The 1st XV make the trip across London on Saturday to face old rivals Blackheath.
The 1st XV are coming off the back of an impressive 42-29 victory against Cinderford last weekend that saw 6 different try scorers help to wrestle back some momentum heading into the penultimate fixture of the calendar year. As it stands, Park sit in 5th on the league table, just 2 points behind Sedgley Park (who have a game in hand) and 5 points adrift of Plymouth in 3rd meaning the stakes are as high as can be as we head into back-to-back London derbies to end 2023.
The first of those derbies is this weekend’s matchup against Blackheath who currently sit in 8th on 30 points having won 5 from 11 matches so far. The East London outfit have hit a rocky patch of form after starting the season on fire, winning 4 of their opening 6 matches. Since then, however, they have lost 4 from 5 and are coming off back-to-back losses to Birmingham Moseley and Rams.
But, despite the mixed bag of results so far, they will likely take confidence from their performances at home. Of their games at Well Hall this season, Blackheath have only lost twice, including their most recent outing a fortnight ago against top-of-the-table Rams which ended in a 22-42 defeat. They have also recorded a number of big wins at home this season, including a dominant 43-13 victory against DMP and a 52-12 thrashing of Cinderford.
From a Park perspective, getting a result at Well Hall has been similarly challenging in recent years. We haven’t won at Blackheath since 2017, although multiple opportunities to break this streak were missed thanks first to Covid and then to Blackheath’s relegation to National League 2 East last season. Overall, Blackheath have just about had the better of the clashes between the two sides in recent memory. Since 2009/10, Park have won 9, lost 12 and drawn 1 against Blackheath; a fairly even head-to-head record, the 1st XV will be hopeful in improving upon this at the weekend.
For Park fans travelling to support the squad, please find matchday information from Blackheath:
Access & Parking
- Onsite parking is available for cars, at £5 per car. We encourage people to travel by public transport where possible. Eltham station is a 10-minute walk and there are numerous bus services, notably to Greenwich and Woolwich served by DLR/London Underground. Street parking in the vicinity is very restricted.
- Note – Kidbrooke Lane cannot be accessed by motor vehicles from Well Hall Road, please use west entrance (Westhorne Avenue).
Admission
Gate admission is £15. Tickets may be purchased in advance at here:
- Please ensure you bring your ticket with you.
- Plenty of seating (with no additional charge).
No Dogs Policy
- Well Hall grounds and facilities are in constant use for sports by both adults and children and we therefore operate a strict ‘No Dogs’ policy.