BOYS’ SPORTS REPORTS 04/12/17

RUGBY

1st XV v Wellington won 39-16
Sedbergh surged to victory with a huge second half performance at Broadstreet. Wellington dominated the first half in a very physical and fierce display, starving Sedbergh of any quality possession. Facing an 11-3 deficit and with time running out in the first half Bevan Rodd scored a crucial try in the last play to cut the opposition lead.

After the half time break Sedbergh came out firing with a high tempo and a new level of physicality. With Wellington on the ropes Ben Patchett went straight through the heart of the defence to score and Give Sedbergh their first lead of the match.

The next period of the game was simply breath taking as Sedbergh ran in a further three tries in five minutes to Cam Redpath, Tom Walsh & James Magee.  Wellington scored a consolation try with only minutes remaining to which Sedbergh replied through Josh Hodge on the last play of the game. The Sedbergh fullback sliced through the opposition after a perfectly timed pass from Michael Cooke. This was a great win for the 1st XV in what is always a highly anticipated fixture against quality southern opposition.

2nd XV v Wellington won 38-10
This was a much anticipated fixture for the boys of the 2nd XV squad and one which they aimed to use as a focal point in judging their season against. They did not disappoint. The initial stages of the game were tense and Sedbergh clearly had the upper hand in attack, displaying slick handling at every opportunity, however, Wellington refused to give in easily and forced the boys the brown to earn every try they scored.

Great breaks from Manihera and Barber gave Sedbergh some dominance on the scoreboard and at half-time the topic of conversation was based around a relentless mind-set to take into the 2nd half. The back line simply lit the pitch on fire with excellent awareness of space and execution of set plays throughout. The forward pack worked uncompromisingly, providing plenty of front-foot ball to play off. Sedbergh ran away in the second half and fully deserved a win which showed the depth of talent that the SSFC has in its ranks. Colours were awarded to Michael Cooke and Henry Gray for their consistent performances this season. 

3rd XV v QES Kirkby Lonsdale 1st XV won 42-7
Excellent game against a well drilled side. Special mention To Nelstrop, Vick, Iwan Thomas and Wallis all who stepped up from A2 and did not look out of place. Wallis was man of the match. The team played with real patience and look to be building nicely for the big finish next week. Special mention also most go to Hugh Hollins who got the “full house” a try, conversion, penalty and drop goal during the match.

A1 v Wellington 12-12 draw
On a brisk night down at Broadstreet RFC, A1 faced a side that as U15’s had won the Nat West cup and to date as U16’s remained unbeaten. In the first few minutes, it was evident why they were so strong as they pinned the A1 side deep in their own 22m with some strong ball carrying. Within the first 10 minutes A1 were 12 -0 down after failing to play out from a successful lineout and missed tackles meant an early upward battle.

However great resilience by the brown and a fantastic final 15 minutes of the first half witnessed two great scores by A1. Seb Wilman used his feet and acceleration to sprint away from tacklers near to the ruck and score near to the posts. Five minutes later a score out wide and the Brown were on the front foot. 12-12 at half time. A very fragmented second half witnessed great endeavour by both sides, with the Wellington players throwing everything at the Brown defence, but to no avail.

Some good work to win ball from the forwards opened some opportunities but a few critical errors meant no further score for A1.The final 10 minutes was heated and some excellent tackling meant Wellington could not cross the Sedbergh white wash.

B1 v Wellington won 50-10
Without getting too carried away, this Colts B performance was as good as the score line suggests. Wellington College had only lost twice so far this season by a sum total of four points and had won this fixture comfortably last year. Wellington were a good side with a particularly skilful fly-half but were beaten into submission by a relentless and hungry Sedbergh side.

Sedbergh started with a bang when Matthew Cooney picked a smart line to burst through the midfield. He showed good footwork and pace to round the fullback to score. Shortly afterwards, more robust carrying engineered some space on the left hand side and Josh Clarke weighted his pass beautifully to set up Oliver Kay to score.

Wellington then found a way into the game and a few Sedbergh errors and penalties conceded gave them the lion’s share of possession and territory for the next fifteen minutes. The influential outside-half pulled the strings and played the ball back inside to expose some disorganised Sedbergh defence and open Wellington’s account. 

Sedbergh continued to concede penalties and found themselves a man down after repeated infringements. Wellington made the difference count and a well angled run found the gap to cut Sedbergh’s lead to 12-10. Brown defended manfully with a man in the sin-bin and with the last play of the half forced a turnover and Cooney latched on to the loose ball to race away and score. 

With a nine-point lead at half time the first score of the second half was always going to be crucial and Sedbergh began the second period in imperious fashion. Repeated hard carries resulted in Leo Johnson forcing his way over the first of his two scores. Wellington continued to work hard but their hearts were broken when Johnson picked from the base of a defensive five metre scrum and lifted the ball to Cooney who scorched through to score from ninety metres.

From then on the result was never in doubt but Colts B turned the screw with further scores from Charlie Churchouse (following a sublime skill from Oliver Barlow to keep the ball in play down the left touchline), James Naylor and Johnson again. B1 have a busy week ahead facing Millfield, Standish (in the National Cup) and QEGS Wakefield before the Christmas break. It will be a big challenge to make it through to the holiday unbeaten in regular fixtures but one that the side appears to relish. 

B2 v Kirkbie Kendal won 29-27
With poor concentration and some weak tackling from the start, B2 unfortunately found themselves 17 points down to a strong and direct Kirbie Kendal team who started much the more aggressive. However, the forwards raised their game, with dominant contact play ensuring quick fast ball.

The impressive Gabs Cope (W) was able to put the ball through the hands and release some Sedbergh running rugby, resulting in a 29 unanswered point swing in our favour. With their foot off the gas, two late tries were unfortunately conceded which allowed Kirbie back into the game. Fortunately, the boys in brown defended ferociously to seal off and secure the game by a 2 point winning margin. A tightly contested game with ups and downs, but a great game of rugby for both sides. 

C1 v Wellington lost 50-0
C1 started well against a large Wellington side with some dangerous runners out wide, holding the score line at 0-0 for the first ten minutes, but a scrum against the head on the halfway line cost us dear as the Wellington right winger, lethal in attack from that point on, made the most of the turnover ball and scored the try which opened the floodgates. We stuck to our task manfully, but couldn’t stand up to the physicality and offloading abilities of our opponents.

Tackling out wide was disappointing at times, with defenders not receiving enough cover on their inside shoulders. We had our moments in attack, in the rare periods when we had the ball, and Williams and Spencer both underlined their status as top quality players in a losing cause. As was the case in the first half, we started the second half well, upping the tempo and giving ourselves more opportunities with ball in hand.

A brace of soft tries at the end of the match sealed the rather unappealing scoreline, but there was enough grit shown in the second half to suggest that this team has the ability to bounce back. Another tough challenge awaits the boys next week, but they will as ever give it their all. With a bit more ball in hand they will hopefully enjoy themselves out there as well!

C2 v Kirkbie Kendal School lost 36-12
C2 lost 36 – 12 on a windy, bitterly cold afternoon. Against the wind in first half Sedbergh struggled to gain good field position and despite some excellent tackling let in 4 tries, two to a particularly strong running centre. With the wind at their backs the home side managed to draw the second half due to greater defensive pressure, (aided by the welcome encouragement and instruction from BW), and improved support play in attack, finishing the game on the front foot in the oppositions 22. With the bare 15 available it was an admirable performance in difficult circumstances.