BLAYDON forwards Andrew Archibald and Mark Wilson were in the England Students squad of 26 which defied the weather to complete a twoday training camp this week.

The Northumbria University pair travelled down to Birmingham, where training went ahead on the university’s snow-covered all-weather surface.

Also involved were five Durham students – James Crozier, Oliver Mines, Tom Shiel, Mike Ward and Alex Waddingham.

The Students’ first match is against Portugal in Lisbon on January 27, and they play Irish Colleges at Newcastle on February 26.

Meanwhile, five North-East clubs will soon be erecting new sets of posts thanks to a sponsorship partnership involving the Rugby Football Union and Sport England.

Northallerton, Guisborough, Jarrovians, Sedgefield and Gosforth are among 75 clubs nationwide to benefit from the RFU’s goalpost safety scheme, with each receiving a set of new posts, delivered free and complete with ‘This is Rugby’ branded post protector pads.

The clubs, nominated by their counties, are those deemed to be most in need of replacing their existing posts and those who represent the core values of the game.

■ Durham RFU need an administrator/ office manager to work 20 hours a week at their office in Gateshead International Stadium.

The aim is to maintain the growth of rugby within the county and help develop the game at all levels by supporting the work of the RFU development team.

The job will involve dealing with enquiries, producing correspondence and spreadsheets, maintaining attendance reports and regular communication with volunteer workers, as well as the development staff. Deadline for applications is January 15 and interviews will take place a week later. Candidates should send a letter and CV to the Hon sec, Durham RFU, Gateshead Stadium, Neilsen Road, Gateshead NE10 OEF.