Emotions understandably ran at a seriously high level throughout the day, as Clifton 1st XV made their first appearance on the pitch since the devastating news broke regarding the passing of their highly regarded Director of Rugby, Matt Salter.

The day was honoured by the attendance of Matt’s parents, and it was fitting that a pulsating game was played against a club where he made his Clifton playing debut alongside one Mako Vunipola in 2009.

Clifton needed no motivation, fueled by a special memory of a home victory over the Londoners, consistently in the top places of the league, earlier in the season.

Throughout the exciting afternoon Clifton hit first and, although trailing at half time, fought back to take the lead as the final quarter beckoned for Rosslyn Park to take the initiative. Even then a final rally almost tipped the scales back to Clifton, who returned home with losing and try bonus points.

First strike went to Clifton when, following a well executed catch and drive, the ball was worked across for flanker Ollie Stirling to touch down under the posts and fly half Tom Quinlan landing the first of a series of conversions.

The home team responded immediately with a similar effort to level the scores. Then a cross field move at pace further increased their lead.

Clifton responded when number eight forward Harry Hone muscled over the line with Quinlan’s extra two points giving them a narrow lead. The fast Park back line struck again with their bonus point try adding to their total.

Hooker George Davey marshalled a fine catch and drive with his try closing the gap, but the scoring continued when a further opposition try extended their lead to 31-19 at half time.

In the second period Clifton kept the ball in hand and following a fine break by Clifton Sausage Man of The Match, full back Chris Packer, winger Ollie Harris was released for a superb try.

It was now “game on” and Clifton winger Zak Hamid was to make his mark on proceedings by sprinting a fine line to give Clifton a two point lead.

Some errors permitted the Park to score twice and secure a ten point lead. Hamid was not convinced and struck again, with Quinlan again converting before the clock ran out to deny the men in lavender and black a win by such a narrow margin. The two bonus points could prove invaluable as the season unfolds.

Enormous credit to the players and travelling fans for honouring such a day with determination, dignity and overwhelming respect for such an influential person.

Roger Opie

Aretians 1st XV 0 – 90 Clifton Misfits

With much of the league taking a rest week, Clifton Misfits travelled to Patchway on Saturday to fulfil their rearranged fixture against Aretians. Despite the free-scoring nature of the sides’ previous meeting in February, Clifton approached the contest wary of the hosts’ ability to make life difficult on home soil.

Head Coach Mark Nichols was able to call upon a strong selection from the side that dismantled Bristol Barbarians the previous week. Scrum-half Will Abel returned to the starting line-up and assumed the captaincy in the absence of the injured Michael Wyatt. There were also returns for second row Alex Andrews and veteran fly-half Will Pomphrey, while Colts back-rower Achie Davis was named among the replacements to earn his senior debut. There was a family link in midfield as centre Corey Kislingbury lined up alongside his cousin Ian Bentall.

Before kick-off, a minute’s silence was observed on a beautiful afternoon for rugby in memory of the late Matt Salter, Clifton’s former player and Director of Rugby.

Clifton wasted little time asserting themselves. After just two minutes winger Isaac Simmonds danced through the defence to score the opening try, which Abel converted. Simmonds added his second in the 13th minute, diving into the corner to finish a sharp attack.

The Misfits’ pack soon joined the scoring. Young prop Ronnie Bucknell powered over from close range, Abel adding the extras, before centre Ian Bentall broke clear four minutes later to extend the lead. Clifton’s dominance continued as flanker Ravi Gedara made one of trade mark line-breaks through the home defence to score before half-time, and Simmonds completed his hat-trick shortly before the interval, Abel again converting to give the visitors a commanding 38–0 lead at the break.

The second half followed a similar pattern as Clifton maintained their intensity. Simmonds collected his fourth try just two minutes after the restart, finishing a sweeping 50-yard move. Alex Andrews then crashed over from close range, and full-back Cass Harris added another moments later as the Misfits’ momentum continued to build.

Simmonds claimed his fifth try on 55 minutes — taking him to the top of the Misfits’ try-scoring charts for the season — before replacement winger Tom Archer marked his arrival from a rotation on the bench with an immediate score. Fly-half Pomphrey soon added his name to the scoresheet after slicing through the Aretians line untouched and converting the extras himself.

Archer grabbed his second with ten minutes remaining, and the final flourish came from second row George Da Vall, who capped an outstanding afternoon with a powerful 30-metre effort, converting his own try to bring up the 90-point mark.

The result secured a comprehensive bonus-point victory for the Lavender and Blacks and extended their unbeaten run in 2026 to eight matches. The five points also strengthened their cushion over fifth-placed Old Bristolians in Counties 4 South.

Despite the scoreline, Aretians deserve credit for their resilience, continuing to compete until the final whistle even as the Misfits’ tally climbed into the nineties.
There were impressive performances throughout the Clifton side. The front five were particularly dominant, with hooker Lochy Emery and Da Vall excelling at the line-out and around the park, while Gedara once again proved a destructive force in open play. The back three also impressed, with Harris, Archer and Simmonds all displaying pace and attacking quality.

However, the Thatchers Man of the Match award went to Colts winger Isaac Simmonds, whose five-try performance — combining speed, balance and creativity — proved simply too much for the hosts to contain.

Clifton now face a different challenge next week as they travel to face Cleve 2nds under the Friday night lights on 20th March, with kick-off scheduled for 7.45pm.

Tries:
Simmonds (5), Archer (2), Bucknell, Bentall, Gedara, Andrews, Harris, Pomphrey, Da Vall

Cons:
Abel (7), Bah, Pomphrey, Da Vall

Photographs by Ian Clark