Tom Cahill 01373 830536
Sunday 25th. October
Bradford on Avon Under 11’s
Vs.
Frome
And
Ivel Barbarians
With a number of the lads away on half term duty we played 1 squad with numerous substitutions. With 2 matches and half hour games every one achieved plenty of playing time.
Our first match was against Frome who provided good opposition but not good enough for Bradford who won 4 scores to 1. There were no posts so no conversions to further our score.
Our second match against Ivel Barbarians was a joy to watch and a great learning experience for the boys. Ivel had a squad that if they were 14 years old I would still have been surprised. They made Trowbridge look weedy.
Bradford showed what they were made of and not a single player was daunted, seemed to regard their size as a challenge and tackled with a will. They took the game to Ivel and were still trying at the close. We scored 2 tries to their 4, but what flowing tries they were with the ball spinning down the back line to score in the corner. There was a tendency to run the ball back into the forward areas to begin with, which played into the hands of their big pack, and there was still a tendency in some to try and do too much by themselves, but the tries proved what can be achieved by fast handling and getting the ball wide.
Everyone played well and with courage, and Lawrence Cotton stood out, and showed just how far he has come as a rugby player.
The boys have learnt a lot from this and now cannot wait to have a go at Trowbridge next week-end. Bring it on.
Coaches’ man of the match was awarded to Arthur Hays for some slick distribution, good tactical kicking and a break or two to cap a great game.
The supporters’ man of the match was Louis Neale who made a number of penetrating runs from outside centre, and as always stood out as a determined tackler inspiring the others.