On Saturday, Farnham’s 4th Team (‘The Barbarians’) took on Farnham’s Veterans (‘L’Escargot’) in a spirited charity match, raising an impressive £600 for the RFU's Injured Players Foundation.

The Foundation does incredible work supporting rugby players across all levels who have suffered severe injuries, helping them and their families navigate the challenges of recovery, and funding research to make the game safer. The irony of supporting such a charity wasn’t lost on the Vets, who lost four players to injury in this game alone!

The final score was 43-24 to the Vets, but as the old adage goes, "rugby was the real winner”. The Vets initially dazzled with the fluidity of a team that’s spent a summer playing touch rugby - light on contact, heavy on chats about the good old days. Their early dominance, however, was soon tempered by a sobering realisation: they couldn’t fit their usual Saturday afternoon snooze in. The 4th Team, bursting with youthful vigour and a noticeable lack of creaking joints, capitalised with some rapid tries, reminding everyone that while experience counts for a lot, fresh legs and an ability to sprint without it looking like a slow-motion replay do have their perks.

The game was played in great spirits, with plenty of wholesome and encouraging words exchanged between the players on both sides, and the referee, one Mr Steven Douglas (usually of the Vets team), given a limousine-ride of a game, with barely a single comment on his performance, eyesight, fitness, pace, tummy-size, or lack of hair.

Special mentions most go to Charlie Merrells, scoring his first ever try in Farnham colours by finishing off a peach of a play by the Vets (and one which, by the time it had been retold in the bar enough times afterwards, would have required a pitch that was 320m long and an opposition of 28 players...), James Reed for reportedly breaking the World Record for longest ever try by a prop, Sam Woodhams, moonlighting from the 2nd XV, for actually looking like he had done some pre-season training. And of course Dave Hall deserves a special mention too, not for his on-field performance by any stretch of the imagination, but for pulling the whole event together with the RFU's Injured Players Foundation, and putting a smile on many faces.

So, while the Vets might have edged the scoreline, it’s fair to say both teams emerged winners in a match where the tries were plentiful, the humour was rich, and the pints afterwards were probably the most important performance-enhancing fluid of the day.

Here's to rugby, charity, and the eternal hope that none of us will require our fundraising back from the IPF any time soon!