Hartlepool college celebrates sporting success

The English Colleges netball squad, with Libby Dunning, front left, and Shaunagh Foreman (GD), on the right.

Hartlepool Sixth Form College has been celebrating sporting success.

The college, in Blakelock Road, Hartlepool, has had a tremendous year both in regards to squad and individual success.

The netball team has just won its AOC league and are the North East representatives for the national championships in April.

Josh Williams is in the England Under-18s rugby union squad.

Two members of the squad, Libby Dunning and Shaunaugh Foreman, represented the area in the English colleges team.

The college rugby team has won the AOC North Premier League and got through to the last four in the national elite cup, narrowly losing 19-17 to Hartpury College.

The team have now gone into a national play-off place and are in the semi-final stages on April 20.

Within the squad there are nine players training with Newcastle Falcons Under-18s Academy.

Some of the students who are training with the Newcastle Falcons U18s Academy.

Josh Williams, a second row forward, was in the England Under-18s squad, winning his first cap against Scotland two weeks ago and his second against Wales last weekend.

The team are the North East representatives for the national championships in April.

The college has run two rugby teams this season, with the development team playing in the same league as all the other local colleges’ first teams.

They currently lie fourth.

The squad is made up from players from all the local clubs - Middlesbrough, Billingham, West Hartlepool, Hartlepool Rovers and Durham City.

Within the squad there are also two Scottish exiles players who are hoping to make it into the full under-18s squad next season – Ryan Allan and Liam Checksfield.

Josh Williams has been offered a full-time contract for the coming season with Newcastle Falcons.

Adam Radwan, another of the Falcons boys, has been brought into the Wailers 7s team for the coming season, and has just found out that he has England 7s trials for their new academy at the end of April in Middlesex.