U14s' Welsh tour

May 2008

Maidenhead Under 14s took on Pembrokeshire’s finest over the Bank Holiday weekend and returned home with 3 wins out of 4 and with all members of the touring party getting their hands on both the Triple Crown and the 6 Nations Trophy for good measure (on a tour of the Millennium Stadium, courtesy of ex Maids man and now WRU CEO Roger Lewis)!

The squad set off from Braywick in the comfort of the Ospreys Team Coach which we had procured for the weekend (though even its owners seemed unsure quite how many people it could actually accommodate!). Some while later, having experienced the strange sensation of heading down the M4 but NOT going to Bean Sands for the first time in a few years, we arrived at the Giltar Hotel, overlooking the sea and a beautiful beach in Tenby.

Two mixed squads - the Lions and Tigers – took on Haverfordwest and Tenby on the Saturday. Haverfordwest had boosted their squad with a couple of “guests” from Aberystwyth, and these players – the fly half and full back – were the stand out players for the Welsh side in this match.

Maids opened the scoring through a spectacular Sam Maguire run from within his own 22, but a lapse in concentration at the restart allowed a strong drive from the Welsh forwards to equalise soon afterwards. This sparked Maids back into life, but despite fine runs and interplay from Tim Cronbach, Tom Eckles, Leo Smith and Sam Balfour two scoring opportunities were missed as final passes failed to go to hand, and Haverfordwest made the most of another breakdown to take the lead at half time 12-5.

Maids half-time talk seemed to have done the trick as Maguire once more came into the line and ran long distance to score from the restart, with Fraser Brooks converting to equalise, and then both Ross Dingwall and Will Thompson made try-saving tackles to thwart the response from the hosts. An interception by Leo Smith then put Markus Olivier in for a powerful run and Maids were in the lead 12-17. Against an ever-increasing wind the conversion was missed and Haverfordwest came back through their strong pack, equalising with minutes to go, and then, cruelly, stealing the game from a turnover in the last sequence of the match. Final score 24-17, with Maguire voted Man of the Match by the very hospitable Welsh side.

The wind was blowing hard at Tenby as well, to Maids’ advantage in the first half. Josh Edney, playing his best rugby of the season, looked to have given Maids the perfect start in the first minute, chasing the kick off, gathering and crashing over, but he was adjudged held up. Pressure from Maids soon paid off, with Dominik Bart both scoring and converting his try from a 5 metre scrum. Tenby paid a brief visit to the Maids half, but great team-play and wind assistance took Maids back down towards the Tenby line, and Bart got a carbon copy try, though this time scored slightly further out making the conversion tricky: 12-0. Maids were looking good, starving Tenby of ball, and with a certain inevitability Bart got his hat trick, once again from short range, but this time making the conversion even more difficult for himself. The half was rounded off by Laurence McSwan with a long distance try from his own half, and being thoughtful enough to make the kick a little easier: half-time score 0-24, but playing against the wind in the second half.

To their great credit Tenby came straight back, and with the assistance of the wind and a few mildly generous decisions from the referee who was keen to keep -the game competitive they exploited a huge mismatch with a 6 foot + winger taking on one of Berkshire’s smallest (though perfectly formed!) backs. Maids then played their best rugby of the match, driving Tenby back into their own half, and whilst LD Basson was held up, McSwan powered over for his second try and a Bart conversion made it 31-7. Tenby gave Dominik Bart the Man of the Match award.

Whether Maids eased up or Tenby turned the energy levels up at this point it is hard to judge, but having worked out the size advantage they had on the wing Tenby came back at Maids several times, but even with the ref seemingly desperate to engineer an egalitarian draw the Maids defence proved too much in the end and the final score was a win for Berkshire – 31 points to 26.

After post-match food both squads and a number of intrepid parents headed off from their respective venues to meet up at Oakland Theme Park, where almost everyone thoroughly enjoyed a number of great rides, and a few people got extremely wet! Fish and Chips at Fecci’s award winning restaurant provided sustenance in the evening, much needed by those who were to participate in the endurance test nicknamed “Sports Quiz” back at the hotel later that evening.

Re-shuffled sides set off to play Whitland and Crymych on the following day, with a number of players nursing injuries. The Tigers at Whitland were given the honour of playing on the first team pitch (despite 5 other home matches taking place that day) and it seemed to lift the visiting side.

Playing into the wind, Maids made a strong start with Mark Hine getting held up on the try line, followed shortly by Maids first try scored by No.8 Jacob Sanders coming off the back of the scrum. Dhruv Surya followed up with a fine try scored after a weaving run through heavy traffic, and then a determined effort by Mark Hine notched up another 5 points. A try from Shiv Khindria was converted Cipriani-style by Fraser Brooks from the touchline into a gusty wind.

In the second half, an interchange between Chris Dow and Piers Baron drew the defence to allow Chris to score, before Whitland replied with two tries. A drive by Daniel Keir offloading for Tim Cronbach to cross the try line saw Maids recover their concentration before Sam McCarthy scored with the final play of the match. With seven tries by seven different players, and brilliant support work by everyone, this was a tour match to be proud of. Final score: Whitland 12 : 41 Maidenhead.

The Lions at Crymych meanwhile were expecting a major battle against the side reputed to be Pembrokeshire’s finest at this age group, and a few gulps were audible as Maids assessed the size of a couple of the locals. Maids chose to play with slope and wind to their advantage in the first half, but despite getting into good positions could not find their way over the line and in fact the home side got the first score, somewhat against the run of play. Man of the Match LD Basson had his finest game in a Maids shirt and his move from the back of a scrum shortly afterwards threw the defence completely to give Markus Olivier room to score in the corner. 5-5.

Crymych came back from the restart and snatched the lead, but with Basson at the heart of everything, galvanising his magnificent forward pack in front of him, Maids returned to their preferred corner of the pitch and sent Olivier over again. Duncan Jones struck a tremendous touchline conversion and Maids had the lead 12-10 at half time, and a sense that despite the slope and the wind, this match could be theirs.

That Maids resolve held firm and Will Thompson’s arrival at fly half really lifted the team, constantly testing the opposition defence with lightning, jinking runs and probing grubber kicks. The conditions seemed irrelevant as Maids spent virtually the entire half camped in Crymych territory, with every attempted clearance kick brilliantly fielded by Laurence McSwan and run back at the hosts, and a rock solid defence of Leo Smith and Daniel Andrews-Jones in the centre letting nothing through, whilst the pack continued to pound the opposition. Crymych finally cracked as Alex Avery pounced on a loose ball and Dom Bart nailed a fabulous conversion against the wind to put Maids two scores clear, which was where they stayed. This side’s biggest test of the season and their finest performance. Final score: Crymych 10 – 19 Maidenhead.

Alex Avery rounded our visit to Crymych off in style, delivering a speech in Welsh, which apparently was both polite AND understandable to the locals, and it was back to Tenby for an afternoon of relaxation on the beach and in the town, before a special tour awards evening at Tenby’s clubhouse.

On Monday morning we headed from Tenby to Cardiff and a tour of the Millennium Stadium kindly arranged by Roger Lewis, followed by lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe before a final coach journey with educational DVDs designed to get those boys taking their SATS exams over the next few days in the right frame of mind.

A fantastic tour, with great hosts, great rugby, great behaviour from all players and great fun. Many thanks to the organising committee of Steve Jones, Pete Avery, Julie Andrews-Jones, Sally Trevena, Michael “Sports Quiz” O’Flaherty and Mandy Edney. Here’s to next year!