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U17s' support play secures fine win at Witney Witney
U17s 3 v Maidenhead U17s 37 Sunday 31st January 2010 |
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Due to not knowing whether this match was going ahead until the very last minute, Maidenhead travelled to Witney with an extremely positive attitude but with a squad rather thin on numbers. That said, Maids still fielded a good team and it was clear that everyone was up for the contest. Some of the rugby played was 'top drawer' considering this was the first proper run for a long time following the recent Arctic conditions. This was a good collective performance, testimony to the strong team spirit in the camp. Defence was strong and organised throughout, epitomised by the determination to repel the late forward surges by a Witney side who commendably never let their heads drop. The very cold conditions occasionally made handling difficult for both sets of backs but Maids sensibly did not try to force the game and stuck to the game-plan. A well executed move provided the opening try with skipper Mike Habgood touching down. This was a game that the forwards were asked to step up and perform ... and they did. It was a good performance up front, in both set piece and at the the loose. There were some fine individual performances but everyone kept their discipline and stuck to their roles to produce a fine all-round team performance. A sweeping movement down the slope with Mike Habgood providing the scoring pass to debutant flanker / makeshift winger Will Clark to touch for the opening try out wide. He looks a good prospect and will get his chance to show his worth on the flank. A deserved try for Conor Murphy followed, with the prop forward rampaging over from close range. Always good to see the front row boys getting in on the act! Murphy is consistently good in his performances and adds valuable mauling strength, power in the scrum, and controlled aggression at the breakdown. Another long range break out with some superlative support play and link passes produced the best try of the match for Maid's pocket-dynamo hooker John Cullivan. Then, Mike Habgood playing in his more accustomed position of full back hit the line at pace from a well worked move to power in under the posts for a further good try - duly converted by fly half James Brooks. Prop Jamie Carter replaced James Wilson with 20 minutes to go and put in a good, productive stint at the coalface. Strong in the scrum and with a bit more game time, he will be one to watch in future. James Wilson returned to the fray for the last 10 minutes replacing hooker John Cullivan, and ended up scoring the sixth try. This was unquestionably Wilson's best game for Maidenhead this season, leading from the front and executing the his skills well. The final try was scored in the corner by hard working No.8 Alex Jones who was put over unselfishly by fly half Brooks who exploited a simple two-on-one overlap. Whilst his distribution and game control was again good, Brooksie for once left his kicking boots at home ... either that or he's not left footed! None of his kicks were that easy but he would normally expect to convert a few of them. Maids would not have been flattered by a scoreline over 50 points! In general, Maidenhead's support play was outstanding throughout and the team secured an good away win despite the thin squad availability. Maidenhead's Mr Consistency, Chris Withers, finished the game with his feet in tatters owing to blisters. Alex Jones suffered similarly. Too much dancing from the forwards on previous night obviously! Score: 37 - 3 (7 Tries, 1 Con) |