Norwich School's rugby team will be backed by an army of travelling fans at Twickenham this afternoon when they take on Sandbach in the Daily Mail RBS Under-18 Vase final.

Norwich School's rugby team will be backed by an army of travelling fans at Twickenham this afternoon when they take on Sandbach in the Daily Mail RBS Under-18 Vase final.

It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the boys to play on the hallowed turf while it will also be an historic day for the school, which has never previously played at the home of English rugby.

Six coaches will make the trip to London where the team will be roared on by nearly 1,000 fans.

Head master Jim Hawkins will be among the massive support, as the school looks to be crowned English national schools champions for the first time in its history.

Norwich School had never advanced past the last 16 before this season, but they reached the final this year with a hard-earned 13-6 win over The Coopers' Company and Coborn School of Essex.

In the game at Broadstreet, near Coventry, the side was supported by a coach load of fans, including the head master, but they conceded the first points of the game.

Tries from second row Tom Ramsey and open-side flanker George Fenton, either side of another Sandbach penalty, gave Norwich School the advantage, and an excellent penalty from captain Rhys Davies-Horne followed, securing the team's passage into the final.

The school's head of rugby Ian Grisewood has always targeted winning the final at the famous 82,000 capacity venue.

He said: "When we set out on this journey in October, winning the whole competition was our objective and we will need to roll our sleeves up and work hard in the final to achieve that."

The tournament is organised by the Rugby Football Union, the governing body of English rugby, and England internationals such as Jonny Wilkinson, Matthew Tait and Danny Cipriani have all featured in the competition.

Today's match kicks off at 2pm, with tickets costing �7 for adults and �4 for under-16s.