GRITTY city police officers became comeback kings yet again when they snatched victory from the jaws of defeat to win a place in a national final against a formidable Scottish side.
West Mercia Police will take on the Scottish Police Rugby team, the Saltires, for the PSUK Men’s Rugby Plate Final at Sale FC RFC at 1pm on April 22.
Officers from the force may be more used to tackling drug dealers or organised crime groups than other officers.
The clash will see just how long the arm of the law really is as the rivals go head-to-head in lineouts, scrums, rucks and mauls to see whether the English or the Scots will wear the crown.
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It follows a remarkable run of success by the West Mercia side, which reached the final in 2023 before losing to Cheshire. The team will also be hoping to avenge a loss to the Scottish Saltires earlier in the season. Perhaps England’s loss to Scotland in the Six Nations will also be on their mind following a fairly disastrous run in the Calcutta Cup for the England national men’s side.
Worcester officers are represented in the team, including hooker Andy Kilmister, a county response officer who is described as ‘integral to our coaching set up’ while the captain, Ieuan Mustow, is a Worcestershire response officer.
DI Dave Knight, team manager, said: “Following a mix of results this season, the West Mercia men’s rugby team beat Surrey Police in the Police Sports UK Plate semi final last Wedesday at Didcot RFC.
“In typical fashion, we were losing 14-0 early on before coming back to win 21-53. Surrey hadn’t lost for two years. We reached the semi-final of the competition last year losing out to Thames Valley Police, and reached the final in 2023 losing to Cheshire Police. We are hoping to beat Scottish Saltires in the final who we lost to in Edinburgh earlier in the season.”
