Harrogate Festival - 2012
Almost without warning we arrive at our final fixtures of the season at the Harrogate festival. Today encapsulated everything that has been good about our season. All the parents turned up in force to support the team. One of the pleasures about looking after BB U10s are the parents and the help and support they give to the team. There is nothing worse than pushy parents but we don’t have any and that makes life a lot easier. You’re a really great bunch.
Notwithstanding the above, by far the most pleasing thing again today was the performance of the team. With a really thin squad we played our best rugby of the season. The players were fantastic.
Game one
To say we didn’t get the rub of the green here would be an understatement. In a tight game we narrowly lost out 3-2 to Harrogate. I genuinely thought the better team lost. With better quality officiating I’m sure we would have come away with the points but Hey-ho, everything happens for a reason, and despite great tries from Harry and Jack, the one that we had chalked off from Harley made all the difference.
Game Two
This was our best performance of the season. Against a strong touring Sunderland side we clicked into gear and had the points sewn up in the first half. Some great support play, tackling and passing by Jack Harley Harry Lewis and Dylan saw us put 6 tries on the board. Try scorers were Harry with a hat trick, Jack, Harley and Lewis.
The final game was probably a bridge too far with our thin squad. We needed to win the game against Hull to get into a plate play off, but a slow start saw us trail early on. Fatigue had set in and our big players were struggling but to their eternal credit they kept trying to the end. Another great try from Lewis gave us a glimpse of a chance, but we eventually went down 5 – 2. Harley scored our final try which he richly deserved capping a truly superb season for him personally. He deserves all the plaudits he gets. Harry was also fantastic today. His strong powerful running has made the difference in many a game and today was no different. In heavy conditions he was outstanding. Jack also had a great tournament. His strong running in the ruck area along with his presentation and passing of the ball is a real example to everybody.
Again without getting lost in the detail, the efforts of Dylan, Lewis and Ben Forrest showed how far certain players have come this year. Dylan has really upped his game in recent weeks. Aggression and strong running are becoming his trade mark. At one point today he lost his shorts and his boots but never wavered. Lewis was superb again today. In the final game he was like a man possessed. Stealing the ball and running strongly into contact time after time. Ben Forrest is Mr Consistency and at times doesn’t get the credit he deserves.
Ben Fryer, James Gibson and Ethan Kirkby definitely had the ball in their hands today more times than I can remember. A sure sign of how far we have come and how players are becoming more and more involved. Also special praise to Harrison Blackwell who in his very short rugby career has had a real baptism of fire but, as my Grandma says, he’s no shirker. Well done Harrison.
Next season brings the introduction of 5 man scrums and a starting team of 12 players, so the close season needs some intensive recruitment which we all need to be involved in. All good teams know that the following season starts the minute that the current season ends and we are no different.
Let’s hit the ground running next year and avoid the slow start we had this year. We are planning on starting training earlier than normal and organising try out sessions throughout the summer so please watch your emails for further details.
Really looking forward to seeing you all on the 6th of May for our prize presentations. Please try to make the effort to attend to cap a great season for everybody.