Our Under 22s played in the Surrey Cup finals, strangely organised for Saturday when so many teams and their players were away, We scraped together a squad from our various age groups from Under 16s up and put in two memorable performances, narrowly losing to Rosslyn Park 14-27 and Old Paulines, but at least we turned up and played with Barnow pride.

This weekend sees the Men’s 1st XV travel the short distance to Old Deer Park where we take on London Welsh. In December we lost 0-7 at Barn Elms as Welsh put in a brilliant defensive performance and held on to their lead for 70 minutes. Our performance was dire and we will be looking to redress the balance. Welsh are no mugs at all, and they have kicked on and improved significantly since our last encounter so we will need to be at our very best in attack and defence to avoid the double! Our 2nd XV travel to Dorking in their rearranged league game and will be looking for a good performance too.

On Sunday the Women’s 2nd XV takes on Teddington Women’s 2nd XV, the game is not just a league game but also see the last ever game for Taz Bogue, having been a brilliant player for the club for the last 10 years. There is a tribute below from former skipper Ruth Mottershead, and please do get down to the BEST pitches at 2pm to say goodbye to this Barnes Rugby legend.

And if all these games aren’t enough, on Monday at 6pm our Under 14 Girls play in the Surrey Cup Finals at The Stoop, it is a 6pm kick off so please do get along and support Boris Pomroy and his squad of super girls in their biggest challenge so far!

And finally, our Director of Rugby, Jack Heald, has announced his exciting coaching team for the Men's 1st XV squad for next season, full details are below.

Onwards and Upwards Barnow!

For Rugby! For Friendship! For Life!

Michael Whitfield - President Barnes Rugby Club

Here are the details off all this weekend's games:
Saturday 11th March Fixtures
• London Welsh 1st XV vs Barnes Men’s 1st XV - 3pm KO
• Dorking 2nd XV vs Barnes Men’s 2nd XV - 2:30pm KO
Sunday 12th March Fixture
• Barnes Women’s 2nd XV vs Teddington Women’s 2nd XV - 2pm KO
Monday 13th March Fixtur
• Barnes Under 14 Girls in Surrey Cup Final at The Stoop - 6pm KO

Jack Heald Announces new coaching set up for 2026-2027 season
We’re delighted to confirm our Men’s 1st XV coaching setup for the upcoming season…
Leading the programme as Director of Rugby, Jack Heald continues to drive standards, culture, and ambition across the group.
In the pack, Simon Linsell takes charge as Forwards Coach, bringing experience and edge to the engine room.
And in an exciting return, former club captain Josh Davies rejoins Barnes as Attack Coach — adding real quality and a deep understanding of the club’s DNA.
As part of this transition, we say thank you to James Love, who departs for a new challenge closer to home. We wish him all the very best for the future.
We’re also pleased to have Mark Matzopoulos working alongside the group in a consultancy role, adding further expertise to the coaching environment.
More additions to follow on this exciting time for Barnes.
An exciting season lies ahead. ?
Massive Monday for our Under 14s Girls at The Stoop
This weekend the Minis have the Harlequins Amateurs Festival on Sunday, and on Monday it is a HUGE day for our Girls section as they play in Surrey Cup Final at The Stoop! Barnes play in a round-robin cluster against Reeds, Weybridge and London Irish.
Gates open at 5pm, it is free to get in KO is at 6:15pm, its free entry and I am reliably informed that the bars are open! It is a very big day in the journey of our Girls section, let’s see how many of us can get down there to make them and Boris happy bunnies!
Goodbye and thank you Taz Bogue!
This Sunday Taz Bogue plays her last game for Barnes. It is a home game kicking off at 2pm on the BEST pitches opposite the clubhouse, please do come down and cheer Taz on her last hurrah.
Taz has had a glittering 10-year playing career for Barnes Rugby Club and she, her wife Lily (also used to be a Barnes player), are moving with their two young sons to Wales. We wish them the very best, and they leave us with oodles Barnow love from us all.
One of her very good playing buddies, former skipper Ruth Mottershead shares her memories below.
Taz is a Barnes legend through and through. For 10 years she has been the life and soul of the team, endlessly funny and a friend to everyone. She has served as 1st team captain, vice captain, social sec. She is one of the best players the team has ever had and was the 1st team Player of the Season for the 19/20 season. Many times, I watched her score outrageous tries she had no right to score, somehow dancing her way through defences with ridiculous footwork. Our 8-man pick has for many years now been known as ‘Taz Ball’ for good reason.
Off the pitch Taz could be found drinking big, delicious beers in the clubhouse. Top memories include her flying home from tour in a full ABBA suit, her famous Donald Trump impersonations, and the time she accidentally gave me a vodka shot in my eye. You always knew a social would be a good time if Taz was there.
She will be missed by everyone, and I feel lucky to be her friend.
Colts go on first ever tour to Amsterdam - words by Danny Prior
Our Colts tour broke new ground this year with a trip to Haagsche Rugby Club in the Netherlands at the start of the Easter holidays. Getting to the Hague is a breeze on the Eurostar and we somehow managed to keep the group together through the many distractions of the historic city centre before the match.
HRC have around 600 Juniors and field three Colts sides - with a superb clubhouse and facilities, they were excellent hosts and also proved to be a real test for our players.
The match was full of attacking intent from the start - after Barnes took an early lead, some strong midfield running and sharp offloads brought HRC back into contention. Our own former Hague player, Melchior, was in fine form at fullback - while Leo deserves a special mention for his contribution, in his first appearance of the season after recovering from long-term injury. One of our original Minis, Patrick, scored two excellent tries to give Barnes a late lead, but HRC claimed a deserved victory in the final minutes of the game.
A return trip by HRC to London is already being discussed - they are a proper rugby club with a strong female section as well as multiple men's teams and are well worth considering for any Barnes tour.