SHOALS’ Alexander Wilson has recently completed a tour with the Royal Australian Navy Rugby Union side – in which he was named captain.
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Wilson, who was joined by fellow Shoals players Josh Deckart, Tim Lovett, Clarke Chancellor, Harri Hibbs, Corey Lee and Jarod Burton in the side, played three matches while on the Commonwealth Navies Rugby Union Championship tour.
After one week’s training in Sydney, the squad headed to France for a trial game against the French navy.
“We played against the French in -3 degree weather, wet and with 60 knot winds,” Wilsons aid.
“It was a pretty horrible experience for the team and it showed in the score, unfortunately going down 41-3.”
After this trial game, Wilson’s troops headed to Portsmouth, United Kingdom to play against the President’s XV and Royal Navy.
“We unfortunately lost to the President’s XV 15-nil,” Wilson said,
“It was 5-nil at half time and we played really well – they just got away from us with some lucky tries.
“Shoals’ Tim Lovett was a stand-out, being named best on ground.”
In their third match, Wilson’s team didn’t fair any better, falling 61-nil to the Royal Navy side.
“During all three matches, the Shoals players were an integral part of this side and all did the team proud,” he said.
Wilson, who will play in Perth this season, finished the tour off with a match for a Barbarians side – a combination of both the Royal Navy and Australian navy – against a local Hampshire side, which they also lost 42-15.
The other five Shoals players are now on their way back to the South Coast, where they will play for the Shoalhaven Rugby Club in 2018.