COLCHESTER Rugby Club’s under-16s were crowned champions at the Ultimate Rugby Sevens National Championships, in Hampshire.

The squad played some magnificent sevens rugby throughout the day, with all 12 players fully contributing to a memorable outcome.

Colchester progressed through the group stages after playing confident, well-structured sevens and displaying excellent handling skills.

They beat Brockworth 36-0, Newbury 24-14 and Harrow 43-7 to set up a semi-final meeting with hosts Basingstoke.

In front of a boisterous home crowd, Basingstoke produced a brand of confrontational sevens that Colchester had not previously encountered.

But Colchester remained true to their principles and backed their superior pace and handling to win 29-21.

However, the win was soured when hooker Joe Cook dislocated his kneecap in the act of scoring, on the final play of the game.

Undaunted, Colchester progressed to the final where they renewed their rivalry with old foes Worthing.

Colchester trailed to an early score from the talented Worthing centre but then scored three unanswered tries to take charge of the game.

Worthing roared back to cut their deficit to just three points, with two minutes remaining.

But Colchester refused to panic and kept possession well.

They carved out openings against their tiring opponents to score twice more and record a superb 31-14 victory and lift the trophy.