Connor has also been selected at inside centre for the opening fixture against Wales this Saturday 9th April. The game is being played at the French Rugby Federation National Rugby Centre in Marcoussis, which is just outside Paris. England follow up next week with games against Italy on Wednesday and Scotland on Easter Sunday.
We can proudly proclaim that Connor is a product of the Teddington age group system and here’s a snapshot of Connors rugby journey from the Teddington u6’s to the England u18’s.

It was never really a doubt that Connor would be gently guided towards playing rugby at Teddington. His Dad, Gareth, is a former Antlers 1st XV captain and club chairman and now sits on the clubs management committee whilst Connors Mum, Elaine, was not only an Antlers player, but she was also the fly half for the Scotland Women's team in the 1990’s. At age 6 Connor also got a glimpse of Antlers senior rugby when he was one of the Team mascots for the Mens 1st XV when they played at Twickenham Stadium in the National Cup Finals of 2010 and 2011.

Connor duly joined the club in the u6’s and played right the way through the minis and juniors to the u16’s. As he didn’t go to a rugby playing primary or secondary school all of Connors rugby was nurtured in our age group teams and with the help and guidance of some brilliant coaches and managers his prowess on the pitch grew stronger and stronger as the years progressed. Connor was invited to join the Middlesex Developing Player Programme (DPP) at London Irish as an u14 and progressed on to the London Irish Academy at u16. His progression continued and along with George HAMBLIN, another player off the Antlers production line, he was selected for the u18 Academy. Both Connor and George along with Seb McGILL also represented Middlesex at u15 land u16 level.

Because of all club rugby being stopped for the COVID lockdowns in 2020/21, Connor never got the opportunity to play for the Antlers Colts (u17’s and u18’s), but the current Colts Team have come back really strongly after the break. Apart from finishing runners upon in the Middlesex and Herts Colts league this season, there have also been Middlesex County honours for Ethan DAVIES, Seb McGILL and Jamie WILLIAMS and SE England Regional honours for Gabriel ROBERTS. This is a remarkable achievement for the club and is testament to our dedicated Colts players and the brilliant Colts coaching team lead by Josh PENBERTHY and assisted by Brant PALIN and Dara KANE.

After completing his GCSE’s at The Kingston Academy Connor earned a place in the 6th form at Hampton School. Here his rugby further developed in the school 1st XV and he was invited to an England u18 development training camp at Bisham Abbey in September 2021. With strong performances in the Gallagher Premiership Academy league for the London Irish Academy during December and January Connor was invited along to a further England U18 training camp in February 2022. Here numbers were whittled down even further. His selection for the England Squad of 26 for the upcoming U18 6 Nations, and to make the starting line-up for the Wales game is the culmination of many years of hard work for Connor and he really deserves this opportunity. Connors selection also demonstrates how playing for a community rugby club like Teddington in the early years can really enhance and develop a young rugby player to the highest level.

We wish Connor all the very best for the next couple of weeks and also for the exciting rugby future that lies ahead for him. And on Connors behalf a huge thank you to all the Teddington coaches, players and parents who have helped him on his way.

If you would like further information about joining our Mini (u6 to u11), Junior (u12 to u18), Junior Girls (u13 to u18), Senior Men, Senior Women, Vets (over 35) and Touch Rugby Sections then please email the club via rugby@teddingtonrfc.co.uk