Eight teams from the Midlands region contested in the Nuneaton RFC’s
Invitation tournament. The day started with white snow, which soon turned out
to be a warm, sunny afternoon. The conditions were Ideal, for a game of
rugby, although there were small flatters of snow now and then.
Starting with the leagues, RSA played a very tough opener against a Market
Bosworth team. Playing 7 minutes each way the pressure was on to score in
this short time. Market Bosworth, pinned RSA in their own half for the
majority of the match, but good defence from the saints held on to the final
whistle.
Game 2 was played against a Coalville side that dominated the first half
playing down hill and scoring to lead 5-0. RSA pressure led to a try by Captain
Jack Walden who burst through the Coalville defence to score and make it 5-5.
Much of the second half was played in the Coalville half. Good defence from
the opposition kept the saints at bay until the final whistle.
Game 3 which was played straight after, against a confident Lutterworth team
that have being playing well all season. RSA were no match as the opposition
scored 4 tries to secure the win and the eventual winners.
With the league points totalled up. RSA went into the shield semi-finals
against a Leicester Forest East team. RSA were confident winners with six
tries to nil with tries from Rory Evans, Jack Walden, Joe Fokes, Josh Lorimer
and Kieran Walden (2).
In the shield final, RSA played against, previous opponents, Coalville and
lapsed as the opposition scored two tries in the first half
after some poor defending from the team. The tiredness took toll, as the
saints tried but could not break the Coalville defence.
This is the first tournament that the majority of the team have played in,
but the experience that they have built will benefit them as we improve.
St Andrews Under 10’s at Nuneaton Festival
Game 1
Andrews 5
Market Bosworth 15
Game 2
Andrews 40
Coalville 10
Game 3
Andrews 15
Lutterworth 25
Semi Final
Andrews 25 Old Salts 20
Final
Andrews 10 Market Harbrough 30
Well done to all the players on the day in cold and windy
conditions. A good first tournament for the squad with some great individual
performances. Some very strong teams attended and although we lost games we
scored try’s in every match and demonstrated great determination to do well.
Every player gave 100%
Thanks also to the parents for their support (and the food). We
look forward to next year!
U8 and U7s at nuns tournament
U8's (1)
St Andrews 7
Shipston 7
St Andrews
impressed from the start of the game with an early try by William Morgan
forcing Shipston to hit back with a try of their own. St Andrews
defence held strong to secure another try by Harjan Devgun and in an end-to-end
game Shipston once again equalled the score. A few careless mistakes in St
Andrews passing allowed Shipston to capitalise on this and gave them a lead
of 6-3 at half time.
Shipston began the
second half in confident style but St Andrews dug in and Thomas Love scored
the first try of the half. Shipston remained focussed and showed good
support play to score one more try but St Andrews worked hard to score two
more tries by George Bowers and William Morgan. The final score
reflected the efforts of both teams in a fast paced end-to-end game.
U8's (2)
St Andrews 3
Shipston 8
The second match
started in similar style with both teams pushing forward to score consecutive
tries. Weaknesses began to show in St Andrews defence which allowed
Shipston to demonstrate effective passing and support play to take a lead of
3-2 in the first half. Tries were scored for St Andrews by Morgan
Johnson and William Morgan.
Shipston stamped
their authority on the game with a breakaway try early in the second
half. Shipston continued to dominate with St Andrews unable to
penetrate their defence. William Morgan provided a ray of hope for St
Andrews with a confident try but this was not enough to bring them back into
a game which Shipston had dominated.
U8's (3)
St Andrews 3
Shipston 7
Shipston once
again demonstrated their strong defence and support play to score two tries
early in the first half. A somewhat jaded St Andrews side tried hard to
break through Shipstons defence but were stopped at every turn by effective
tagging. A strong run by William Morgan put St Andrews on the
scoreboard whilst Shipston lead 5-1 at half time.
The second half
saw Shipston turn over the ball to score an easy try which allowed them to
further stamp their dominance on the game. William Morgan however
showed great agility and skill to score two more tries for St Andrews and
boost the teams confidence.
U7's
The under 7's team
worked hard against a more experienced Shipston side and showed great
potential with tries by Jordan Ward, Anthony Firkettle and Oscar Farmer.
Match report Rugby U9s against Hinckley
What a fantastic
turn around. On a cold, windy and wet day in Hinckley the boys pulled off an
amazing comeback to win 3 tries to 2. After a cold start the centers (Carter,Ben,Richard)
battling hard were able to push the ball
out and opening up space for Edward and Olli to stretch their legs, Tom was
able to force Hinkley out and stop their progress with Max skirting across
the field to spread the play. Hinkley loaned 3 players (Lewis, Sam
Josh) who really got stuck in, Thanks to them.
U12’s
Hinckley 10 RSA 5
Another close match
resulting in Hinckley winning this reverse fixture, two tries to one. On a
cold, wet and miserable Sunday morning RSA
played with the elements in the first half. But it was Hinckley with their
forwards in dominant form providing a lot of ball for their
backs to run with and keeping the Saints pinned in their own half for the
majority of the first half. The Saints defence was outstanding
and held on until the pressure from the Hinckley’s powerful forward surges on
the flanks resulted in the only try in the first half.
In the second half, RSA played with vigour, particularly the backs, showing
the forwards what they could do if given good clean ball. Most
of the second half RSA camped in the Hinckley half. Breaks by Joe Fokes, Tom
Marshall-Lee and Kieran Walden were thwarted by last minute
tackles. On a rare excursion in the Saints half and against the run of play,
Hinckley scored their second try when the ball spurted out
from the side of the maul, for the Hinckley player to dive onto and score.
But the Saints kept applying the pressure and from maul near the Hinckley
line the Saints forwards won the ball for the backs to pass down
the line resulting in Captain Jack Walden running in the try. Hungry for the
second try, Saints were kept out by some good defensive
tackling until the final whistle, much to the relief of the Hinckley
supporters.
Man of the Match for the forwards went to Adam Tilley. Who showed
determination to seek and execute a technique to out wit his larger,
opposite Prop.
Man of the Match for the backs went to Captain Jack Walden who led by example
with his tackling and running.
U7s and U8s V Hinckley
U8's (1)
St Andrews shocked
Hinckley with an early try from Avneeth Devgun supported by Morgan Johnson.
Hinckley however soon penetrated St Andrews defence.
Further tries were
scored for St Andrews by Avneeth Devgun (2), Joel Cox (2), Sam and Thomas
Love.
U8's (2)
Joel Cox lead the
St Andrews team as captain. The two sides knew they were evenly matched
and provided end to end action. Try scorers were Morgan Johnson (2),
Thomas Love and Avneeth Devgun. The extreme cold was a big factor in
the reduced number of tags pulled by St Andrews.
U7's
St Andrews played
two games in difficult conditions and put up a brave fight against a more
experienced Hinckley side. Tries were scored by Jordan Ward and Jake
Love with Bailey Johnson being named as man of the match.
Under 10's
> St Andrews V Hinckley
Andrews played two games and
were a few players down on a very wet and windy morning at Hinckley. Hinckley
took advantage of a slow start from Andrews and scored a quick try through
their backs to go one up. Andrews quickly re grouped and within a
couple of minutes the ball was passed to Sam Elliott who used his pace
beating the Hinckley back line to score a try for the Andrews. Competition in
the forwards for the ball was fierce as both teams ripped the ball in the
mauls and tried to find space. It was Andrews who made ground as the forwards
drove hard and off loaded the ball well in the tackle. Hinckley's forward
where strong and showed powerful driving in the scrum turning over Andrews
ball in the process. As the second half continued it was
Andrews who drove for the line and Matty Crofts Captain for The Andrews drove
over to score a try. Final score in the first match 10 - 5 to Hinckley.
The second game proved tough for Andrews. Fresh legs for Hinckley soon pushed
Andrews back and their forwards scored. Andrews pushed them back into their
own half and showed some great team play in passing, offloading> and
ripping the ball. George Mortimer Lane, Karl and Stephan Bailey, and made
their presence felt as they continually drove at the defence and turned Hinckley away. Again, Sam
Elliott used his pace and with support from his team mates found space to
score his second try of the morning. Thomas a new player for Andrews showed
great potential and scored his
first try on the wing to close the gap but the final score was 25 - 10 to
Hinckley in a closely fought contest.
Under 10's St Andrews V Old Coventrians
From the whistle Andrews found themselves deep in their own half
and defending. Old Cov's were well drilled and had strong forwards. Two
minutes
into the half Old Cov's ripped the ball 20 meters out and scored their first
try. Team Captain Stephan Bailey kept his teams heads up but shortly after
Old Cov's overpowered Andrews in the scrum and pushed them back scoring their
second try. Andrews defence work hard and stopped Old Covs short of
the try line three times before scoring again to make the score 3-0 at
half time.
Andrews rallied in the second half with a break away from the half way line
by Sam Elliott who used his speed to score Andrews first try of the game.
Elliot Morgan made a terrific dash for the line shrugging of several tackles
but was finally pushed into touch. Andrews forwards took the tackles and
some injuries but eventually the game ended 6-2 to Old Cov's. The second game
was very tough. Andrews battled to keep ball in there own
scrums but Old Cov's won most of them repeatedly turning over the ball.
Andrews took more injuries as they defended their line and produced some
brave tackles to keep Old Cov's out. However Old Cov's used their pace and
set moves in the backs to overlap Andrews and it paid off. Time and time
again Andrews tackled, ran back to defend but could not stop old Cov's
scoring. Andrews made several substitutions to keep a full team in the game.
A tough but good spirited game of Rugby in which Andrews demonstrated
their speed and team play but the day and the game belonged to Old Cov's with
some excellent offloads and set pieces from a disciplined side.
LBRFC u14s 50-0 RSA
u14s
LBRFC dominated in the back line from the
off, proving to be very strong, fast runners. Andrews defended bravely and managed
to hold off the opposition for the first quarter before LBRFC crossed the
line. In the forwards, St Andrews held their own and in the middle third of
the game were able to make inroads into the opposition half. However the
strength of the Long Buckby backs began to tell and, with increasing
confidence against the tiring St Andrews defence, scored a further 4 times.
The second half,
despite substitutions in the back line, was a repeat of the first, with LBRFC
never letting St Andrews into the game despite some good individual breaks
into opposition territory from Ben Nutt, Daniel Greenaway and James Lewis.
Credit to Chris Heslop who stepped in as replacement hooker for his first
full game, and to the whole squad for maintaining the effort until the final
whistle.
U8's
Old Coventrians
5 St Andrews 5 (1)
St Andrews began
the game with a succession of passes which immediately put Old Coventrians
under pressure but were unable to sustain this due to their effective
tagging. Two tries were scored for St Andrews by Joel Cox and William
Morgan with a half-time score of 4-2 to Old Coventrians.
The second half
saw St Andrews defending well and tagging furiously under the strong
direction of the coach and took advantage of some passing errors made by
Old Coventrians. William Morgan, Joel Cox and Thomas Love scored tries
for St Andrews to level the final score.
Old Coventrians
7 St Andrews 4 (2)
St Andrews
continued their successful tagging from the first game but were unable to turnover
the ball to their advantage. Old Coventrians out-manoeuvred St Andrews
players to take a halt-time lead of 4-2. St Andrews first-half tries
were scored by Joel Cox and Thomas Love.
In the second half
Avneet Devgun and Harjan Devgun made strong runs and scored tries for St
Andrews whilst Old Coventrians maintained their dominance of the game.
The under 7 and
under 6 teams both showed great committment and teamwork in their games and
are improving and gaining experience with every game. Coaches
encouraged the teams to be focussed and to have fun with the emphasis on
discipline. All players worked hard and tries were scored by Morgan
Johnson, Daniel Watkins (4), Jack Brazier, Faye Eaton and Oscar Farmer.
U12’s Old
Coventrians 14
RSA 21
A tough, physical
match, with plenty of bruises to show, against a team of well drilled
forwards and quick backs. This was RSA’s hardest
match so far this season. It was St. Andrews who took the lead with a superb
pick from the base of the scrum and pop pass from Josh Lorimer
to fly-half Joe Fokes, who was unstoppable with his blistering pace.
RSA were out rucked by the big, physical OC’s forwards who won plenty of ball
for their quick backs to run on. It was the backs defence,
with some brilliant tackling from Jack and Kieran Walden supported by Joe
Fokes, Dharam Devgun, Sam Hartley and Jatinder Devgun from the
backs that kept them from scoring. Nothing taken away from the forwards, they
had all the physical contentions to deal with. Sam Hirons and
Josh Lorimer were outstanding with debutant Lewis Walford, having a
tremendous first match. Pressure from RSA led to errors from OC’s on
their own try line for Joe Fokes to pounce on the loose ball to score his
second try. Both tries were converted by try scorer Joe Fokes.
Leading 14-0 at half time RSA were in defensive mode with OC’s using their
powerful forwards to drive and set up their scrumhalf to score
a well deserved try, which was converted.
From the kick off RSA forwards got their own back by a brilliant sequence of
pick up and drive from ruck situations, for captain Harry
Marles to score. Joe Fokes converted to lead 21-7. OC’s determination
resulted with their centre, outpacing the saint’s defence to score
and later converted. This left a tense last five minutes for the saints but
the defence held out.
Man of the match for the forwards went to Josh Lorimer whose hard work,
behind the scenes were outstanding. The Man of the match for the
backs went to Sam Hartley whose pace and tackling was brilliant
Rugby
St Andrews 15-0 Harbury u10s
Rugby St Andrews U10s 0-20 Harbury U10s
3 Feb 2008
This was Andrew’s
second game against Harbury this season and in true form both teams were well
matched and fought a good contest.The game flowed from the whistle with both
teams moving and recycling the ball. Andrews played a
great defensive game with endless strong tackles from Matty, David and Billy.
Very quickly Andrews pushed Harbury back into their own half and despite
maintaining possession lost ground trying to move the ball wide away from the
Andrews pack.
First try was from Billy by whipping the ball and drove through the Harbury
defence to score. The second try by Matty drove his way through the Harbury
pack into space and sped for the line. Harbury’s backs made contact but
could not stop Matty scoring a great try. Harbury made ground through their
Centres and won ball repeatedly in the scrum. Andrews did not allow them
space and constantly ripped the ball in the tackle. Andrews third try came
from David who repeatedly won ball for Andrews with every tackle took
possession and found the try line to score.
The second game saw changes for both teams. Harbury’s forwards
took command of the rucks and scrums and pushed Andrews back. By half time it
was 0-2 to Harbury. Andrews fought back with some penetrating runs by Sam and
Elliot
and also strong tackles by George, Ben and Thomas. Joe managed to break
through the defence towards the end of the second half but was tackled short
of the line. Harbury scored two more try’s before the final whistle. Well
done to all the players in very cold conditions.
U12’s
RSA 49-0 Harbury
3
Feb 2008
The score did not reflect the determination of the Harbury team. They were in
contention in every area throughout the match and made RSAwork hard for the
victory. The ever improving Tom Marshall-Lee scored the first try after some
good work in ripping the ball from the opposition forwards and running with
determination to score. Joe Fokes was next on the score sheet by picking up
the loose ball from the back of the Harbury scrum to touch down. Poor
tackling form Harbury resulted
in two further trys from Dharam Devgun and Andrew Marshall-Lee. Both scoring
with powerful runs. Joe Fokes, converted all the first
half trys.A number of substitutions and positional changes for the second
half resulted in try hungry Kieran Walden out pacing the defence from the half
way mark to score a superb individual try. Forward Jack Millet was
unstoppable from ten meters from the Harbury line to score his first try of
the season. Shane Brewer capped it off for the day with a
superb solo run, scoring with at least three opposition players on his back.
Jatinder Devgun converted all the trys in the second half.
Man of the Match awards went to Shane Brewer for the forwards, who is
improving with every match and Jatinder Devgun for the backs who’s linking,
kicking and running were a joy to see.
Elivis And Martins
teams
3
Feb 2008
U8's (1)
St Andrews 5 Harbury 10
Harbury quickly stamped their mark on the game and capitalised on St Andrews
weak defence with a try soon into the first half. After a slow start St
Andrews pulled together and tightened their defence resulting in a try for
Thomas Love. Harbury however, made the most of their possession scoring
four more excellent tries. St Andrews secured two more tries by William
Morgan and Thomas Love to bring them back into the game.St Andrews began the
second half strongly with William Morgan racing to the try line.
Harbury responded with hard straight running through poor defence to score
five more tries. St Andrews began to improve their passing and Harjan
Devgun scored a final try for the team.
U8's (2)
St Andrews 3 Harbury 5
The first half was closely fought with both sides demonstrating a strong
defence and some fast attacking. Harbury took an early lead but St
Andrews proved their determination by scoring two tries by Thomas Love and
Harjan Devgun. In an end to end first half Harbury battled through St
Andrews defence and scored two more tries to edge them into the lead. The
cold weather was taking its toll in the second half and the players were
beginning to tire but Harbury continued to dominate with strong support play
and two more tries. Harjan Devgun once again pushed forward and secured
one more try for St Andrews at the end of a hard fought game.
U7's
St Andrews 1 Harbury 7
St Andrews were soon put under pressure by a more experienced Harbury scoring
a succession of tries in the first half. Jordan Ward provided a boost
for St Andrews with a great try with Jack Brazier providing excellent support
play.
In the second half Harbury continued their success and showed better control
in defence and strength in attack leading to a convincing win.
U7's
St Andrews 1 Keresley 7
St Andrews showed their stamina by braving the bitter cold to take on
Keresley. St Andrews shuffled players around to make sure everyone got
a game and the opportunity to gain experience of match play. The first
half saw St Andrews pushing forward with a strong try from Jack Brazier but
Keresley responded with a succession of tries. Keresley continued to dominate
in the second half and strengthen their lead. St Andrews held their heads
high to the end demonstrating greater support play, improved passing and
tagging technique and great teamwork.
St
Andrews Under 9's
3
Feb 2008
St Andrews
Captain for the Day - Max Tilley Match 1 - vs Harbury Final Score 20
St Andrews - 10 Harbury The 9's went out firing on all cylinders in the first
half. Looking the far superior side with good driving and swift feet by all
players it didn't take long for the tries to flood in for St. Andrews. Carter
Murphy put two tries in, Ollie Branston and Kyle Smith one a
piece. During the second half with a couple of changes by St. Andrews
things levelled out a bit and Harbury were able to put two tries back on the
home team, this would have been more if it wasn't for a spirited effort by
the team and two try stopping tackles by Richard Marshall-Lee and debutante
Jordan.
Man of the Match - Carter Murphy Match 2 - vs Kerseley Final Score 20
St Andrews - 20 Kerseley With the home side having a break whilst Harbury
played Kerseley and getting a bit cold during it the home team had gone off
the boil. This match was more evenly contested and both sides had to work
harder to keep possession and score. Ed Harboure scored the first for the
home team and was soon followed by one from the visitors. Ollie Branston and
Ed scored again for St. Andrews before Kerseley ran two more in the latter of
which was scored by debutante in the first match Jordan who had been lent to
Kerseley to even the numbers up. Carter again scored followed by the
final try coming from Jordan playing for Kerseley. Man of the Match - Jordan
Good captaincy and leading by example from Max Tilley
with excellent tackling and play all round on the day.
Rugby St.Andrews 5
Berkswell &
Balsall RFC 27
U14 Match Report
– 27th January 2008
Everyone was
treated to a beautiful morning for the match, and the team was picked from 25
players – one of the largest squads in a long time.
The match started
well, with both teams engaging quickly from the whistle.Berkswell had a stronger pack, but
RSA defended as well as they could and prevented Berkswell getting the ball
out to their backs for the first15 minutes.The opposition backs proved to be virtually unstoppable,
however, and on the two occasions that they got the ball along their back
line they scored.
RSA fought back,
and a kick into touch next to the try line from a penalty gave RSA their
chance.It took two determined
drives, but James got the ball touched down over the line to finish the first
half at 5 – 10.
Berkswell gained
more possession in the second half, with RSA tiring.Again, their backs proved too strong
and too fast, and two more break-away tries followed – really conceded to
poor tackling.RSA were unlucky
not to get another try, with a good tackle right in the corner forcing our
player into touch-in-goal, and then Berkswell scored again from continued
pressure in our 22 to give the final score for the match.
Berkswell were the
better side, and deserved to win.The lads played well, though, and with better tackling it would have
been a much closer match.
U14 Match Report – 13th January
2008
Rugby St.Andrews 5Broadstreet
RFC 45
With strong wind
and light rain, it wasn’t likely that it was going to be a pretty game to
watch, but it could have been an awful lot better than it was.
RSA really didn’t
turn up psyched-up for a match, and the coaches’ patience was wearing thin
even during the warm-up.Broadstreet, however, were ready for a match, and were obviously there
to win.
RSA started
slowly, and conceded 12 points before they got into the match.Broadstreet were well drilled and
fired up, and after conceding another try RSA defended well until half-time
against committed attacking, unfortunately giving away another try as the
last play of the half.
The second half
was slightly better, with the Saints pushing Broadstreet to defend their line
on a couple of occasions, but still giving away 3 more tries to missed tackles
and poor supporting play, which Broadstreet consistently converted – one
curving kick with the wind being particularly impressive if it could ever be
repeated!As a consolation, RSA
managed to break through in the last five minutes and were awarded the try
close to the corner flag.
Broadstreet were
the better side, but they deserved more opposition than they got.The Broadstreet pack was stronger,
but the real advantage was from the speed of their supporting play.Saints backs played well, and got in
some good tackles, but were often being drawn in to help the forwards.
Overall, a little
disappointing.RSA have been
training well, but very little of what they’ve been practicing was evident in
play, and it seemed that the lads had lost the match before the first kick of
the game.
Come on lads –
play as a team and you can be so much better than this!
St Andrews Under 10’s V Daventry
Both sides fought two closely contested games and were well matched
in strength and speed. There were no try’s in the first half however the pace
and tackling from all players made the game a spectacle for parents to watch.
Strong defensive work denied try’s at both ends.
Matty had a superb game constantly breaking through Daventry’s
defence.Eventually Daventry’s
backs broke through and with pace and agility avoided 3 or 4 tackles to score
a try for Daventry. The first game ended 0-1 to Daventry.
Andrew regrouped for the second game and was resolute from the
whistle.Again both teams drove
hard but it was Andrews who made the ground. Sam (Captain) and David moved
the ball well reading the opposition which allowed Andrews to take territory.
Billy with every touch of the ball got ever closer to the
line. The forwards, Karl, Stephan, George, Thomas, Ben and Dominic drove over
to secure the ball time and time again.
The day belonged to Stephan Bailey who as a forward and a back
drove through Daventry and ran straight for the line to score. Daventry got a
try back shortly after but Stephen again in a 25 metre drive for the line
shruggedoff his opponents to
score his 2nd try of the day and the winning try of the game.
Every player gave 100%
Final score 2-1 to Andrews.
U12’s
Daventry 0 RSA 52
First match of the
year for the Saints and what a good start it was against local rivals
Daventry. The match conditions were quiet similar
to that of December last year, wet and windy. Saints scored within the first
5 minutes from kick off when Tom Marshall-Lee dispossessed the
Daventry forwards on their own line before charging over to score. Brother,
Andrew Marshall-Lee followed that with a pulsating, individual
run from the half way line to score the second try. Good supportive play by
both the forwards and backs, coupled with poor tackling from
the opposition led to further trys from Captain Harry Marles, Jack Walden and
brother, Kieran Walden with Joe Fokes converting 4 of the 5
trys, an excellent achievement.
In the second half, Saints played uphill on what was now a boggy pitch. Sam
Hirons scored two super trys on his return with some
aggressive running. Another super individual try from Scrum Half Kieran
Walden completed the rout on a deteriorating pitch. Kicking
responsibilities were handed over to Jatinder Devgun, who kicked 2 of the 3
conversions.
Man of the Match for the forwards went to Tom Marshall-Lee, whose confidence
is increasing with every match and the Man of the Match for
the backs went to Joe Fokes, whose link play between the forwards and backs
was tremendous.
U8's (1)
Daventry 9
St Andrews 2
St Andrews began the game in determined
style by breaking through Daventry's defence on a number of occasions but
were stopped in their tracks by successive tagging. Daventry soon hit
back with a confident try to stamp their mark on the game with a half time
score of Daventry 4 St Andrews 0.
Daventry's domination of the first half gave
them the confidence to continue their success in the second half by taking
advantage of the gaps in St Andrews defence. St Andrews saw a glimmer
of hope with tries by Thomas Love and Harjan Devgun but overall were beaten
convincingly by Daventry who proved to be stronger taggers.
U8's (2)
Daventry 6 St Andrews 3
St Andrews came out in the first half a more
determined side and demonstrated their power by Harjan Devgun scoring a
try. It wasn't long however before Daventry were back in control of the
game with a half time score of 3-2.
Daventry were not going to give up their
lead and scored a try in the early minutes of the second half. St
Andrews worked together and battled on and a try was secured by Thomas Love
but this wasn't enough to bring them back into the game.
U7's.
St Andrews took their under 7's to Daventry
for a friendly match to gain experience and knowledge of playing competitive
games. Lead by their captain Billie, they showed great teamwork and had
lots of fun despite the rain and mud! Bailey showed his skills by
scoring a try and was strongly supported by the rest of his team who were
Ben, Alexander, Pablo, Oscar, Sam and Jake.
A big thank you to team coach Martin for
keeping the team motivated and his constant encouragement and praise
of them.
Newbold u14s 22-41
St Andrews u14s
The morning was dry and bright – good
conditions for a match.The
ground would only just take a stud, but it was soft enough to play.
Newbold narrowly beat the Saints last time
the two sides met, so the team was keen for the rematch, with almost everyone
in the squad turning up.The
Saints finally seem to be getting themselves organised, and started really
well, with a lot of determination and pace.Newbold were left reeling in the first ten minutes as RSA
put 17 points on the scorecard.Newbold had a stronger pack, however, and after their slow start
recovered well and pulled back a couple of tries before the end of the first
period.
Newbold kept up the pressure, with what
seemed like most of the game played in the Newbold 22.RSA defended well against consistent
attacking close to the line, but had to concede another couple of tries to
the pressure.
The substitutions made before the final
period lifted the Saints, and the side went out with the belief they could
win.The forwards played well,
and the backs were quick in support.Newbold were still fielding a stronger pack, but their tackling wasn’t
good enough and RSA managed to break through twice to give a comfortable
lead.Newbold were unable to
respond, and speed to the breakdown allowed RSA to overcome the stronger
Newbold forwards and extend their lead.
An excellent match and played in great
spirit by both sides – still some areas that need work, but played well as a
team and got the result deserved.
U13s
RSA 55-35 Old Covents
9-12-07
Under 13s
The u13s squad travelled to Old
Coventrians and played a short sided match against teh hosts, both
development squads played attractive running rugby St Andrews running out
victors 55-35 in a hugely entertaining match in atrocious underfoot
conditions.
U12 RSA 21 Berkswell 0
9-12-07
Under 12s
RSA 21
Berkswell & Balsall 0
RSA returned to their familiar winning ways with a comfortable win over
Coventry village team Berkswell & Balsall. Not for the fist time
over the last month, the weather had a major part to play with wet and windy
conditions.
Captain Harry Marles scored the opening try with a brilliant individual
effort. Picking the ball up from the base of the ruck, his
powerful drive was no match for B&B defence. Harry Marles was on the
score sheet again, this time running in from the half-way mark,
brushing aside the futile tackles to power over. Joe Fokes, converting both
trys for RSA to lead 14-0 at half-time.
With a number of changes for the second-half, RSA’s forwards were in dominant
form in setting the backs with good, clean ball. The ball
was whisked through the backs hands to debutant winger Daniel Nut, who showed
the opposition a clean pair of heels to score from the half-
way mark. Joe Fokes converting for RSA to lead 21-0. Minutes, later Daniel
was denied a second try after breaking clear with a try saving
from the B&B fullback, 2 meters from the try line. Sadly the match time
was reduced as the awful weather took toll on both teams.
Man of the Match for the forwards went to debutant prop Lewis Cox who, with
the Man of the Match award for the backs going to Daniel Nut,
for his excellent runs.
Under 10s and under 9s
9-12-07
Under 10s
Match 1
St Andrews 0-30 Berkswell &
Balsall
BB's dominated the first game and scored
quickly to find themselves 3-0 up by half time. Andrews fought hard in the
second half but despite some great tackles by Stephen Bailey and Adam Shaw
they could not find their game and hold back the BB forwards which
continually won the ball in the loose. Thomas Ward played his first game as
scrum half and performed well with the Andrews forwards.
BB’s wingers continued to overlap the
Andrews who were sucked in the defence and scored 3 more try’s before the
final whistle making the score 0-6 to BB’s.
Match 2
St Andrews 10-5 Berkswell & Balsall
After some motivational advice and some
positional changes Andrews looked very determined as they took the field for
the second game.
From the whistle Andrews worked as a unit
and made ground on BB’s. In their own half the backs performed some excellent
passes in the offload to push BB’s to halfway. Scrum half Sam Elliott
received the ball and seeing space ran round the winger to run three quarters
of the pitch to score a try only to be called back for a line out because he
stepped over the line. From that point both teams showed their form as
parents watched a great game of Rugby.
Karl Bailey gave 100% to keep possession
and Joe Johnson, Andrews centre got a bloody nose and had to come off in the
second half.
The break through finally came with Sam
Elliott again finding space and using his pace scored for the Andrews.
Andrews’s confidence exploded and a great
pass made to Adam Shaw who received the ball at full speed broke through the
BB’s defensive line to run half the pitch and score Andrews second try. Great
handling and change of pace from Adam.
BB’s managed to get one back but the final
score was 2-1 to the Andrew’s.
A great performance from the whole squad.
U9s
The talented Saints u9s squad won one
match and lost the other to a very fast and large Berkswell side.
U7s and u8s
9-12-07
U8s/u7s
St
Andrews 30-20 Berkswell and Balsall
Match 1
St Andrews powered
to an early lead with a try within minutes from Thomas Love but Berkswell and
Balsall quickly responded with a try of their own. St Andrews kept up
the pressure though and with some furious tagging managed to keep Berkswell
and Balsall at bay. By the end of the first half Joel Cox, William
Morgan and Thomas Love had all secured tries in a hard fought first half. In
a fast paced second half St Andrews once again applied the pressure and
powered through Berkswell and Balsalls defence with tries from Ben Menesse
and William Morgan. St Andrews secured a well deserved win against a
side who were stopped in their tracks by St Andrews persistent tagging.
St
Andrews 25-25 Berkswell and Balsall
Match 2
Berkswell and Balsall dominated the first half with some
determined runs which left St Andrews a little shell shocked. However,
they soon picked themselves up and began showing some strong passing and
tagging skills that brought them back into the game with tries from Brannon
and Thomas Love. St Andrews began the second half a more determined
side and rallied together as a team. Berkswell and Balsall fought on but
were stopped at every turn by St Andrews tagging. On a wet and blustery
day both teams showed grit and determination in an exciting match that
resulted
St Andrews vs
Barker Butts - Under 9's St Andrews Captain for the Day - Ben
Barrett
2-12-07
Match 1 Final Score 0 St
Andrews - 20 Barker Butts After what looked to be a break in the rain during
warm up it came again just in time for the start of the match. Both
sides were fairly even matched to start with and good tackles going in from
either side. Eventually a small loss of concentration by St. Andrews let a
cheeky try slip past. During the second half a good run by Richard
Marshall-Lee unfortunately was foiled with him being tackled and coming off
due to a stud in the back. Three good tries were scored by well drilled
Barker Butts players during the second half but only after good defence
by the home side. Man of the Match - Oliver Branston Match 2 Final Score 20 St Andrews -
10 Barker Butts After a team talk during the break between matches the
home side came out stronger and better than ever. All guns blazing as the
whole team took on a new lease of life. Good tackling and rucking by the
entire team saw 3 tries ran in by debutante Ed Harbourne who for his
excellent tackling and running eventually ended up with Man of the Match. Whereas
ever committed player Carter Murphy came up trumps with a good run up the
wing to score. Good runs by George Dwyer, Kieron
Tuttiett and Kyle Smith saw St Andrews guys edge near the try line a
couple of times and keep Barkers ever defending. Man of the Match - Ed Harbourne
U14
Rugby St.Andrews 5 (0)
Old
Coventrians 22 (12)
2-12-07
Saints started off at a fair pace, but
weren’t quick enough to the break-down and soon discovered the size and
strength advantage of the O.C. side, the forwards being driven off the ball
in rucks and conceding a number of their own scrums.Despite this, they doggedly defended
with the majority of play in their own half, breaking at half-time with a 12
point deficit. The second half started in a similar way, with O.C.s
scoring in the corner from a fast break down the wing, but were unable to
convert.Saints kept their heads
up, and responded well with an effective pick and run in the opposition
twenty-two ending with a good offload, allowing the flanker to spin off the
defender and touch the ball down over the line. O.C.s scored again, and RSA
again responded strongly when the match had to be abandoned about 10 minutes
before time due to an injury with a player having to be stretchered off.Fortunately, the injury isn’t as
serious as it might have been, and he should be back playing again in three
weeks or so.Best wishes from
all of the team!
