 points a few minutes before the break. Taylor Stranney had the last say of the half, however, as he scored with the final phase of the half to leave it 19-5 half way through the tie.
‘Stoke’s depth shone through, as a bench including former 1st XV Captain George Hemmings and Joel Buckingham brought real impetus. As Alresford tired, Basingstoke crossed for seven more tries, as Fletcher and O’Driscoll scored again, alongside efforts from Ethan Bushnell, Tom Williams, Gareth Hubbard, Hemmings and Buckingham to round off a hugely successful season for the boys.
Women’s XV – Didcot Valkyries 91 – Basingstoke 7
It was a tough day at the office for our Women’s XV, as a much-improved Didcot side came away with a big win. The first ten minutes was well managed by the visitors, working their way through the phases and playing sensible rugby, however Didcot exploited their pace advantage, going into the break 41-0 up.
The second half continued in similar fashion as injuries started to take their toll and every bounce of the ball seemed to go Didcot’s way. A score from stand out back rower Ellis Forsyth gave the hosts something to cheer, but that was as good as it got, with Didcot running away with the game as a contest.
Colts XV – Winchester II 26 - Basingstoke 32
Basingstoke Colts travelled to Winchester to play their 2nd XV in the Hampshire Bowl Semi Final. It was a great match, with the Baingstoke lads getting a good start with three tries in the first half meaning we went into the break 7-17 to the good. Second half we came out a bit slower and let Winchester get a couple of tries back.
The last 20 mins seemed to last forever as both teams kept scoring however we managed to keep ahead by just one point, until finally scoring an extra try to mean the final score was 26-32 – Basingstoke now advance to the final in two weeks’ time. Good luck boys!
U16 Girls – Berkshire Representation
Melody, Bea, Beth and Megan represented Berkshire today. Both Melody and Beth got on the scoresheet, with special congratulations to Beth for captaining Berkshire Blue! A massive well done to those four, as well as the other 5 players from the age group who have represented their counties this season!
U13 Boys – Basingstoke 5 – Hungerford 7
Basingstoke U13s welcomed Hungerford RFC for an exciting home friendly that proved to be a highly competitive and entertaining contest from start to finish.
The game couldn’t have started better for Basingstoke RFC, with Clayton crossing the line in the very first minute after a strong, determined run deep into the opposition half. What followed was an end-to-end first half packed with action, as both sides traded tries in quick succession. Every score seemed to be answered almost immediately, with neither team able to pull away. At the break, Basingstoke trailed narrowly, 4 tries to 5, reflecting just how evenly matched the teams were.
The second half continued in much the same fashion, with both sides maintaining a high tempo and physical intensity. Reuben N added to the scoreboard with a well-taken try in the corner, but Hungerford responded with two further tries to keep their noses in front. Basingstoke were unlucky not to add more, with two tries disallowed by the referee — one from Ewan P, judged to have been taken into touch, and another from Reuben N, where the ball was deemed to have been dropped on grounding. On another day, those decisions could easily have gone the other way and resulted in a draw.
In the end, it was a frustrating result, with Basingstoke losing by just two tries in what was an incredibly close game.
That said, it was a strong performance played in great spirit by both teams. Hungerford are a formidable side, having only narrowly missed out on winning the Berkshire league in last week’s cup final, so this was an excellent showing from Basingstoke against top-quality opposition. When the teams last met earlier in the season, the result was far more one-sided, but the boys promised a proper contest at home — and they certainly delivered.
The progress made since that early encounter is clear to see, and the team should be proud of their development and recent performances. A great way to finish the season — onwards and upwards, boys!
