2015 College Rugby schedule released

Above: Scots College celebrate winning the Hurricanes region final last August against Palmerston North Boys' High School.

College Sport Wellington have released their rugby calendar for the season ahead, with it getting underway on Wednesday 22nd?April with the first round of Co-ed Cup knockout games. Major dates during the year are:

• Last year’s four Premier 1 semi-finalists – Scots College, St Patrick’s Silverstream, St Patricks College, and Wellington College – will take part in the now annual 1st?XV Festival against the four Lower North Island Super 8-aligned Schools (Gisborne, Napier, Hastings & Palmerston North BHS), with those games taking place in Napier (2 May), the Rugby Institute at Massey (9 May), and Wellington (15/16 May).
• Over those same three weekends the Premier grading rounds will be held, with the remainder of last year’s four Premier one schools – Rongotai, Hutt International, St Bernard’s, and Naenae – seeded into each of the four pools where Premier 1 places are at stake. Wairarapa College, Premier 2 winners in 2013 & runners-up in 2014, are now eligible for the Premier 1 grade.
• The first competition round is on Saturday 23rd?May, which is also likely be the ‘College at Club’ round held in conjunction with Premier club rugby. Those details are yet to be confirmed.
• Girls rugby commences with grading from 30 April, and their finals will be held on 20 August.
• The Premier 1 Final is scheduled for Sunday 9 August, and all other Boys grades will conclude on 22 August.
• The Condor 7s qualifying tournament will again be on Labour Day Monday, 26 October
• In April, Scots College ?will represent New Zealand at the Sanix World Rugby Youth Cup in Japan.

Other changes have been made to the National Championship (Top 4’s) qualification with the realignment of Taranaki to the Chiefs region.

The Hurricanes region Boys semi-finals will now comprise the two Wellington Premier 1 finalists playing the two highest ranked of those listed above from the Super 8 competition, with a challenger opportunity available for a school that does not play in these competitions.

The Girls and Co-ed Boys qualifications will remain the same for Wellington schools (winners of the Premier grade and the Co-ed Cup knockout), with the other semi-finalists in both coming from the Manawatu and Wanganui, East Coast, Poverty Bay & Hawke’s Bay, and Horowhenua-Kapiti and Wairarapa-Bush regions.?