Kesteven club round up
Kesteven made the short trip to Sleaford for this friendly. Skipper Simon Oakes took a seat on the bench and let Andy Pearsey take over as captain for the day.
Sleaford started brightly and were intent on taking the game to the visitors testing the Kesteven defence. Although they had the better of the half they weren't able to make the crucial breakthrough.
Kesteven through good line kicking from Lamb and Turner kept pushing Sleaford back, but it was defence that held firm. Kesteven opened the scoring when Cooper intercepted a pass in his own half. He was stopped just short of the line but Ian Charles was up in support to go over for the try. Harland's conversion from far out it the post.
Sleaford continued to press and were rewarded with the last move of the half when they scored with a push over try. The successful conversion gave the home team a 7 - 5 lead.
Kesteven made some changes at the break. Brett Login had retired hurt after 10 minutes to be replaced by Tyrone Miles. At the break Gavin Purves replaced Marc Paton and Andy Price replaced Ian Charles. Kesteven began to dominate play in the second half with Hayward and Odams prominent. The backs began to string together some good passages of play and Matt Harland was next to score when he completed a classic three-quarter move with a try in the corner..
Sleaford occasionally got into the visitors half and from one such foray they scored. A clearance kick was charged down and swift follow up won the race to the ball for the try. The conversion struggled to get any height but did enough to struggle over the bar to give the home side a 14 - 10 lead with 10 minutes left.
Kesteven reacted well and repeated their earlier exploits with a second classic three-quarter move with the same result of Harland racing in for the winning try.. Rugby is a simple game when played at such pace!
This was a very good win over a strong Sleaford side. The never say die spirit of the squad was evident again with another example of aside not accepting defeat.
Harland was the star man with his two tries but Hughes, Lamb Turner and Cooper kept the backs moving well. Dixon at full back was sound collecting the Sleaford kicks through and returning them with some sparkling running while Charles showed the benefit of good support play with his try.
In the pack Odams had an outstanding game, winning loads of turnover ball. Hayward andPaton, then Purves gave strong performances. In the second row Miles and Tweddle were a force to be reckoned with some bruising runs while Sayle gave his usual dominating performance in the line out, and with Brown formed a mobile back row. Pearsey led the side with wisdom and experience keeping the side together well.
Team was Dixon; Charles, Cooper, Turner, Harland; Lamb, Hughes' Paton, Login Odams, Hayward, Tweddle, Brown, Sayle, Pearsey Reps Miles, Purves, Price, Oakes.
Saturday 20th March
Notts Penant Group 5
Rolls Royce 2nds 15 Kesteven 3rds 17
K's third team travelled across to Derby with a true blend of youth and experience for a pennant fixture with Rolls Royce II.
With most people playing out of position the first half was a matter of settling and running the journey out of the legs.
Rolls Royce took full advantage of this and although K's did show signs of intent the home side opened up an unanswered 15 points to lead at half time.
The second half saw Kesteven grow in confidence against an increasingly frustrated Rolls Royce side.
Olly Wood was first to go over with a trademark scrum half dart and score. Rupert Jordan added a quick second from good interlinking play between forwards and backs from the restart.
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Rolls Royce now new that they were in a match but eventually the breakthrough came again from Olly Wood. With quick thinking and the tenacity of youth a quick take saw him run over the line for his second try of the day.
The pressure of the kick to take the lead and what would prove to be the decisive score was passed to Michael Coghill who calmly slotted the kick.
The overall determination of the Kesteven side saw them take the win against a capable Rolls Royce side. The four colts that made their senior debuts played extremely well. Every person played their part in a second half comeback.
Final Score Rolls Royce II 15 Kesteven III 17
Team was Tony Smith, Tom Wilcox (18 y/o colt), Eddie Dovey, Jo Haluscak, Michael Coghill (colt), Justin Welham, Ian MacAllister, Mark Sayle Snr, Olly Wood (colt), Justin Dingley (colt), Mike Willers, Ben Betts, Rupert Jordan, Shaun Smith, Daz Blackley ©.
Wednesday 17 March 2010
Nottinghamshire 18 Lincolnshire 7
Coach Martin Steele sent 6 players from Kesteven to play in last nights Lincolnshire development game vs Nottinghamshire Development.
Phil Jordan, Rupert Jordan, Ben Betts, Scott Odams, Will Pert and Tony Woolerton have all shown great form playing first team rugby this season and deserved their county representation.
The game as always was played at a fast and frantic pace and the Lincs players acquitted themselves well against a huge 32 player Notts squad!!
Eventually Lincs went down 18-7 at Newark RFC. Phil Jordan had a great game playing at fly-half with accurate and intelligent kicking from hand coupled with a couple of line breaks and a usual aggressive defensive display.
Rupert Jordan had 2 very promising runs which could have lead to points but for last ditch tackles. Ben Betts had his usual solid game and a particularly strong carry as has become his trademark. Scott Odams was excellent with his scrummaging and mobile around the park and unlucky not to receive more ball but had a couple of notable turn overs. Will Pert playing at number 8 adapted well to the position and was always a willing carry option of Phil at 10.
Possibly the pick of the Kesteven players Tony Woolerton played in an abrasive manner as always and had the accolade of scoring Lincs only try from a tap penalty about 10 metres out. Obviously there was no stopping Tony as he picked a player to run at and powered over for the score.
Great to have significant representation in a county squad that further strengthens Kesteven’s links with the county structure.
The Black Army U10s Triumph in NLDs
Kesteven 20 Newark 20
Kesteven 5 Newark 0
Semi Final - Kesteven 25 Bakewell 0
Final - Kesteven 5 Nottingham 0
Kesteven Under 10s secured back to back titles in the Notts, Lincs & Derbys Shield Tournament last Sunday at Newark displaying a combination of ‘handsome and dangerousness’ befitting the famous Black Shirt.
Due to the non-appearance of Bourne (we believe due to an outbreak of fear), Kesteven faced local rivals Newark twice in the qualifying rounds. A combination of genetic engineering and extreme cruelty ensured that the Newark pack were larger than their parents and mean as a Scotsman (no offence Bill!!). The squad nevertheless showed no fear as one of their props was brought pitch side in a cage, the other wheeled on a contraption last used by Hannibal Lecter.
A savage encounter ensued with both teams battling for supremacy, Kesteven providing their own version of ‘Shock and Awe tactics. Tackling like a fleet of Eddie Stobart lorries the Black Army repelled wave upon wave of attacks forcing errors from the confused giants and their willing accomplices. Forwards Monster, Big Chris, H, Psycho and Ninja fought tooth and nail – sometimes within the laws of the game – to force turnovers allowing backs Tobias and Handsome Dev (arriving mid-way through the first half due to logistical difficulties – he thought we were training - only to be pole-axed in his first bit of action by the tree trunk that the Newark prop laughingly called an arm) to make space for Gentleman Tom and Convict Jacko to dance their way to the try line showing pace which would have seen Usian Bolt demanding a drugs test. Slash provided further evidence that looking like a choirboy and tackling like a freight train is a winning combination. Sadly these acts only provoked Newark to up their assault and they claimed a couple of tries themselves - Honours even on that one then!!
After an hours break to allow the players to replenish their E number levels, and the coaches to seek medication, Newark game right back at us, this time with renewed vigour that suggested their intake of raw meat and steroids was perhaps even more effective than the multi-coloured sherbet and red liquorice favoured by their black shirted opponents.
This was only a game a mother could love and amidst the bone crunching and ligament snapping sounds a cry from the crowd signalled that the Ginger Ninja (auburn headed wrecking machine Finley Moth) had by happy coincidence found himself, the ball and the try line together at the same time. Happily Ninja had the presence of mind to take a lie down with the ball over the line provoking mayhem in the ranks of the watching parents.
Newark took the loss very well - well they’re used to it – and went on to deservedly win the NLD Bowl Competition later in the day.
Bakewell provided Kesteven with their semi-final opponents having put Newark B and Sleaford away in their qualifying group. Bakewell were effectively a one-man side – but what a man!! This guy was probably the smallest player on the field (besides our own vertically challenged Dangerous Brothers – Convict Jack and Handsome Dev) but he ran like the wind and tackled everything that moved. Happily Kesteven twigged this very early and managed to keep the ball away from him displaying ball handling that defied belief and would have made Maradonna blush with envy. This devastating display of skill reached a crescendo towards the end of the game, when the team was bolstered by the introduction of Headhunter (clearly injured from a knock in the previous week, courtesy of our Newark friend in the cage, but immediately threw himself into the action looking for a cranium to take home as a souvenir), H (mild-manner maniac and part-time hitman with a great haircut), Psycho (desperately trying to find someone to stand still long enough to assault on the far side of the ruck) , The Force (whose powers are returning with every game he plays) and the green-gloved Jake-meister (who tries so hard that I believe he sleeps in his kit just in case the call comes).
Marshalled by the alleged ‘Communist’ Tobias (eager to share the wealth from scrum half) Ks put together a move including so many phases and passing movements that the referee nearly met himself coming backwards). Even the coaches, who under normal circumstances don’t celebrate tries because they find the open display of joy vulgar, leapt in the air to greet the passage of play which would have left Gareth Edwards realising it made his 1973 try for the Barbarians against the All Blacks look like a fluke!! The Gentleman and the Convict shared 5 tries between them making a mockery of Tobias’s generosity of spirit.
The final saw us take on Nottingham B team. Easy you would have thought but the Nottingham squad been practically unbeaten this season and have a squad of nearly five thousand.
Having had the painful experience of having to stop the Final of our own festival against Nottingham midway through the 2nd half due to Nottingham’s apparent enthusiasm for neck tackles, the coaches were wary of the dangerous opponents who looked as though the were in need of a shave and a loving home.
It’s said that ‘rugby is a game for hooligans played by gentlemen’ this proved to be only 50% correct as Nottingham threw themselves at us as if we had collectively called their mothers a rude name (again this is only 50% correct – it was the coaches who’d called their mothers a rude name).
The 1st half proved to be such a close affair that Trainee, Assistant, Deputy Coach Shaw spent most of it rocking in the foetal position. The forwards showed immense courage in scrapping for every ball and Fabulous Freddie and Gentleman Tom in the centres tackled every Nottingham shirt that moved – occasionally they even had the ball. Tom decided he was bored with tackling towards the end of the first half and after being presented with the ball by his exhausted pack decided to batter a hole through the green wall and have a party over the try line.
The second half proved to be equally frantic with Kesteven deciding that they’d prefer to spend the rest of the match on their try line simply to display the defensive capabilities having got bored with attacking.
To quote Nottingham’s report of the match from their website ‘Nottingham B team came runners up in the shield only to out done by some very dodgy reffin having been denied twice for touching down on the try line......’. No Sir, for a start reffing has a ‘g’ in it and secondly you didn’t have the ball down twice, the first one was penalised for a double movement your player having been cut down short by a black shirted hero, the second was held up by Champion George who threw his manful frame to the floor and held the ball up as if it were on scaffolding.
There was just enough time left in the game for Handsome Dev to take a number of assaults on his nether regions before the game was halted by the bearded geography teacher who will forever be a beacon of correctness in the Black Army camp.
T.A.D. Coach Shaw managing to recover from ‘something in his eye’ retained his humility and grounded-ness in victory stating ‘This team have proved themselves to be beyond doubt the finest Under 10s team in the Rugby playing world, as such I have arranged an Easter triangular fixture against Mars and Venus U10s. We await confirmation as to whether this will be a home fixture but have booked a bag packing session at ASDA just in case as I understand space travel can be quite expensive’.
Well done lads – you did yourselves, your parents and the Club proud!!!
Squad
Curtis ‘Headhunter’ Taylor, Harry ‘H’ Cox, Josh ‘The Force’ Fawcitt. Oliver ‘Jake-meister’ Jakes, ‘Bash Brothers’ Ben & James Cole, ‘Handsome’ Devlin Archer, ‘Gentleman’ Tom Edwards, Big Chris Ford-Cooper, Davy ‘Psycho’ Hodgson, Finley ‘Ninja’ Moth, ‘Convict’ Jack Palin, Josh ‘Monster’ Peters, Alex ‘Slasher’ Rogerson, ‘Chairman’ Tobias Tapson, Fabulous Frederico Young & ‘Champion’ George Wainright.
Kesteven Under Eights at the NLD
Crowds of anxious parents drifting uncertainly around roped-off pitches, harried coaches and hordes of cheerfully exuberant boys running in fifteen directions at once, muffled Tannoy announcements and long queues for bacon sandwiches – unmistakeably NLD time. This year’s trip to Nottingham began on an overcast morning, giving little clue to the glittering success that was to follow for Kesteven. This year the club had two teams.
The B-squad’s campaign
Players: Freddie Arlott. Tom Carrington, Robert Crossley, Ben Jinks, Luke Moore, Daniel Pepper, Owen Shaw, Barnaby Thomas, Oliver Wood, Josh Weir
The B-team was first into action, facing a very well organised Spalding squad that was tagging ferociously. The Bs’ performance was characterised by good build up play and solid passing, but missed tags let Spalding get a couple of soft tries early on – building up a four-one lead at one point. The boys dug deep and fought back, but the early deficit couldn’t be overturned. Final score: Kesteven 3, Spalding 5. Kesteven scorers Josh Weir (2), Oliver Wood
The B-team’s second match was against a well-organised Market Rasen team. Again, patient build-up and some excellent passing was let down by some missed tags gifting opportunities to a team that needed no second invitation to score. Rasen took an early lead but the boys tightened up their play, started winning turnovers, made some strong runs and really worked well as a team to give each other space and create the opportunities to battle it out to level the scores. Final score: Kesteven 4, Market Rasen 4. Kesteven scorers Robert Crossley (2), Daniel Pepper, Barnaby Thomas
The clash with eventual pool winners Nottingham B was less thrilling – for Kesteven fans, anyway. It highlighted the price paid for missing tags. They boys fought hard and continued to play well and produce some great passes, but the very physical and well-drilled team from the host club forced turnovers and punished any moment of defensive indecision. Final score: Kesteven 1, Nottingham 5. Kesteven scorer Ben Jinks
Heads were down after the Nottingham game, but the boys rallied themselves for the next match against Moderns, producing some great rugby. Defensively they got themselves together and really started getting tags. In attack there was perhaps less of the organised, careful passing that had characterised their first two games but that was more than made up for by a couple of brilliant individual runs that capped the emphatic victory. Final score: Kesteven 5, Moderns 1. Kesteven scorers Owen Shaw (3) Barnaby Thomas, Josh Weir
Unfortunately, your correspondent missed the final game against an impressive Melbourne A side, as this match clashed with the A-squad’s game against Paviors. However, my son tells me it was nothing special because he had one try disallowed and it wasn’t worth watching so there (or words to that effect). Whatever happened, it was clear the small squad was tired by this point and, despite trying hard, went down valiantly. Final score: Kesteven 1, Melbourne 4.
The A-squad’s campaign
Players: Elliott Arnold, Jamie Bishop, Patrick Bishop, Oscar Clink, Tom Duncomb, Harvey Harris, Willoughby Jago, Archie Lyle, Ted Morris, Sam Sacker, William Shennan, Robert Singer
Confidence was high for the As’ first match, having beaten Newark at home the week before. The performance in Nottingham , though, was on another level. Excellent defence forced a number of turnovers and direct, incisive running broke the opposition’s line repeatedly. Newark weren’t pushovers by any means and it was an exciting contest. However, after the first four minutes there was no doubting the result – the only question was what the margin of victory would be. Sustained high-quality play ensured it was substantial. Final score: Kesteven 7, Newark 3. Kesteven scorers Jamie Bishop, Patrick Bishop, Tom Duncomb, Ted Morris, Sam Sacker (2), Bob Singer
I’m afraid I missed the A-squad’s second match, against Dronfield, as I was watching the B-team grittily battle for a draw with Rasen. However, it’s one of those rare things in tag rugby – a game where the score line alone tells you all that’s important. Though the enormous grins on the faces of the parents afterwards would have been enough to fill in any gaps. It was a commanding performance from the As, apparently made in good and entertaining style. Final score: Kesteven 6, Dronfield 0.
The game against Ilkeston was far less one-sided. Though Kesteven got the upper hand early on, forcing a turnover and scoring, it was clear that Ilkestone weren’t going to make this an easy match. It was a fast paced, tight contest, with the ball being turned over by one team and then the other. Kesteven did build up a three-nil lead at one point, only to watch Ilkeston step it up and grind out two tries in fairly quick succession. In the end, though, the Ks stayed composed and saw the match out in good style. Final score: Kesteven 4, Ilkeston 2. Kesteven scorers Patrick Bishop, Tom Duncomb, Ted Morris, William Shennan
If the As had been cheerfully confident facing Newark , it was with a grim confidence that they took the field to face the old enemy, Stamford A. It was to be a tough, close game, with both sides showing their class. The passing was good from both sides, the running was good from both sides… and so was the tagging. There was no such thing as an easy try in this match – indeed, it was such a tight game there were only five tries scored all together. This was to be the match that decided the pool. Unfortunately, it decided it in Stamford ’s favour. Final score: Kesteven 2, Stamford 3. Kesteven scorers Willoughby Jago, Ted Morris.
There was no rest after the disappointment of the Stamford match – the last pool game was against a handy Paviors squad more than capable of ending the A-squad’s campaign. With a rugged defence, they set about turning Kesteven over. Fortunately, the boys were up to the challenge and responded with some excellent tagging of their own. When the breaks came, it was all about speed and Kesteven were fortunate to have the runners to ensure qualification. Final score: Kesteven 3, Paviors 1. Kesteven scorers Ted Morris, Sam Sacker (2)
Congratulations to all the boys for the great rugby they played last Sunday at the NLD. They all must have been tired when they got home as they played their socks off.
This Sunday we are at home with Lincoln and a touring side from Melrose coming to play. However there are a load of other matches being played at home this Sunday including an NLD 7s tournament! Car parking will be tight and please use the main club entrance as the top entrance will be used for the NLD tournament. I still plan to put out two sides, but it is likely we will only have one pitch (although this may change) the non playing side will train on the side lines. Please ensure all the boys bring gum shields as we hope to do some tackle practice between matches. The teams for this Sunday are as follows
Team A Team B
Patrick Bishop Freddie Arlott
Tom Duncomb Tom Carrington
Ted Morris Luke Moore
Sam Sacker Alfie Peel
William Shennan Harry Watmough
Jamie Bishop Oliver Wood
Ben Jinks Archie Lyle
Daniel Pepper Oscar Clink
Owen Shaw Harvey Harris
Josh Weir Willoughby Jago
Robert Crossley Elliot Arnold
Barnaby Thomas Bob Singer
Ethan Lamming
