Bingham Cup, Dublin 2008
The fourth Bingham Cup, Dublin, June 2008, at the end of the season the club won promotion.
The season the Spartans were promoted for the first time.
Russell Jaszewski took over as captain, more than 20 new members joined, and the 1st XV won 13 of their 24 matches in Miller Homes Division 5 South to go up from sixth place. A small group won the inaugural Hadrians Cup in Newcastle in January, and in June the club took two full sides to the Bingham Cup in Dublin for the first time.
This was the season the Spartans went up for the first time, and the first in which the club could put out two full fifteens on the same weekend.
After a few years in the role, Matthew Whiteley decided to step down as captain and was replaced by Russell Jaszewski. At the start of the season the Spartans had their most successful recruitment drive yet and welcomed over 20 new members into the club. There were regularly over 30 people at Wednesday training sessions, and the increase in numbers created healthy competition for places on the team. Simon Clarke was chair for the year.
Competing in Miller Homes Division 5 South, the 2007–08 season was the best yet for the Spartans, who remained in the top three of the league table for most of it. Out of 24 matches they won 13, drew one and lost 10.
The opening month gave little sign of what was coming. Didsbury Toc H 4ths won 40–5 on the first Saturday of September. Macclesfield 4ths took the next one 71–0 a fortnight later, and Wilmslow 3rds won 72–5 at the end of the month. Knutsford 2nds had taken the home fixture 32–3 in between. The one return from those five weeks was a single-point win over Congleton 2nds, 17–16 at Sale.
From October the season turned over completely. Buxton 3rds were beaten 65–7, and that began a run of six league matches unbeaten. There were away wins at Old Bedians 3rds (15–7) and Burnage 4ths (27–14), and home wins over Sandbach 4ths (32–0), Stockport 4ths (8–0) and Heaton Moor 3rds (15–13). Aldwinians 4ths ended it on 1 December, 25–20. A second unbeaten run of six followed almost at once, carrying from mid-December to mid-February. Burnage were beaten 24–5 at Sale and Stockport held the Spartans to a 22–22 draw away. Then came wins at Sandbach (19–5) and Buxton (38–3) and at home over Old Bedians (36–18) and Wilmslow (32–13).
Two of the heaviest early defeats were answered in March. Macclesfield, who had won the first meeting 71–0, took the return by 5–0; Didsbury Toc H, 40–5 winners in September, were beaten 19–17 at Sale. The last three matches were all lost: 13–19 at Congleton, 3–8 at Heaton Moor and 0–15 at home to Aldwinians. The club’s own account is clear that the side could have placed higher without them. The season’s only cup fixture, a Halbro Plate preliminary round tie at home to St Mary’s Old Boys on 13 October, was not played and went down in the league record as conceded.
The final table, published on 26 April 2008, put Manchester Village Spartans 1 sixth of the thirteen sides that completed the season, on 64 points from 24 matches with 430 scored and 442 conceded. Knutsford 2nds took the division and Macclesfield 4ths were second. Even though they finished in sixth place the club was promoted for the first time.
In January 2008, on a free weekend out of the league, a small group of Spartans went on a mini-tour to Newcastle to take part in the inaugural Hadrians Cup, which was organised by the gay team, the Newcastle Ravens. Over the weekend there was plenty of partying with a bit of rugby thrown in. The Spartans even won the cup.
In June 2008 the Bingham Cup was held in Dublin, hosted by the Emerald Warriors, with 32 teams competing in four divisions of competition: the Cup, the Plate, the Bowl and the Shield. The Spartans had managed to retain high numbers of members and, for the first time, had enough players for two full 15-a-side teams. Dave Lacey captained the second side. Chris Leck worked specifically with the 1st team in preparation while Elaine Vassie worked with the 2nd. A new kit of lighter material was ordered, on the same colourful pattern as before, with the 1st XV wearing the new one and the 2nd XV the old.
The 1st XV made it through their group stage but, as in New York in 2006, failed to make it past the quarter-finals. The 2nd XV were still in action on the third day of competition after winning two of their three group matches in the Shield; they lost the semi-final and then lost their play-off match as well. Considering the levels of experience they did very well. The winners of the Bingham Cup were the Sydney Convicts, for the second time in a row. The Spartans came home without silverware.
Gaz Longley was Player of the Year and Dean Bee took the Players’ Player award. Brad Allen was Best New Comer and also took the Queens Boots, and Jamie Holt was Most Improved. Rowan Preston was Supporter of the Year.
The reward for sixth place was a first promotion and, with it, Miller Homes Division 4 East for the following season.
Miller Homes Division 5 South
Finished 6th, played 24, won 13, drawn 1, lost 10. 24 matches on record. Source: the club's own fixture list for 2007-08, recovered from the Internet Archive, with the division and the final table from the league, and every score checked against the league's results grid.
| # | Team | P | W | D | L | CC | Wo | Co | Nfw | For | Agst | Diff | Pts | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Knutsford 2 | 24 | 19 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 811 | 241 | 570 | 85 | 3 |
| 2 | Macclesfield 4 | 24 | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 627 | 132 | 495 | 83 | -8 |
| 3 | Heaton Moor 3 | 24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 428 | 309 | 119 | 75 | |
| 4 | Didsbury TH 4 | 24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 552 | 399 | 153 | 68 | -1 |
| 5 | Aldwinians 4 | 24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 372 | 287 | 85 | 68 | |
| 6 | Spartans 1XV | 24 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 430 | 442 | -12 | 64 | |
| 7 | Wilmslow 3 | 24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 521 | 367 | 154 | 60 | |
| 8 | Stockport 4 | 24 | 10 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 409 | 425 | -16 | 58 | 3 |
| 9 | Congleton 2 | 24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 400 | 578 | -178 | 50 | |
| 10 | Burnage 4 | 24 | 8 | 1 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 355 | 555 | -200 | 47 | -1 |
| 11 | Old Bedians 3 | 24 | 4 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 335 | 482 | -147 | 37 | 3 |
| 12 | Sandbach 4 | 24 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 227 | 759 | -532 | 37 | |
| 13 | Buxton 3 | 24 | 3 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 202 | 693 | -491 | 27 | -4 |
| 14 | Bowdon 4 out | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The table as the league published it on 26 April 2008. Points: 4 for a win or walkover, 2 for a draw, 1 for a loss, 0 for a concession, and 2 for no front row win. CC is cup games conceded, Wo walkovers, Co games conceded, Nfw no front row win, and the last column is points deducted or added.
| Date | Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-Sep-07 | Didsbury Toc H 4 | 40 – 5 | Spartans 1XV |
| 08-Sep-07 | Spartans 1XV | 17 – 16 | Congleton 2 |
| 15-Sep-07 | Macclesfield 4 | 71 – 0 | Spartans 1XV |
| 22-Sep-07 | Spartans 1XV | 3 – 32 | Knutsford 2 |
| 29-Sep-07 | Wilmslow 3 | 72 – 5 | Spartans 1XV |
| 06-Oct-07 | Spartans 1XV | 65 – 7 | Buxton 3 |
| 20-Oct-07 | Old Bedians 3 | 7 – 15 | Spartans 1XV |
| 27-Oct-07 | Spartans 1XV | 32 – 0 | Sandbach 4 |
| 03-Nov-07 | Spartans 1XV | 8 – 0 | Stockport 4 |
| 10-Nov-07 | Burnage 4 | 14 – 27 | Spartans 1XV |
| 24-Nov-07 | Spartans 1XV | 15 – 13 | Heaton Moor 3 |
| 01-Dec-07 | Aldwinians 4 | 25 – 20 | Spartans 1XV |
| 15-Dec-07 | Spartans 1XV | 24 – 5 | Burnage 4 |
| 05-Jan-08 | Stockport 4 | 22 – 22 | Spartans 1XV |
| 19-Jan-08 | Sandbach 4 | 5 – 19 | Spartans 1XV |
| 26-Jan-08 | Spartans 1XV | 36 – 18 | Old Bedians 3 |
| 09-Feb-08 | Buxton 3 | 3 – 38 | Spartans 1XV |
| 16-Feb-08 | Spartans 1XV | 32 – 13 | Wilmslow 3 |
| 01-Mar-08 | Knutsford 2 | 15 – 12 | Spartans 1XV |
| 08-Mar-08 | Spartans 1XV | 0 – 5 | Macclesfield 4 |
| 15-Mar-08 | Spartans 1XV | 19 – 17 | Didsbury TOC H 4 |
| 29-Mar-08 | Congleton 2 | 19 – 13 | Spartans 1XV |
| 12-Apr-08 | Heaton Moor 3 | 8 – 3 | Spartans 1XV |
| 19-Apr-08 | Spartans 1XV | 0 – 15 | Aldwinians 4 |
Halbro Plate
1 match on record, 0 of them with a score. Source: the club's own fixture list for 2007-08, recovered from the Internet Archive, with the division and the final table from the league, and every score checked against the league's results grid.
| Date | Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13-Oct-07 | Spartans 1XV | Conceded | St. Mary's Old Boys |
Bingham Cup, Dublin 2008
1 match on record. Source: the San Francisco Fog's own tournament report, contemporary with the tournament, recovered from the Internet Archive.
| Date | Round | Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Jun 2008 | Day one pool | San Francisco Fog 1 | 12 – 5 | Spartans 1XV |
| Team | Award | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| First XV | Player of the Year | Gaz Longley |
| Players Player | Dean Bee | |
| Best New Comer | Brad Allen | |
| Most Improved | Jamie Holt | |
| Club | Queens Boots | Brad Allen |
| Supporter of the Year | Rowan Preston |
Brad Allen took two awards this year, Best New Comer and the Queens Boots.
| Group | Role | Name |
|---|---|---|
| Committee | Chair | Simon Clarke |
| Playing | First XV Captain | Russell Jaszewski |
| Second XV Captain | Dave Lacey | |
| Coaching | First XV Coach | Chris Leck |
| Second XV Coach | Elaine Vassie |
Chris Leck and Elaine Vassie are recorded working with the first and second teams in preparation for the Bingham Cup.
From the Pink Paper of 29th November 2007. Report by Elaine Vassie.
The fourth Bingham Cup, Dublin, June 2008, at the end of the season the club won promotion.
Burnage 414 – 27Spartans 1XV
Saturday 10th November 2007, away to Burnage 4 in Miller Homes Division 5 South, and a fifth straight win.
Burnage had the first scoring chance, after a needless Spartans penalty close to their own posts, but the home kicker hit the post and the Spartans retained possession and cleared their lines. They took control midway through the first half. After a break down the right hand side of the pitch pulled the Burnage defence in, the forwards recycled the ball quickly and the backs exploited the space for Gareth Longley to score in the left corner. Longley doubled his tally soon after, going in under the posts after Tom Prescott and Wayne Miles had broken through the Burnage midfield defence, and Matt Whiteley slotted the conversion for a 12-0 lead at half time.
The Spartans scored early in the second half too, Rhys Jones going over just to the left of the posts after the Burnage midfield had been ripped apart by excellent attacking backs play. A period of sustained pressure followed, helped by intelligent kicking to the corner using the strong wind and a line out ball stolen deep in Burnage territory. The ball was spun out to the left and then back to the right for Drew Hastie to come within inches of scoring, and an excellent offload out of the tackle allowed Prescott to touch down easily. Whiteley converted to take the score to 24-0.
Burnage came back with two quick tries, both converted, to set some Spartan nerves jangling at 24-14. With less than five minutes remaining they were forced to concede a penalty near their own posts and Whiteley knocked over his third successful kick of the day, and 27-14 is where it stayed.
The win left the Spartans fifth in the division and looking ahead to Heaton Moor, the side immediately above them, with third place there for the taking.
Reported in the Pink Paper of 29th November 2007 by Elaine Vassie.
Day one pool
San Francisco Fog 112 – 5Spartans 1XV
Friday 13 June 2008, day one of the fourth Bingham Cup, played at Dublin City University and hosted by the Emerald Warriors. The tournament ran from Friday 13 to Sunday 15 June 2008 and drew 32 teams across four competitions: the Cup, the Plate, the Bowl and the Shield.
This was the club's first Bingham Cup with two full fifteen a side teams. The first team met the San Francisco Fog's first side in Upper Tier Pool B and led 5-0 at half time before losing 12-5.
The Fog's own report of the day carries a date of 12 June, but their day two post is Saturday 14 June and their day three post Sunday 15 June, which puts this match on Friday 13 June, the day the tournament opened.
This is the only Spartans fixture from Dublin recovered so far. The club's own account of the tournament records that the first team came through its group and went out in the quarter-finals, and that the second team, captained by Dave Lacey, won two of its three group matches in the Shield and was still playing on the third day.
Source: the San Francisco Fog's own tournament report, contemporary with the tournament, recovered from the Internet Archive.