THE full force of the Jersey RFC Academy – and the senior club – will be willing the Island’s rugby youths to win the U18 County Cup final at St Peter tomorrow.

As the first Jersey Academy side to reach a county final, they certainly have not lacked for preparation, though their games programme, which lacks league involvement, is again nowhere near as good as their opponents, old rivals and friends Gosport and Fareham.

Training, upped to three times a week as the big day approached, has been intense, with head coach Bobby Shambrook calling on a team of willing helpers to guide the players in addition to regulars Mick Mayo and Mick Curtin.

Siam Cup legend Les Small has been working with the backs and Andy Mayo helping with the forwards.

Several of the squad have also benefited immensely from training with and being coached by the club’s senior players, Nathan Kemp, Latu Maka’afi, Graham Smith and Kern Yates – not to mention the regular senior coaches led by director of rugby Dai Burton.

So the Jersey side that take to the field at 2.30 tomorrow know they have a wealth of experience and talent behind their preparation Although Gosport will field many of the side that remained unbeaten in the triumphant U19 season, Jersey will fancy their chances if they can reproduce the form they showed in the 15-3 semi-final victory over Havant a few short weeks back.

Their all-round game was excellent then and all but one of that starting line-up will be back tomorrow – No 7 Marc Curtin, the scorer of the second try against Havant, missing out through injury.

Sixteen-year-old Hampshire No 6 Joe Ellyatt switches sides, with the Jersey coaches resisting the temptation to move Somerset county back-rower Charlie Clyde-Smith in from the centre.

The powerful runner forms a new partnership with returning Hampshire county centre Tom Faulkner.

To feed a potent set of backs, Jersey will have to battle hard, but with discipline, up front.

The fitness levels of the props, the talented Myles Landick and Chris Pople, are improving all the time and they should provide a solid platform in the scrum, while the return to fitness of second-rower Alex Whitehead is a big boost in the line-out.

Kicking is especially vital in cup matches, but Jersey, in Michael Le Bourgeois have a No 10 in good form, so most of the boxes are ticked.

Jersey must show, again, that they can perform when the pressure is on.

To reach the final, which like the semi-final, is sponsored by Bedell Group, Jersey enjoyed a bye in the opening round then had to travel to the Isle of Wight to face Vectis, who had beaten the powerful Basingstoke.

Jersey brushed them aside 44-0 to set up a semi-final between Havant or Farnborough.

The long-running saga whether either side would make it to Jersey was finally resolved, with the Academy boys storming into their first-ever county final.

Gosport and Fareham have also impressed in this competition beating Winchester 15-10 in the quarter final and Petersfield 24-10 in the semi-final.