U15s hold Reds

Redingensians U15s 7 v Maidenhead U15s 7
20th January 2008

It was honours even as Maidenhead and Redingensians battled to a thrilling 7.7 draw in the Berkshire league. A share of the points was probably the fairest result. Redingensians' Forwards dominated the scrums and breakdowns but despite a good share of possession, especially in the second half, Maidenhead didn't make the most of their chances.

Unlike last week's game against Windsor, Maidenhead began positively, winning a number of line-outs and trying to get their passing game going. Olly Evans and Rory Creffield put in strong tackles early on, Michael Hapgood had a decent run wide on the right and James Parrott's driving charge down the centre nearly created an early breakthrough.

Redingensians soaked up the early pressure and countered with a period of domination. Morgan Davies provided excellent cover to deal with several high balls as the home side played with the blustery wind behind them. Connor Murphy and Rory Creffield made a determined impact in the mauls, helping to ease the pressure.

Maids' most promising move saw James Parrott, Thomas Simpson and Morgan Davies link well but the wind whipped away long passes. A brilliant interception by Olly and a driving run by Alex Jones saw Maids back on top as both sides showed total commitment. Josh Turvey and Michael James ensured Redingensians' Forwards had to fight for every inch of their muddy advances.

Redingensians gave Maids a difficult time at every scrum and counter-rucked effectively. Just when Maids thought they had done enough to go into the break with both sides scoreless, Redingensians charged down a Maidenhead kick from the back of a defensive scrum only 10 metres out to score with the last move of the half. The conversion put the home side 7.0 up at the turnaround.

The second half was as equally balanced as the first. The boys recycled the ball well and as the game wore on, began to win scrums against the head. Redingensians spent longer spells on the back foot and looked to be tiring, but still the boys couldn't find a crucial gap in their defence. Elliot Reid and George Martin combined on the left flank but ran out of pitch. Matt Bill and Paul Sayers used the boot and the wind to push Maids' attacks deep into Redingensians' territory.

Maids' try duly arrived as the boys did the simple stuff well with quick hands to release Morgan Davies who opened up the throttle on a clever diagonal run to the right corner. He then had the presence of mind and the speed to loop back and touch down under the posts. George Martin made no mistake with the conversion and Maids were right back in contention.

The wind didn't let up and in the heavy conditions both sides fell victim to knock-ons and dropped catches. The tempo remained high as the teams rucked and mauled with passion. Redingensians forced Maids back but more great tackling halted their onslaught and accurate kicking launched Maids straight back down the pitch. Chasing a long ball over the top, Michael Hapgood made a superbly timed tackle to help start a final period of intense pressure. There was nothing in it now as the battle of attrition continued until the whistle ended another highly entertaining game with great rugby played by both sides.