Earlsheaton on road to Wembley

The youngsters have overcome huge odds to reach the national stages of the Carnegie Champion Schools competition, which will culminate in two sides playing a curtain raiser before the Challenge Cup final in August.

Earlsheaton finished second in the Kirklees leg of the competition, which qualified them for the Yorkshire stages.

They have now won through to the semi-finals, where they will meet Sirius Academy of Hull, who defeated Dewsbury’s St John Fisher High School 16-10 in an earlier round.

If they are successful, Earlsheaton would meet the winners of Honley and Castleford High in the Yorkshire final.

This is the first time the Earlsheaton school has progressed to this stage but whatever the result of the Yorkshire semi-final they will be entered into the national stages.

Eight of the youngsters play for Shaw Cross Sharks, three are at Batley Boys and one from Dewsbury Celtic.

Dewsbury Rams community coach James Stephenson has been helping train the lads, seven of who were part of Bywell’s Kirklees Schools winning team of last year.

Stephenson said: “The boys have shown great commitment and flare in all the games and have been victorious against schools that were tipped to progress in the competition.

“We have been overlooked and seen as underdogs to date but I believe that the team will now be respected more than before. There is a real buzz within the side and a lot more rugby for the boys to display.”