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Sun 03 Apr 2022
Under 16 XVLong Buckby
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19
Kettering U16 V Long Buckby
Stewart Holford3 Apr 2022 - 20:19
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Semi Final Success
A home fixture for us in the Cup semi final. We were allowed to play on the hallowed first team pitch.We talk to the boys about having intent & go forward from the start, " lets get an early score". 2 x 35 min halves. Here's how it played out.
1st Half:
LB kick off, good take by Tye on the wing, ball to Dan & we make our way up the pitch. LB give a couple of penalties away & we are making the most of them. We concede a penalty & LB kick down the pitch, we pick up & work a couple of phases into the red zone. Lovely little pop pass to Dan Harrison who has made a superb running break & goes over for the try, no conversion. LB make a bit of an attack, their 9 looks very good. LB win a penalty almost on the try line, we secure the ball somehow & a kicking battle ensues. Milo takes a good catch & weaves his way up the pitch, off load to Joe who is streaking up the wing with San in support. Joe Wiggins can't be caught & goes over for try, Christian converts. The boys are getting into their stride now, off loading game working really well, Milo catching the ball off his boot straps to keep it alive. Very positive play going forward, ball inside to Oran McCabe who accelerates through the defence to go under the posts, Christian converts. Set piece working well & Joe steals the LB line out ball. Captain Oran leading by example, running across the pitch until he finds a gap, straightens up, he has an overlap, show & go & goes under the posts, superb skills. Christian converts.LB attacking, our forwards looking really strong at the breakdown, Max & Sam are dominant & fast. LB making good gains but Will Homer & Clark defending superbly & win the ball back. Great carry & leg drive from Alfie, every metre counts. LB attack again but Sam Grant's jackal game is just too good, time & again he win's the ball back. End of the first half.
2nd Half:
Pressure from Kettering & LB making mistakes. LB miss a pass on their try line & Milo Chisholm dives on it to score, Christian converts. Kettering break again, Tom Reynolds breaks through the centre at pace, holds his pass until the last second drawing the defender in, out to Tom Herbert, he gets wrapped up by 3 defenders but it's good positive play. We get ourselves into a bit of a mess on our 5m, LB line out, catch & drive but the boys defend hard, hold it up & unplayable, Kettering put in at the scrum. We win the scrum, ball through the back line to oran who makes his way into LB territory, knock on but a great exit from the boys. We're in LB's half with the ball, christian chips over the top & collects, ball to Oran under pressure, Oran to Tom Reynolds who looks like he's going for the corner but cut's back in to score under the posts. Superb skills from the backs, Christian converts. It looks like a bit of fatigue is creeping in, we start to give away a lot of penalties, off sides & high tackles. Will L-W takes a team yellow card. Penalties take their toll & LB score. LB on the attack again, they chip the ball over our try line, Oran collects the ball, skills his way through the whole LB team & scores at the other end, absolutely incredible, Christian converts. Some tired bodies out there & it's all getting a bit loose. LB ball out to their winger & he sprints to score, no conversion. We kick the ball to LB's best player, he skips through our poor attempts at tackles to score, LB convert. LB attack again but the boys are defending well this time, ball goes loose & thats the final whistle.
A good performance with some great skills in defence & attack, a proper team effort with the forwards & back working well in their groups, it may seem harsh but we need to keep the concentration & intensity for the full 70 minutes if we are to succeed in the final. They have it in them & they can do it.
We don't have a de-brief with the players we leave that to Oran today. We can see their maturity shining through as they come to the end of their junior rugby , they boys can organise, play & critique themselves now. No more tying boot laces & wiping noses for us.
Tries: Dan Harrison, Joe Wiggins, Oran McCabe ( 3), Milo Chisholm & Tom Reynolds. Conversions: Christian 6 ( 6 from 7)
1st Half:
LB kick off, good take by Tye on the wing, ball to Dan & we make our way up the pitch. LB give a couple of penalties away & we are making the most of them. We concede a penalty & LB kick down the pitch, we pick up & work a couple of phases into the red zone. Lovely little pop pass to Dan Harrison who has made a superb running break & goes over for the try, no conversion. LB make a bit of an attack, their 9 looks very good. LB win a penalty almost on the try line, we secure the ball somehow & a kicking battle ensues. Milo takes a good catch & weaves his way up the pitch, off load to Joe who is streaking up the wing with San in support. Joe Wiggins can't be caught & goes over for try, Christian converts. The boys are getting into their stride now, off loading game working really well, Milo catching the ball off his boot straps to keep it alive. Very positive play going forward, ball inside to Oran McCabe who accelerates through the defence to go under the posts, Christian converts. Set piece working well & Joe steals the LB line out ball. Captain Oran leading by example, running across the pitch until he finds a gap, straightens up, he has an overlap, show & go & goes under the posts, superb skills. Christian converts.LB attacking, our forwards looking really strong at the breakdown, Max & Sam are dominant & fast. LB making good gains but Will Homer & Clark defending superbly & win the ball back. Great carry & leg drive from Alfie, every metre counts. LB attack again but Sam Grant's jackal game is just too good, time & again he win's the ball back. End of the first half.
2nd Half:
Pressure from Kettering & LB making mistakes. LB miss a pass on their try line & Milo Chisholm dives on it to score, Christian converts. Kettering break again, Tom Reynolds breaks through the centre at pace, holds his pass until the last second drawing the defender in, out to Tom Herbert, he gets wrapped up by 3 defenders but it's good positive play. We get ourselves into a bit of a mess on our 5m, LB line out, catch & drive but the boys defend hard, hold it up & unplayable, Kettering put in at the scrum. We win the scrum, ball through the back line to oran who makes his way into LB territory, knock on but a great exit from the boys. We're in LB's half with the ball, christian chips over the top & collects, ball to Oran under pressure, Oran to Tom Reynolds who looks like he's going for the corner but cut's back in to score under the posts. Superb skills from the backs, Christian converts. It looks like a bit of fatigue is creeping in, we start to give away a lot of penalties, off sides & high tackles. Will L-W takes a team yellow card. Penalties take their toll & LB score. LB on the attack again, they chip the ball over our try line, Oran collects the ball, skills his way through the whole LB team & scores at the other end, absolutely incredible, Christian converts. Some tired bodies out there & it's all getting a bit loose. LB ball out to their winger & he sprints to score, no conversion. We kick the ball to LB's best player, he skips through our poor attempts at tackles to score, LB convert. LB attack again but the boys are defending well this time, ball goes loose & thats the final whistle.
A good performance with some great skills in defence & attack, a proper team effort with the forwards & back working well in their groups, it may seem harsh but we need to keep the concentration & intensity for the full 70 minutes if we are to succeed in the final. They have it in them & they can do it.
We don't have a de-brief with the players we leave that to Oran today. We can see their maturity shining through as they come to the end of their junior rugby , they boys can organise, play & critique themselves now. No more tying boot laces & wiping noses for us.
Tries: Dan Harrison, Joe Wiggins, Oran McCabe ( 3), Milo Chisholm & Tom Reynolds. Conversions: Christian 6 ( 6 from 7)
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