Slough beaten but unbowed

Sunday 7th December 2008

Slough U15s 7 v Maidenhead U15s 32

A beautiful bright winter morning, at the other Rugby club from which you can see Windsor Castle, saw Maidenhead’s U15s hand out a lesson to their hosts in the first half and then defend bravely against a spirited comeback in the second.

Apparently Slough RFC was founded largely by Welshmen who walked from the valleys in search of work (http://clubs.rfu.com/CLUBS/portals/slough/).

This Sunday it was Maidenhead’s players looking for work from the off, with the forwards tearing into the breakdown and producing quality possession for the backs, who in turn attacked Slough’s lines at pace. Not much walking was in evidence as five tries were scored in a hectic first twenty minutes. The first two went to Josh Edney and Tyler Bello, bullocking through poor defence. Then Fraser Brooks ghosted off a right foot and under the posts. The half ended with two tries for left winger Ross Dingwall, finishing difficult chances each made possible by incisive running from the other winger, Dhruv Surya. Brooks’ conversion of his own try left the halftime score 0-27 but Slough did finish the half pressing the visitors’ line, a sign of things to come.

The second period was a more even contest, with the frantic earlier pace telling on Maidenhead’s players. Dingwall completed his hat trick early on but the remaining time belonged to a Slough side sensing a chance to come back into it. Perhaps the long walk from Tenby develops inherited stamina for the last quarter. Maids held out almost until the end but the free running Slough fullback finally picked up an indecisive clearing kick at the 10 metre line and managed to find a route back through the traffic to score. The last gasp conversion meant that the home side deservedly won the second half 7 points to 5.

There were good performances throughout the Maidenhead side but Jones, Bello, Cronbach and Scolari all deserve special mention for industry and impact. Finally, Josh Edney, captain for the day, both showed what a good all round player he has become, and maintained a perfectly reasoned discussion with a grateful referee throughout.

Next week sees the opening fixture of the Berkshire U15 League. Maidenhead’s first opponents will be Newbury RFC, whose friendly motto is apparently “Join us, follow us, or get out of our way!” (http://www.newburyrfc.co.uk/wp/). Let’s see if we can give them a fourth alternative.