Gutted!

Felsted Rugby U16 'A' v Wymondham College

Result - lost 20-22

Tries - Seager, McLaren, Sellers

Conversions - Hutchinson

Penalties - Hutchinson

Unfortunately, the unbeaten run of the Under 16s came to a very narrow end on Saturday at Wymondham.  The final kick of the game was a penalty to give us a 23-22 win, but this time Rory Hutchinson’s boot could not give us the game, and the kick was tantalisingly close to the left hand post.  Some thought it was over, but the referee ruled (rightly, I think) that the kick missed, and Wymondham had hung on for a 22-20 victory. 

It was a very frustrating afternoon, because, despite the obvious talent in their side, we had plenty of opportunity to make the game safe, but a high error count, perhaps reflecting nerves from the players, knowing how much this game would mean, hit us badly.  Also, our discipline cracked, and we were unable to work with the referee.  As the game wore on, this became an increasingly big issue, and key penalties were conceded by players who ignored the fact that commenting on the decision making was not helping our cause.

There were some highlights – a great interception try from Adam Sellers, Angus McLaren getting a score, having come in to replace the promoted James Halfhide, and a very good score from James Seager after we took a scrum against the head near their line.  Also, some of the scrambling defence in the last ten minutes was of the very highest quality, but the fact that we were scrambling shows that we were not quite as controlled in the first phase as we needed to be, and all three of their tries were the result of errors on our part. 

There is much that we can learn from this result, and it is important that the players do see ways to improve.  If they do, Norwich will not know what hit them this Saturday, as the season finishes with a home fixture, 2.15pm kick off.  I hope to see many of you there.

Unfortunately, having been largely injury free as a squad, we have lost Bertie Wells, who has had a really impressive season at centre, after picking up a wrist injury.  We will miss his physical presence next Saturday, but I am sure that the lads will be determined to get a win in their last game regardless.

As usual, a few clips from the game

Line out

Rory's line break

Ruck ball