U8s at the Reading C Festival

Sunday 16th October 2011

The Reading RFC W dental Mini Festival got off to a slow start for Maidenhead on this cold and somewhat misty morning. Their first game against Amersham & Chiltern B did not go quite according to plan and a few fairly major holes in Maidenhead's defence saw the opposition sneak through three excellent tries. Maidenhead tried hard to get back in the game, and a couple of good runs by Jack Dennis in the closing minutes saw Maidenhead's spirits lifted, but it was all too late.

Final score: Maidenhead 0 - Amersham & Chiltern B 3

With the team now warmed up, the game against Bracknell C faired far better. A really strong defence from Maidenhead, saw the opposition only managing to break through and score once. Attack was the name of this game for Maidenhead. Superb support and quick thinking on the move saw Daniel Rayfield, Joshua Crook and Jack Dennis all score. A final inspired run and some excellent footwork by Connor Charles saw the Maidenhead score brought up to 4.

Final Score: Maidenhead 4 - Bracknell C 1

Concentration slipped in game 3 against Beaconsfield. It was a close game and some artful dodging early on saw Joshua Crook score Maidenhead's first try. This was followed by another brilliant try from Sebastian Ward who showed the lads how it should be done. The quick pace of the Festival then took its toll. Having performed as a team really well throughout the game, a couple of careless defensive blunders finally cost Maidenhead the Match.

Final Score: Maidenhead 2 - Beaconsfield 3

Maidenhead went into the last game on a mission to win. They knew they had it in them, so with some pre-match encouragement from the coaches a plan was formed. Maidenhead went on the attack from the off and Jonty Bryant stormed down the field to set the pace for the rest of the game. This was closely followed by another try from Jack Dennis who had the legs to pull off another amazing run to score. Somehow, the opposition, Slough-Phoenix Barbarians managed to find a weak point in our defence and sneaked one through. Not deterred and sensing victory, Maidenhead dug deep and kept up the exhausting pace. Again Jack Dennis broke ranks and went on to score the final try of the festival for Maidenhead. Overall, the tournament has its ups and downs for Maidenhead, but they came away a better team having learned from some inspired play from the teams they faced.

Final Score: Maidenhead 3 - Slough-Phoenix Barbarians 1

The players: Johannes Dreschmeier, Keiran Pogson, Jonty Bryant, Jack Dennis, Xavier Davis, Connor Charles, Daniel Rayfield, Daniel Wilson, Joshua Crook, Seb Ward

The Coaches: Andrew Pogson & Robin Bryant

Match Report by Andrew Pogson