GREAT BRITAIN TEACHERS 34 ENGLAND UNIVERSITIES 10
PHIL HODGSON, Lock Lane, Wednesday
GB TEACHERS will head into the second fixture of the President’s Cup tri-series, against UK Armed Forces at Goole on Wednesday, May 13, aiming to clinch the title.
New coach Matt Thompson and his squad are on the cusp of glory after staging a rousing finale to see off the reigning champions, who won all their fixtures last year.
England Universities accounted for the Teachers and the Armed Forces in 2025’s President’s Cup, together with Ireland, Scotland and Wales in the Student Four Nations.
With only six minutes left this time, the students looked capable of continuing their unbeaten run.
The teachers were at that stage 22-10 ahead but had lost Ryan Morley to the sin bin, his yellow card being followed immediately by a try for the students’ Fin Hay, with Ryan Moses adding the extras to cut the deficit back from 18 points.
But the Teachers, for whom stand-off Brad Clavering and centre Liam Welham were superb, dominated the business end of the contest in a sensational finish.
Clavering, whose high kicks had tormented the students throughout, produced a highly-subtle grubber for secondrow Jack Walton to pounce on 74 minutes.
And a couple of minutes later, loose-forward Henry Higginshaw showed rare pace to beat off a posse of defenders in a sizzling 50-metre raid.
Clavering landed both goals to complete a five-from-six conversion return, including two touchline kicks, to cap a man-of-the match display, although hat-trick hero Welham ran him close.
The teachers, aided by four early penalties (the final tally was 12-10 against the students) went in front in the fifth minute when hooker Jason Holland burrowed over from close range.
That score was followed by Welham’s opener, the centre scything through from short range off Clavering’s smart pass.
Clavering was off target for the only time in the game and the students got back into the issue when Jake Dickinson squeezed in wide out as the opening period’s midway point beckoned.
Fullback Oli Winterbottom couldn’t convert and perhaps the most important moment in the game followed shortly afterwards when Winterbottom departed with concussion – a repeated condition that could have ended his season.
The students went close shortly afterwards, but Alex Pendlebury couldn’t ground.
More tellingly Dickinson, who gamely switched from the wing to fullback in place of Winterbottom, understandably struggled to deal with Clavering’s towering kicks but, as defences dominated, the score remained at 10-4 in favour of the teachers at half-time.
As tension mounted a healthy crowd had to wait until the 48th minute until the next try, when Clavering and secondrow Bailey Dawson combined to give Welham an opportunity he wasn’t going to waste.
The students’ hopes took a dive when, after they had applied sustained pressure, they lost secondrow Henry Lenthall to the sin bin for a late challenge.
Welham made the most of the extra man, setting his sights on the try-line before beating three men over 30 metres.
And that, despite the students’ gallant response, proved to be enough to seal a first victory the teachers can recall since their triumph over Great Britain Police in 2024.
GB TEACHERS: Brandon Worsley, Alex Pendlebury, Liam Welham, Jordan Siddons, Will Kirkup, Brad Clavering, Ryan Wright, Kieran Moran, Jason Holland, Dominic Horn, Bailey Dawson, Jack Walton, Henry Higginson. Subs: Ryan Morley, Lewis Holgate, Louis Barrett, James Jackson, Alfie Walker, Edward Brown, Aaron Hall.
ENGLAND UNIVERSITIES: Oli Winterbottom, Alex Edun, Leon Stewart, Finn Dagnall, Jake Dickinson, Ben Grindley-Roberts, Ryan Moses, Fin Hay, Jamie O’Keefe, Max Nissinen-Le, Henry Lenthall, Josh Shackleton, Heyden Todd. Subs: Will Lintin, Harry Lowery, James Leach, Tega Rume-Tabiowo, Brogan Turner, Ollie Paterson, George Moffitt
Referee: Carl Hughes