As Motty says "It's a game of two halves".

So, an interesting day with the hosts Northampton Old Scouts providing Kettering's Development Team the opportunity to learn and improve.

Unfortunately for the first two matches against two quality teams (Bedford Blues and Olney), the boys weren't able to give of their best with too many Chuckle Brothers 'To me, to you' moments and not enough hard graft and getting stuck in. In fact we did score one try in the second match (well done Jay Hammond!) but this was one bright spell in an altogether overcast performance.

However, while this was disappointing for the boys, the post-match 'chat' provided by the coaches and visiting parents gave them the motivation they needed to get their act together and start to play some quality rugby.

The next match against Old Scouts was a much closer affair with Kettering scoring the first try (Evan Downhill) and keeping the opposition in their own half for much of the game. Unfortunately Old Scouts were able to take advantage of a loose Kettering defence and eventually ran in two tries down the right wing, the last one being the final play of the match.

Nevertheless the match showed the team that if they put the effort in they could produce a great game and they were buoyed by their improved performance.

As a result the fourth match against ONs was another exciting event. ONs scored the first try but Kettering came back at them with renewed vigour with Ollie Coles rushing ONs back-line and managing to nick the ball and put the ball down in their in-goal area.

With the score being back on level pegging Kettering continued with the pressure and, even though ONs scored a second try, a magnificent effort from Evan Downhill in the dying seconds of the match resulted with a try for Kettering - a well deserved outcome for a team that had really not given of their best earlier on.

The final match against Long Buckby saw the team really pile on the pressure and, with tries from James Day (*2), HP McCardie and Keiran Bishop (his first try in his first match!), Kettering came out 4-0 winners and ended the day in a much happier place than they were in earlier in the day.

Overall all the boys had a good day and learned that success in rugby comes from putting the effort in and working together as a team. By doing this, the simple skills that were missing earlier in the day (eg tackling, passing skills and securing the ball in the ruck) returned to the team later on resulting in a much improved second part of the tournament.

Particular note must be given to James Day (Man of the Match) for his tenacity, HP McCardie whose return to the team gave it an added impetus, Charlie Fluester who battled on even when heads were down, Alfie Castley who also kept strong under pressure, Evan Downhill, who produced a quality performance at scrum-half and Aidan Jones whose jinky runs continually confused the opposition.

Finally a mention must be for the new boys who played their first tournament today - Callum Savage, Keiran Bishop and Joshua Brown. They all gained valuable experience from the day and were able to show the coaches through their efforts that, as a team, we really have strength in depth that will give us the opportunity to further improve into next season.