U15s lose it late at Farnham

Farnham U15s 17 v Maidenhead U15s 5
10th February 2008

The U15s were unfortunate to come out on the wrong end of a 17.5 scoreline in this friendly fixture. Both sides enjoyed good periods of possession but Farnham made more of their attacking drives. One of the main challenges facing the boys was playing sideways across a generous slope on an only just defrosted pitch. Once gravitational adjustments had been made they attempted to get their passing game going.

But it was Farnham who had the better of the breaks in the first half and scored an unconverted try early on following a period of pressure. Maids were seconds away from scoring themselves when the referee blew for an injury to a Maidenhead player. This spurred on the boys but they failed to score despite being in front of the opposition line for long periods.

The home side doubled their advantage with a pushover try, showing good mauling ability. Farnham had a strong front row and a well-marshalled defence that never seemed to miss a tackle. Despite a lot of time spent on the opposition line Maids failed to capitalise on the pressure they applied in the first period.

Maids pulled back a try after the restart when Charlie Wickham-Smith broke out of a maul near Farnham’s line to score. At 10.5 the second half was evenly contested and the game could have been won or lost by either side. Alex Jones almost got through the defensive line and Elliot Reid went close. Matt Bill at scrum half kept the momentum ticking over. Michael Habgood at full back had a few piercing runs at the opposition and David Walker put in some good tackling.

But there was late frustration for Maidenhead as Farnham pounced on a fortunate interception in the last minute to score under the posts and convert. Maids showed superior fitness but often failed in the final phase of a movement with a lack of support and poor timing of their passes. A good learning experience for the boys for when they return to league action against Reading Abbey in March.