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Old Centralians Rugby Club chairman Stan Fritchley’s plea to players

Gloucester > Sport > Rugby Union

Author: Roger Jackson, Posted: Tuesday, 25th April 2017, 17:20

Stan Fritchley, the chairman of Old Centralians Rugby Club, plans to call a meeting to discuss the past season and the way forward for the club.

It promises to be an interesting debate after a season which has seen Old Cents - relegated from National League Three South West the previous campaign - make little or no impact on the top teams in South West One East.

“It’s been an indifferent season by our standards,” admitted Fritchley. “It’s been player commitment more than anything else and that’s something I want to improve.

“In my day if you played rugby you put that before everything else. Nowadays players pick and choose when they want to play a lot more.

“After our relegation I’d hoped we’d challenge for the top spots but it hasn’t happened. An indifferent attitude and injuries have meant there has been no continuity.

“We’ve had five or six players who play every week but we haven’t fielded our strongest side all season.

“If we had, I’m sure we’d have been challenging for the top. It’s all a bit frustrating.”

Fritchley’s love for the club is not in doubt, describing himself as “born and bred Old Cents”.

He played for the club until he was 40 and said. “I played scrum-half and anywhere outwards.” His brothers David and Joe captained the club, and his nephew Scott has led the first team for the past two seasons.

The Fritchley connection doesn’t end there because Stan’s son Mark is the fixture secretary and also plays in the second row or no 8 for the second team and the first team when needed.

The first team, meanwhile, can at least go some way to making up for their up and down league form this season by winning the North Gloucestershire Combination Senior Cup at Kingsholm on May 7.

They booked their place in the final with a 41-34 win over Chosen Hill and will now play Coney Hill.

A win at the home of Gloucester Rugby will give them something to hang onto over the summer months ahead of the 2017/18 season which marks the club’s 80th anniversary.

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