U11s return from Brean with more silverware

1st-2nd May 2010

Our opposition at the 2010 Gulliver's Burnham-on-Sea U11 Rugby Festival consisted of many familiar foes, including Cobham, who were the only other club to enter two teams, and Cwmbran. The standard at this festival is always high and this year was to prove no exception; both Maidenhead sides were going to have their work cut out to progress.

The Maidenhead Panthers and Pumas arrived early on Saturday morning ready to do battle. The Pumas were quickly into the action against Old Albanians, but the Panthers were delayed by an early Tring injury which held up Pool B by 45 minutes. Fortunately the boy made a complete recovery after a pleasant morning down the M5 in a Somerset ambulance!

Panthers

Saturday

The weather was cold and breezy, so keeping warm was the main issue of the day and many parents looked snug in their long coats and jackets. The Panthers' opening game was against fired up local rivals Redingensians. After tasting defeat against Maids' As at their home tournament, the 'Ensians battled hard and their defence held firm under pressure in a tense 0-0 draw. Deadlock was not the start we had hoped for, but every team raises their game at Brean.

Our second game was against Dartfordians, whose strong pack proved a handful and only an excellent effort by the forwards led by Oli Lawrie kept the Maids in this match. Gregor was in fine form, tackling strongly and finding his fly-half, but the strong north-easterly made handling difficult in the backs and mistakes cost us a chance of drawing or winning the game. The final score was 2-1, with Harry Mac scoring a trademark try in the corner; the Panthers knew this was a frustrating one that had got away.

The Panthers awoke from their slumber for the challenge of Cwmbran and took the game to the Welsh forwards on Saturday afternoon. A fired up Moose Green led the fight, ably assisted by Dom and the rest of the pack against the boys in black. Harry W crunched the big Cwmbran centre but couldn't keep fly-half Hopkins completely quiet and the Panthers went 2-0 down. A massive second-half effort by Maids led to two chances being held up over the line which, had they been converted, could have turned Pool B upside down. Player of the tournament, Hopkins, and the Cwmbran faithful cheered with relief when the final whistle sounded.

The Maids' touring party returned to their luxury accommodation ready, for a great night's entertainment in store. Steve was the only happy parent in the party as Cardiff Blues had sneaked an undeserved win in the rain against the mighty Wasps back at Adams Park, whilst the Judge Bob was holding court and dealing out the fines with incredible frequency! There were a lot of Mexican Bandits around the site and some of the handlebar moustaches on show were actually real (weren't they, Mr Gravette?!). The boys had fun in the amusement park on Saturday night before making their usual rearrangement of sleeping quarters, ready for the next day of matches.

Sunday

The rain poured down overnight and was still coming down as the bacon sizzled; first up for the Panthers was a familiar Tring side who are always a good team. The lads burst out of the blocks continuing the form they showed against Cwmbran. A more free-flowing game resulted in a 3-0 confidence-boosting victory, with a fantastic try from tour-debutant Charlie Moss powering over from 10 metres, following an early score from Harry W and a Harry Mac touchdown.

The final Pool B game was against a Cobham B team struggling for form against some strong opposition. The Maids forwards now had their blood up; Hugo didn't let a thick lip stop him and, along with all the forwards, took control of the game, as the backs started to run riot at last. A 6-0 scoreline ensured an early bath for Cobham Bs as, under the tournament try rules, the referee must stop the game when the margin reaches six. Thanks to the pack, the back division filled their boots, with tries from Zac, Harry Mac (2), Ollie Mc, Harry W and Thomas Mac completing the victory.

Winning both Sunday games meant that the Panthers were now in with a chance of finishing third in Pool B. A very tense game between Cwmbran and Tring finished 1-0 to the Welsh, thanks to Hopkins and despite a huge effort by Tring. Panthers were through, on try count, to the Bowl final and stalking Old Albanians. A feat of escapology that even Houdini would have been proud of!

A cagey opening to the Bowl Final ensued, as both sides probed for weaknesses. The Panthers' forwards were really working hard with Oli Lawrie and Gus Webster leading the frontal exchanges. Old Albanians were a well organised team and, struggling to find an opening, Maids were forced to kick downfield; the OA full back, under pressure from the chase by Harry Mac, kick returned straight to Harry W in his own half. A solo run, jinking through the OA defence untouched, resulted in the first try of the game for the Panthers and a 1-0 score at half time. An early attacking scrum in the second half followed by an excellent straight line break by Ollie Mc and the Maids' forwards produced quick ruck ball. The ball from Gregor was moved wide through the backs to create a try for Thomas Maclean, overlapping in the right corner; 2-0 and Panthers best move of the tournament with complete teamwork from everyone. OAs tried to come back but the fight had gone out of them. The Panthers' forwards continued to carry the fight and Albanians finished the game without getting a sniff of the Maids' line.

Well done to all the boys for a great weekend and a tremendous fight back on Sunday.

Pumas

Saturday

At the 2010 Brean Sands festival, the Pumas awoke on Saturday morning determined to present a season-capping performance.

First up was last year's adversaries, Old Albanians. A little bit too much first match respect dented our ruthless intentions, and some 'slow to the mark' rucking and missed tackles saw the OAS run in three tries before half time. The team realised their weaknesses and put on a solid second half show, with much better possession and running to dominate territorial advantage. Banks and Milton led from the front to secure more possession for the backs to work with. A powerful try-scoring charge from Payne pulled one try back to see the Pumas 'win the second half', but lose 3-1 overall.

Second up were the Old Rutlishians and a much more dominant and measured display was about to follow, in what proved to be our best performance of the tournament. Some forceful tackling from Holden and Ward secured the defences and there was no way through for through for the opposition. Good rucking from Birch and his pals in the forwards, and Sutton supplying quick ball down the line, maintained the advantage and produced two more unstoppable tries from Captain Payne. The match was capped by a great solo try from Jenkins, who mesmerised the Ruts with a beautiful jinking run to complete a great 3-0 victory. The Pumas were off and running!

This ought to have been the perfect preparation ahead of our final match on Saturday, versus Cobham - but it was Cobham's A team, who had a line-up sprinkled with quality. Our mixed-ability team fought valiantly, with Gregory battling hard up-front, but after an unfortunate head collision between Jenkins and Ward (leading to the exit of Jenkins), the eventual winners of the U11 tournament were simply too strong and ran out 6-0 winners.

Sunday

Sunday's objective was mathematically simply - we needed at least a win and a draw to advance to the 3rd place final, and first up was Olney. We had a good chance and were well-disciplined right up to half time - only to see a looping run by Olney sneak a try in the corner on the whistle. The determination from the Pumas was clear, as Moreland, Curran and Adamcsik all performed well in the backs, putting in strong tackles and passing well, but Olney were equally ambitious and strong. Despite coming so close to scoring an equalising try after some superb running in the backs, we were evaded by a last gasp handling error and the chance was gone. Soon after Olney scored again, to secure a 2-0 victory.

The final match on Sunday, versus Hinckley, was one where the Pumas were determined to put on a show to round off the season. Having rested Payne in the first half, after previous excellent performances and his justified 'U11 MRFC Player of the season' award, the team sadly saw two tries scored against the run of play before half time. Another boot to the head, this time to Gregory, led to his substitution and the arrival of Payne. The Pumas were not to be beaten. Cowland showed some great pace down the flanks and Roberts seemed to be everywhere in the backs, tackling when he needed to and popping up in the three-quarter line on a regular basis. Textbook tries, where the whole team dug deep to support Payne driving across the line, narrowed the gap and then a fantastic, penetrating run from Jenkins, meant the Pumas could hold their heads up high, having achieved a 2-2 draw. The Pumas were never going to roll over and, indeed, could have added a third try at the end for a win which wouldn't have been undeserved. No final this year, but an admirable performance from an ever-developing squad of ambitious young men.

Let's not forget that we had taken two mixed teams to Brean this year and the experience of playing tougher opposition will add value to the squad for the new season. Well done to the boys for their efforts, of which they should be very proud.

Once again the squad had returned from Brean Sands with a trophy and once again they maintained their record of never having lost a final at Brean, something that not even the mighty Cwmbran can now claim having been dispatched 5-0 by Cobham's A team in a very entertaining Cup Final.