Fair Play to Maidenhead
U14s at the Maidenhead Tournament
Sunday 17th October 1999
| Maidenhead had tough teams in
their group with old rivals such as Blackheath, Cleve and
Worcester who were the national finalists in this age
group last year. They started the tournament kicking off against Blackheath and winning the subsequent line-out with the ball passed out to Scott Harris who kicked forward only for it to be returned with Mark Etherington finding touch. Following a free kick to Blackheath, James OReilly took the ball forward pressurising Blackheath in their 22m area. A scrum led to the ball being carried over but the first half ended with no score. Blackheath restarted with Maids winning a subsequent scrum and getting the ball out to Mark O'Haire and into the Blackheath half. The dew laden ground and wet ball led to some dropped passes on both sides resulting in several scrums including one under Blackheaths posts, which they cleared. Andrew McEwan, Mark O'Haire and Scott Harris made some useful breaks with the last one allowing Mark Devine to dive over the line scoring just before the final whistle. Cleve won against Winchester with two quick tries in the first half and a third before half time. Despite fighting back Winchester conceded a further two tries in the second half The two Worcester teams played each other with the Blue team winning easily in a low-pressure match. Maidenhead then played Worcester Gold but despite winning the ball in the forwards, knock-ons meant that Maidenhead made no real progress and it was Worcester who ended the first half with a score. The second half followed a similar pattern until Alex Hughes got the ball and charged down the field to be stopped short of the line. The resulting ruck was won by Maids, with Dougy Barrow diving over to score the equaliser. A final move by Maidenhead got the ball out to Andrew McEwan but the whistle went preventing a further score. Blackheath won comfortably against Winchester but Worcester Blues had a close match against Cleve winning 20pts to 10pts. Maidenheads next match against Winchester started with a quick try by Liam Heywood out flanking their cover. Two more tries both by Byron Chadwick gave Maids a good lead in the first half. The second half started well with Byron getting his hat trick and Michael Etherington also scoring but Winchester fought back to score; only to have the gap re-established with a final score by Philip White. Maidenhead won by 30pts to 5pts. Both Worcester teams had good matches with their Gold team doing well to draw against Cleve while their well-drilled Blue team won easily by 35pts to 0 against Blackheath. Maidenhead played Cleve next in a scrappy tough match with neither team giving anything away. A free kick to Cleve was followed by Maids winning a scrum and kicking forward with Mark OHaire dribbling on but denied a score by Cleve killing the ball. A free kick to Cleve put Maids under pressure and they finally scored. Maidenhead fought back and following a free kick Maids drove over the line with Ross Evans scoring the equaliser. Cleve started the second half but Maidenhead were on the attack again with a good kick by Scott Harris and a scrum 5 which was won by Cleve who kicked clear. A break by Ross Evans did not result in a score in an otherwise tightly controlled but scrappy second half'. Worcester Blues showed their true colours winning easily against Winchester with a score of 55pts to 0pts, while Worcester Gold gave Blackheath a run for their money in a drawn match. Maidenhead's last match against Worcester Blues was their hardest. Maids kicked off but Worcester won the scrum and kicked up field for a short line-out on the Maidenhead line. Maids won the ball and Scott Harris kicked clear only for the Blues to collect and score. Maidenhead restarted and took the game into the Worcester half with good tackling by Maids preventing the Blues from opening out until a break through was made, only to be halted by a good tackle from Daniel Riordan. Worcester kicked off the second half and following a scrum broke free to score. Maidenhead fought back containing Worcester and only conceding one more try. The final score was 15pts to 0pts to Worcester Blues who went on to win the "Real Time Studio" trophy. Cleve drew against Blackheath to take the runners up medal with Maidenhead being awarded the "Maidenhead Advertiser" fair play cup. |
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