PRE-MATCH LUNCH
This season lunches will again need to be booked in advance (by 23:59 on the Thursday) using a simple on-line reservation & payment system. Due to a maximum capacity this will be on a first-come-first-served basis.
The link to book your place at a lunch is:-
https://events.liveit.io/ian-tynedale/tynedale-rfc-pre-match-lunch-booking-202425-4/

Once payment is made an email ticket/receipt will be sent.

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LADIES DAY
This week we celebrate LADIES DAY at Tynedale Park. This is an opportunity for wives, mothers, grandmothers, sisters and girlfriends to join friends at the club for a wonderful afternoon of drinks, a two-course meal, music and live rugby.

Tynedale RFC v Otley RUFC
Saturday 5th April 2025 (KO 3pm)

WELCOME

This Saturday our visitors are Otley RUFC who have always been a leading rugby union club in Yorkshire as well as long-time rivals and friends of Tynedale, so we are delighted to welcome their players, officials and supporters to Tynedale Park.

We also, of course, extend a warm welcome to this week’s match officials Tom Hurdley, Rebecca Rees and Dean Lythgoe.
To EVERYBODY - Enjoy your day

RECENT OTLEY/TYNEDALE MATCHES
1st October 2022 - Tynedale 22 Otley 25
29th April 2023 - Otley 22 Tynedale 24
11th November 2023 - Otley 31 Tynedale 26
9th March 2024 - Tynedale 24 Otley 22
7th December 2024 - Otley 26 Tynedale 41

In 22 league matches – Tynedale Won 13 (609 points)
- Otley Won 7 (490 points)
Two drawn matches

OTLEY SCRUM-HALVES
The Otley scrum-half today (Sam Connor?) has some famous scrum-halves to try to emulate in this match, for Otley RUFC’s junior section has produced two English International scrum-halves, Nigel Melville (b.1961) who won 13 caps for England and is now Director of Professional Rugby for the RFU, and Danny Care (b.1987), who won 101 caps for the England team before retiring from International rugby last year.
(NB Only five players have more than 100 England caps - Ben Youngs, Jason Leonard, Owen Farrell, Dan Cole and Courtney Lawes).

TYNEDALE’S FALLEN FORTRESS
For many years Tynedale Park was a difficult place for visiting teams to win, This season the 1stXV has only won 4 of the 11 matches played here, a win percentage of only 36.3%.
Fortunately, the away record, with 6 wins from 12 matches is much better.

Why is this?
Since season 2017/18 when the 1stXV won 13 of 15 home matches (86.6%) the ratio of wins at home has fallen to 53.8% last season (7 wins from 13 matches). Do the Tyne players find the home crowd intimidating rather than supportive?
It is true that the team never seems to play well when there is a good (and critical) crowd on the day of the Past Players’ Lunch. A fortnight ago, after that lunch, against Hull Ionians the side only woke up in the second half. Are home spectators too demanding, or is it that the players are trying too hard to please? Or is it that single Crow?

We may get an answer this Saturday.

OTLEY THIS SEASON
Otley currently sit in 10th position in the league, four places below Tynedale with 14 fewer league points. Although 7 points clear of relegation places, such is the current form of the lower teams that Otley will be very keen to get the one win which would make them safe.
Otley’s results have been mixed this season, to say the least, with some very impressive scorelines mixed with disappointing defeats.
Another tough match is in store as we look to put right a season of unflattering home performances,

OTLEY’S LEAGUE RESULTS TO DATE:-
Hull 12 Otley 13
Otley 20 Leeds Tykes 24
Billingham 19 Otley 17
Otley 44 Wharfedale 31
Sheffield 38 Otley 15
Otley 45 Preston Grasshoppers 22
Lymm 53 Otley 22
Otley 19 Chester 14
Fylde 56 Otley 29
Otley 24 Sheffield Tigers 24
Harrogate 39 Otley 7
Otley 26 Tynedale 41
Otley 36 Hull Ionians 35
Leeds Tykes 33 Otley 10
Wharfedale 42 Otley 28
Otley 24 Sheffield 31
Preston Grasshoppers 27 Otley 24
Otley 31 Lymm 7
Otley 51 Billingham 15
Chester 24 Otley 40
Otley 19 Fylde 18
Sheffield Tigers 38 Otley 23
Otley 17 Harrogate 24

OTLEY WEBSITE
https://www.pitchero.com/clubs/otley

MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Tom Hurdley
AR1: Rebecca Rees
AR2:Dean Lythgoe

BALL BOYS
Tynedale Under 15’s

WEATHER FORECAST
Sunny intervals, gentle easterly breeze, 11 degrees

OTHER TYNEDALE (Senior Section) MATCHES THIS WEEKEND
SATURDAY
Sunderland Shipwrights v Tynedale Raiders (3pm) CaNDY League 1 0
Sunderland Keelmen v Tynedale Centurions (3pm) – CaNDY 3N League Tynedale Colts at Keslo 7’s (12noon)

SELECTED SQUADS