Swansea Schools show off silverware to Ospreys

Swansea Schools U11's were the guests of honour at the Liberty Stadium on Saturday evening, where they paraded the silverware won by the team last season.

The youngsters became the first Swansea representative side ever to win both the DC Thomas Cup and the Schools National Sevens in the same season, effectively making them national champions at both the 15-man game and the shorter seven a side sport.

They claimed the DC Thomas Cup with a 19-10 win over Pontypool in the final at the Millennium Stadium after narrowly edging out Bridgend 22-21 in the previous round.

In the Sevens, they secured the title with a comprehensive 33-10 win over Y Eryri (Snowdonia) in the final.

Coach Leighton Davies, of Gwyrosydd School in Swansea, said:

“It was a great achievement for the boys, becoming the first Swansea side to win both in the same year. To play at the Millennium Stadium in the DC Thomas final was fantastic, it’s something all rugby players dream of doing so to be able to do that at their age is great for them.

“They’ve all worked extremely hard to achieve what they have, with the help of all the coaches, Lee Howells, Steve Parvin and Richard Phillips, who are all local teachers that have sacrificed their own time to help these young rugby players.

“We are grateful to the Ospreys for inviting us to do a lap of honour at Saturday’s game. For the boys to be able to share their success with the Ospreys fans is a great way of rewarding them for their efforts.”

Andrew Hore, Chief Operations Officer, added:

“We are delighted to have been able to invite the Swansea Schools along to the Liberty so that our supporters could give them the recognition their efforts deserve. They are very much part of our family and we can all share in their success.

“Hopefully they will continue to excel in their rugby over the coming seasons, with their players making their way along the player development pathway to become future Ospreys.”