James Crabtree Selected For England Counties U18
31 Mar
Congratulations to Upper Sixth Former, James Crabtree, who has fought his way through a tough selection process to be confirmed as part of the 23-man squad to represent England Counties U18 in their two-match series against Ireland.
James was amongst 160 boys who began by playing three inter-County games at Loughborough University, where he represented Warwickshire. He was one of 40 players picked to go forward to the Midlands squad, next he survived the cut to 30 after the first training session and then made it on to the final Midlands 23-man team.
James then played in a match against the North and one week later participated in an intensive residential weekend. With the Midlands team he trained at Warwick School, stayed on the Warwick University campus, and on the following day, faced London and the South East.
James was then picked by the selectors to be part of a 23-man squad to represent England Counties U18. So far James has taken part in a residential weekend, completed team building exercises, field sessions and developed playing strategies. The team also played Worcester Warriors Academy, a great opportunity to gain game practice, and claimed a resounding 66-7 victory.
The original plan was to go on a further residential 10-day camp in April where the team were scheduled to play Ireland twice. Although sadly, due to the Coronavirus, this will now not go ahead.
Head of Rugby, Peter Bucknall commented, “James is an exceptional player and should be incredibly proud of reaching the England Counties U18 team. Pulling on an England shirt is a great honour. We are all incredibly proud of him.”