JERSEY RFC will travel to Bracknell RFC tomorrow for a scheduled 2:30pm kick-off, knowing victory at Lily Hill Park would seal the Regional League 1 South Central title and promotion to the National Leagues.
Jersey have proved themselves the dominant force in the division this season, winning all 17 of their league matches so far and moving to the brink of a third promotion in four seasons.
One more victory would confirm top spot and continue a remarkable rise for the Islanders, something JRFC Director of Rugby and head coach Myles Landick knows all too well.
“It’ll be huge,” he said. “The squad have put so much hard work in to get to this stage unbeaten and on the brink of promotion is a hell of an achievement. I’ll also be chuffed for everyone at the club behind the scenes as well – the coaches, the medical staff, the S&C guys, the committee – everyone who has worked so hard to allow the boys to be in this position.
“But it’s also a huge credit to the players and coaches for what they’ve achieved. If we do get promoted tomorrow, then three promotions in four seasons is an incredible achievement and something that really shouldn’t be underestimated in Island sport.”
Bracknell, however, are unlikely to make things straightforward. They sit sixth in the table with 10 wins and eight defeats and arrive in strong form, having won four of their last five games. When the sides met earlier in the campaign, Jersey edged a tight contest 14–7 at CoinShares Park in November, underlining the competitive nature of recent encounters.
Landick highlighted the remarkable consistency of the current squad, who have lost only five handful of matches in recent seasons.
“I think the players now have lost five games in close to 80 matches which is such an impressive achievement,” he added. “We want to make the island proud. Getting back to the National Leagues is a fantastic achievement.”
Despite Jersey sitting 17 points clear at the top of the table, Landick insists standards have not dropped, saying: “training this week was superb. You might think a team that far clear with only a few games left wouldn’t be pushing so hard, but it’s quite the opposite. It was as intense as I’ve seen and the boys are working as hard as ever.
“We have three goals this season – win the league, go unbeaten and win the Siam Cup. If we are successful tomorrow then it’s on to the next goal. These moments in your rugby career don’t come around often, so we need to embrace it.”
Player-coach Scott Van Breda (right), a former professional with the Jersey Reds and a key member of the side that claimed the RFU Championship in 2016/17, echoed those sentiments, emphasising the squad’s focus on taking each week as it comes.
“This was a huge goal of ours in the background and week by week we’ve made sure not to get too ahead of ourselves,” said the powerful South African. “That’s helped in the tight games where we’ve had to dig deep. We’ve known for the past couple of months that every team we face treats it like their World Cup final – everyone wants to be the team that puts a loss on our record.”
Van Breda, who is currently the joint-leading try scorer and second highest points scorer in the league, said the squad have embraced the challenge of chasing an unbeaten season.
“There are only a handful of teams unbeaten across the UK at all levels and we want to be one of those come the end of the season and achieve that ‘invincible’ tag. It’s super exciting to have the chance to wrap it up this weekend. Training this week was excellent, really intense, the boys were right up for it.”
He also pointed to the strength of the group and the club’s pathway system, with a significant Island presence in the squad.
“With the team this weekend we have eight out of the 18 who are Jersey born and bred, which is massive. You can see the work that’s been done in minis and juniors over many years to help bring these players through.
“This promotion would be a really positive step in the right direction for where this club wants to go. We want it to be a big dream for young kids to want to play for Jersey.”
Van Breda believes the club can become a source of inspiration across the Island’s sporting landscape.
“We want to be a beacon of light for sport in Jersey and see how far we can push it,” he said. “It’s a privilege to be part of this group. Hopefully we can put in a performance everyone is proud tomorrow of and get that win, secure the league and move on to the remaining goals we have before the end of the season.”
Standing in their way is a confident Bracknell side determined not to see the title celebrations unfold on their own ground — setting the stage for what promises to be a fiercely contested afternoon at Lily Hill Park.
To access the website, including, fixtures, results, stats and league tables, click the link; https://www.englandrugby.com/fixtures-and-results/search-results?competition=261&season=2025-2026&division=66524#overview
PREMIER LEAGUE 3
