Dinas Powys dominate U14 tournament

Sunday 9th October 2005

Maidenhead under 14’s entertained teams from Dinas Powys, Llandaff, Aylesbury, Romford and Cleve. With all teams hungry for silverware it promised to be a great day’s rugby.

Playing 20 minute duration games meant that there was no room for complacency, indecision or doubt. Quick hands and rapid decision making were going to be the order of the day.

Maidenhead opened the day against a heavy side from Romford. Previous results against this side had gone against but this time Maids were determined not to be out- muscled or bullied into submission. The forwards really took control of the game and allowed O’Byrne to set off on a blistering run down the wing for the first try of the tournament. Romford, of course, did not take this lying down and soon had Maids on the back foot, but some strong defence allowed us to hold on to our slender lead and take the game 5-0.

Aylesbury were next on the list and we could remember from last year their big quick backline and powerful No8. Maidenhead continued to launch moves that had practiced in training and were unlucky not to score against a stalwart Aylesbury defence. However, the power and pace of the Aylesbury big boys was too much for Maids who conceded 4 tries without reply.

Llandaff were next and Maidenhead were looking forward to a repeat of their tour game at the end of last season. Our Welsh colleagues had other ideas and showed that the 200+ mile coach journey had not dampened their enthusiasm. Play switched from end to end before a continued period of attack from Maids resulted in tries for Townsend and O’Byrne. O’Byrne completed his hat-trick and Maids ran out victors 20-0.

Dinas Powys had given us a lesson in ball handling skills during our Welsh tour. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind that these were the team to beat and they were soon to dominate in the game against Maidenhead. If points were awarded for ‘nearly scoring’ Maidenhead would have taken the lead but Dinas showed that they could defend just as well as they could attack. They were quick to punish any mistake and pounced on any loose ball with speed. They ran out 15-0 against a Maidenhead side that continued to work hard and tackle well despite what was to be an inevitable defeat.

Cleve provided us with the last game in the league and once again had the weight advantage in their pack as well as their backs. After 80 minutes of non-stop frenetic rugby both sides were showing signs of fatigue. Cleve scored a couple of tries from their strong running centre but Maids battled back for O’Byrne to score form a cleverly angled restart from Heley. Tiredness led to weak tackling allowing Cleve another score In the dying seconds Maids spilled the ball with the try line begging for Cleve to run it back to the other end for the final try of the tournament allowing Cleve to emerge a somewhat flattering 20-5 victors.

Dinas Powys ran out clear winners of the tournament and only conceded 1 try during the day but for me the winner was the game of rugby itself. We saw 100 or so young men from Wales and the South of England play their hearts out for their clubs. They played with pride and passion and were a joy to watch. This can only bode well for the future of the game.