Pre Match
Injuries to George and Jacob mean they are unfortunate to miss out. With Charlie terrorising Saracens at the StoneX Stadium, making him unavailable for this match, 20 players were selected:
1. Joe D
2. Will M
3. James H
4. Callum C-D
5. Thomas H
6. Joel S
7. Tom McD
8. Will H (c)
9. Alfred A (vc)
10. Alfie O
11. Dylan G
12. Oscar H
13. Wyatt B
14. Max H
15. Rhys S
16. Thom B
17. Henry S
18. Dan O
19. Sam B
20. Aidan S

K's boarded the coach to Newark on a blisteringly hot day, ready to do battle and defend their title.

Unfortunately, there were timing issues, meaning the kick-off was delayed until 13:45 (or brought forward 15 mins depending on who you ask!), meaning K's were held in a hot, sweaty (AWAY TEAM) changing room far longer than they should have been - not the ideal start!

Both teams emerged from the tunnel side by side to rapturous support. The scene was set.

First Half
Wyatt kicked off the first half with a lovely kick that was taken well by the home team. Sorry, I mean the team playing at their own neutral venue! K's conceded an early penalty which pink kicked to touch for a lineout. The lineout wasn't straight, so K's called a scrum, which they immediately dominated. A promising early move was unfortunate to have been thwarted with a knock on, giving the home team (ahem) a scrum. K's were caught defending too narrowly and pink were around the outside for the first score, 7-0

Wyatt hoisted another lovely restart into the air, which the home team (I'm going to keep saying it!) kicked into touch. K's won the lineout and released Oscar on a break. He won a penalty from which K's were able to release skipper Will H to score K's first of the match. Wyatt's conversion just shaved the outside of the post, 7-5.

The home team were offside from their restart, giving K's a scrum. There was then a break in play as attention was given to the Newark prop. Play restarted with a home team penalt,y which they managed to score from, 14-5.

Wyatt fired another excellent restart into the air. Pink dealt with it, but Will H jackaled it and won a penalty to K's who went along the line to Max, who was tackled just short in the corner. The resulting lineout was kicked clear to Rhys, who ran it back well and earned K's a penalty. Wyatt pointed to the sticks and slotted the ball through the middle, 14-8.

The home team's restart bounced into touch off a K's hand, but Joel stole the lineout. Max tidied the bouncing ball and sent it along the line to Wyatt, who kicked clear, resulting in a pink lineout on their own 22m. Joel was on hand to steal the ball from the following phase, K's piled forward to Joel, whose selfless pass enabled Thomas H to power over for his traditional one try of the season! Wyatt added the two to give K's the lead, 14-15.

The restart was well taken by Joel, and K's were given a penalty for a high tackle. Wyatt kicked to touch to give K's an attacking position on the home team's 10m. Joel rose majestically into the air, setting up a good rolling maul for K's, which pink could only stop by conceding a penalty. Wyatt kicked for the corner, setting up a lineout on 5m. But it wasn't straight, and the home team had a scrum. They tried to run out, but a forward pass halted their exit. K's knocked on after the scrum, the home team missed touch, and K's came back with the ball. Alfie O's grubber through was inviting for Dylan as the defence hacked it away at the last moment. From the lineout, K's set up another rolling maul and Will M crashed over! Wyatt added the two again with another lovely kick, 14-22.

Will H caught the restart and recycled the ball, setting up a lovely break from Tom McD. He crashed into the fullback and popped up the ball to Rhys, who managed to release Wyatt. He was stopped just short, and his offload was batted back towards their own line by the home team, who kicked clear. However, they didn't find touch. Rhys launched the counter, feeding Will H. Max, who somehow caught the ball below knee height before being hit by two defenders into touch. The pass was deemed forward, giving the home team a scrum 7m from their line. They ran it, made a break, but then knocked on the ball to give K's a lead at halftime.

Second Half
An unfortunate interception at the start of the second half raised Newark's hopes and narrowed the score. The home team won a scrum from the restart as Callum was given treatment for a head knock. The game restarted and pink were awarded a penalty which they kicked for posts, taking the lead and gaining the momentum, 24-22.

Another lovely restart from Wyatt somehow resulted in a penalty for the home team, which they promptly knocked on under pressure from K's, giving K's a scrum 5m inside their own half. K's then won a penalty, which they took quickly. Wyatt's lovely grubber kick put pressure on the home team's defence and earned a 5m scrum. Sam powered over and got the ball down. Sam began to stand to celebrate, and a hand slipped under the ball, which gave the referee a misleading view, and he deemed the ball held up. From the goalline drop out, Aidan released Wyatt, to Thom B, who caused chaos on the defence. Sam broke through and released Oscar. K's had two men outside, but they overran it, and Oscar's offload bounced agonisingly into touch. Fine margins! From the lineout, the home team kicked clear, then high-tackled Rhys. Wyatt kicked to touch, giving K's a lineout 10m inside the home team's half. K's probed but were turned over, and the home team broke to score an unlikely try. Fine margins! 31-22.

K's again came forward, Wyatt's kick through setting up an attacking lineout. But it was stolen. The kick clear was charged down and fell to Wyatt, but desperate defence prevented the try, causing a knock-on a couple of phases later. K's won a scrum from the home scrum and released Oscar, who crashed over, 31-29 (Wyatt added the kick).

Thom B took the restart well and went on a strong run before Rhys was dump tackled. The penalty was awarded, but there was no card, which would prove to be a big decision at the end of the game! Wyatt kicked to touch to set up a lineout between the home team's 10m and 22m. K's worked a good maul and they released the backs, but somehow the ball was stolen and K's then conceded a penalty, setting up a lineout on the away team's 10m. The chip through was dealt with by Rhys, who kicked clear. The home team kicked back, but the ball bounced dead, giving K's a scrum on the home team's 10m. They then won a penalty from which Wyatt's kick set up a lineout on 15m. Oscar powered through again to give K's the lead, and Wyatt added the two to make it five. 31-36

At this point, there were only three minutes left on the clock. The home team won a lineout, which Joel stole brilliantly. K's then won a penalty, electing not to kick, but to release Will H, who powered to the halfway line before desperate defence dislodged the ball, giving the home team a scrum in the final minute. With the last play of the game, the home team found some room around the outside and touched down to level the scores! K's watched on nervously, but the kick drifted wide and the final whistle blew, 36-36.

Post Match
There was an air of confusion as the officials went to check with NLD what the outcome was. Much head scratching took place. If this were a semi-final, K's would have won as the away team. But since the game was played at Newark's home ground, a well-known neutral venue, apparently that rule didn't apply. On countback, the teams couldn't be split - both teams scored five, converted four, had one penalty, and no cards (remember the dump tackle?). And thus, the game was called a draw, with both teams sharing the trophy.

K's felt like they left a couple of scores out there and could have prevented one or two of the home team's tries, but cannot complain about the outcome - on the day, a draw was a fair result. K's remain undefeated in the competition for three years and emerge as champions, successfully retaining their title and achieving the back-to-back-to-back dream! Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard to support the boys in this campaign, particularly the coaches and volunteers who have given so much of their time and energy. And a huge congratulations to the boys, who showed grit and determination to face adversity and come back from a 9-point deficit with only 14 minutes left on the clock. We are all immensely proud of you!