All-conquering Colston's return

The return of Colston's to the Daily Mail Under-18 Cup after a three-season absence will send shivers through their rivals.

Olly Barkley, now a Bath and England fly half, led the last Colston's team to a sixth successive victory at Twickenham in 2000/01, even though the rules had been changed that year to allow a maximum of three players in a team who had joined the school in the sixth form.

The Bristol school had already been at the forefront of rugby development for a decade, offering scholarships to promising players in the West Country and Wales.

The rule change was an attempt to level the playing field for schools unable to import star players and in the last cup-winning season, Colston's had to run two first teams to fulfil cup ties as well as regular fixtures.

Coach Alan Martinovic said: 'There was a lot of pressure on us and we decided to take a break, but there is nothing quite like the Daily Mail Cup and the boys want to be in it. The lure of a Twickenham appearance is very special.'

Colston's want to win the cup in the English Schools Union centenary season. This will include 18 Group and 16 Group games againstWales, who won the first schoolboy international at Cardiff back in 1904.