RAMS’ Director of Rugby Seb Reynolds believes his squad are heading in the right direction as he looked back on a successful National One campaign ahead of Saturday’s end-of-season presentation evening.
Rams suffered last gasp heartbreak on the final weekend of the season as Cambridge pipped them to the title with a bonus point win over Birmingham Moseley meant they finished with a superior points difference.
Both teams won 22 of their 25 league fixtures as Reynolds expressed his optimism for the future after his side’s remarkable campaign.
He said: “The players can be incredibly proud of what they’ve done, they’ve been amazing and the way they’ve been supported by the Ramily has been superb.
“Things are building and building off the back of what the players are doing and the way we’re playing.
“The atmosphere on matchday is superb and we want to be the club representing the Reading area, the Thames Valley, that’s our ambition.
“If we can progress and become a hotbed for any talent in the area who wants to play rugby at a very high level, it’s what we’d love to do.”
Across the season Rams used 40 players in first-team action, recording a stunning 24 try bonus-points as they racked up 951 points at an impressive average of 35.47 per game.
Leading the way among the try-scorers was long-term servant Jak Rossiter, the wing crossing the whitewash 20 times, while he was followed by young hooker Max Hayman (17).
The talismanic duo of Axel Kalling-Smith (13) and James McRae (10), who made only two first-team starts each the year before, also hit double figures, with fly-half Alex Seers the top point-scorer with 119 despite missing chunks of the season through injury.
Reynolds believes the mix of youth and experience played its part in the successful campaign, and will continue to do so in the future.
He continued: “You can’t be over-reliant on guys who have experience – even though it does make them how good they are – you’ve got to always be pushing forward and bringing the next crop through.
“I feel as a club we’re doing that and if you look at the young players we have around the squad, the way Max Hayman has kicked on this year, Paul Englezos, Ollie Moffitt, Monye, Rowan Grundy, I’m sure (captain) Robbie (Stapley) still has 10 more years in him, the blend is very good and we have progressed this year.”
By Richard Ashton
