This season will rank as one of the most successful for Holt RFC.
Inevitably most attention has been focused on the First XV who won their promotion play-off against East London. However the contender for ‘team of the season’ may well be Holt’s Second XV. ‘The Owls’ were not only were promoted as EC2 North champions but will play UEA on May 4th in the final of the Norfolk Junior cup.

The Owls combine a remarkable blend of youth and experience. They are captained by a 48-year-old forward Tommy Rathleff who is Danish and claims to be in his last season, though Holt’s coaching team may have other plans. Tommy has identified a number of players who have developed well over the winter and will hopefully go on to feature regularly for Holt’s First XV in the years ahead. They include outside-half Will Allen, second row Taylor Gowing and hooker Barnaby Gill.

The Owls have always been able to score tries but now their defensive set-up has improved significantly as well. Tommy Rathleff attributes this in part to a deliberately consistent pattern of play across all the teams in the Holt Club. This means that players can more readily adapt as they progress between sides and levels. This all suggests that the considerable investment that Holt have made in coaching is now paying dividends on the field.
Equally important is the fact that this season the club has been able to retain players. Many of the former colts who have gone off to University or College return to play in the vacation or when their studies are complete. Indeed this season Holt have been able to put out three full teams regularly and on some occasions disappointing some players who were available but could not be slotted in to a place.

Tommy Rathleff is modest about his own contribution to the Owl’s success. However Holt Club Chairman Ben Jones is unstinting in his praise. “Tommy is an inspirational captain, he is a real character and manages to get commitment from all the players. It is hard to say ‘no’ to him and we now have far more second- team players who are willing to train”. Ben Jones emphasises that the balance of youth and experience is working well and the investment in coaching is producing a bright future for the Club. There is a real air of optimism at Holt’s Bridge Road ground as the season comes to an end.

A slightly different version of this article appeared in the North Norfolk News 25th April - photo Stuart Young