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U7s Finish Fourth After A Competitive And Enjoyable Weekend.
As the weekend approached the range of weather forecasts moved from mildly depressing (patchy showers throughout) to almost cataclysmic (possibility of a localised tornado on Hayling Island) – would the prophets of doom be proved correct?
As we drove into the campsite in glorious sunshine it appeared that luck may be on our side. There then followed a prolonged period of pole assembly, peg bashing and head scratching; interspersed amongst which were sly looks either side of pitches to see whether there was any cause for ‘tent envy’! All appeared to be well, with each tent construction crew at ease with their own production, when the Gaskells arrived in the camping equivalent of the Millennium Falcon – not quite cricket one would have to say. Shortly afterwards minds moved towards the most primitive of skills when living in the wild outdoors – hunting for food! There were a number of different approaches on display, ranging from hardcore rations to less demanding soup; the collective of Dreelans/Bennetts/Gaskells adopted the most refined approach and sent out for pizza.
The next morning saw the weather still holding, rain had come and gone, and amidst the smell of sizzling bacon, various assortments of military fancy dress started appearing. Charlie set quite a dash, combining Rambo chic with a more retro WW2 design (albeit with German colours); then there was G.I. Jane Gaskell and Brig Oatley, both clearly seized with the power of camouflage; and last but not least Mr Chairman himself, looking far too convincing as an extra from Dad’s Army. We mounted up, and set off – somewhere there was rugby to be played!!
I’m quite sure in the initial planning stages of the festival, the issue of how to cope when you invite in the region of 1000 participants to a venue with 200 car parking spaces was placed in the “can be resolved on the day” column; if only life were that simple. Having waited for the team to march in from the various car parks in Portsmouth, we then had the quite moving team procession down “Rugby Road” – perhaps the less said the better………
The U7s, consisting of Harvey, Joshua, Jake, Alice, Nicholas, Ethan, Darragh, Keir, Harry and Charlie (accompanied by Iori in a non-playing role) were one of 7 teams vying for the silverware, with 6 games spread over 2 days. We commenced with a glittering display against Old Colfeians, with Joshua (5) and Ethan (3) sharing the tries in an 8-6 victory, which was far more convincing than the score would suggest. Arriving after the start (refereeing duties) of the second game against Old Wimbledonians, I was told the opposition were playing well and it was more or less even. A narrow 7-5 defeat reflected a close game where one turnover cost us dear.
After a (far too lengthy) break, we then came back out early for our final game of the day, in unpleasant playing conditions; these were not just limited to the weather! The game against Worthing was marred by controversy – a disputed line call early on sent the Worthing coach into an uncontrollable rage, just for once (at least initially) I was not to blame. As the team struggled to make any ground (very difficult when the entire opposition is offside), I then encountered the rather surreal experience of being threatened by the other coach – for daring to speak! I’m not quite sure what all the words meant, however the general gist seemed to involve removing my head from my shoulders; never one to knowingly avoid upsetting somebody intent on killing me (and buoyed by the presence of James and Deano on the touchline) I threw back a customary witty retort. I was then saved by nature itself, as it transpired the noise created by the coach’s knuckles dragging along the ground had momentarily deafened him and all was well. That the team managed to lose only 7-5, in the face of quite so many infringements, was testament to their fighting spirit.
Putting the unpleasantness to one side, we set off back to the campsite for a well-earned BBQ. The sun emerged once more and we were treated to the delights of Tom “Where’s the paraffin” Gaskell setting most things on fire and exquisitely taking care of our burgers and bangers. There may even have been a beer or two consumed that night!
Day 2 produced less favourable weather conditions, but again saw the team get off to a winning start, defeating Chesham 8-7. Morale was high as we took to the pitch to face Sevenoaks, however heads then fell as suddenly tags weren’t coming off and the ball wasn’t staying in hands. The half-time team talk was delivered in a loud enough tone to wake the players up sufficiently to produce a stirring second half fight back; from 3-0 in the first half, to come back to lose 7-4 was a fabulous performance, against what was a well-drilled team, who (it was nice to see) played the game in the right spirit. The final game saw us face Beaconsfield – a game that we were always ahead in, once more saw the quirk of the “last play turnover” cost us dear, however the 4-4 draw was celebrated and off we marched to the presentation ceremony having come fourth.
You will have noticed the lack of match detail above; however events I recall (which I can’t necessarily attribute to specific games) are, Jake on slinking runs scoring some excellent tries; Harvey bursting down the wing, desperate to get to the corner; Harry, tagging like a demon (whilst occasionally offside); the look of delight from Charlie as he broke away to score; Ethan and Nicholas finally running straight, and getting further than they thought they might; Darragh surging through the line and being stopped just short; Joshua taking the referee to one side to explain his shortcomings (just like his father); Keir marshalling the defence and tagging like a man (or boy) possessed; Alice on a surging run, laying the ball off to set up a try; Joshua and Nicholas chasing to opposite corners to try and prevent the opposition scoring; and, finally, Nicholas (spurred on by a perceived injustice) taking the ball straight through the middle of the opposition to score!
For embodying the spirit of the team, in never accepting defeat on the pitch and battling until the last whistle, the Player of the Tournament was Nicholas Bennett.
So after a couple of days of running, tagging, wall climbing, bouncy castle-ing, football, sweets, burgers, the bizarre pastime of watching others play DS and all round fun (despite the weather), it was time to take the tents down (much easier than putting them up) and wend our way home.
Thanks from Tom & Anna, Graham & Katharine, myself and Tracey to all the parents and the players. They can be rightly proud of their achievements over both the season and this weekend and can look forward to a promising U8s campaign in September.
If there are any budding match reporters, please feel free to get in touch!
The next morning saw the weather still holding, rain had come and gone, and amidst the smell of sizzling bacon, various assortments of military fancy dress started appearing. Charlie set quite a dash, combining Rambo chic with a more retro WW2 design (albeit with German colours); then there was G.I. Jane Gaskell and Brig Oatley, both clearly seized with the power of camouflage; and last but not least Mr Chairman himself, looking far too convincing as an extra from Dad’s Army. We mounted up, and set off – somewhere there was rugby to be played!!
I’m quite sure in the initial planning stages of the festival, the issue of how to cope when you invite in the region of 1000 participants to a venue with 200 car parking spaces was placed in the “can be resolved on the day” column; if only life were that simple. Having waited for the team to march in from the various car parks in Portsmouth, we then had the quite moving team procession down “Rugby Road” – perhaps the less said the better………
The U7s, consisting of Harvey, Joshua, Jake, Alice, Nicholas, Ethan, Darragh, Keir, Harry and Charlie (accompanied by Iori in a non-playing role) were one of 7 teams vying for the silverware, with 6 games spread over 2 days. We commenced with a glittering display against Old Colfeians, with Joshua (5) and Ethan (3) sharing the tries in an 8-6 victory, which was far more convincing than the score would suggest. Arriving after the start (refereeing duties) of the second game against Old Wimbledonians, I was told the opposition were playing well and it was more or less even. A narrow 7-5 defeat reflected a close game where one turnover cost us dear.
After a (far too lengthy) break, we then came back out early for our final game of the day, in unpleasant playing conditions; these were not just limited to the weather! The game against Worthing was marred by controversy – a disputed line call early on sent the Worthing coach into an uncontrollable rage, just for once (at least initially) I was not to blame. As the team struggled to make any ground (very difficult when the entire opposition is offside), I then encountered the rather surreal experience of being threatened by the other coach – for daring to speak! I’m not quite sure what all the words meant, however the general gist seemed to involve removing my head from my shoulders; never one to knowingly avoid upsetting somebody intent on killing me (and buoyed by the presence of James and Deano on the touchline) I threw back a customary witty retort. I was then saved by nature itself, as it transpired the noise created by the coach’s knuckles dragging along the ground had momentarily deafened him and all was well. That the team managed to lose only 7-5, in the face of quite so many infringements, was testament to their fighting spirit.
Putting the unpleasantness to one side, we set off back to the campsite for a well-earned BBQ. The sun emerged once more and we were treated to the delights of Tom “Where’s the paraffin” Gaskell setting most things on fire and exquisitely taking care of our burgers and bangers. There may even have been a beer or two consumed that night!
Day 2 produced less favourable weather conditions, but again saw the team get off to a winning start, defeating Chesham 8-7. Morale was high as we took to the pitch to face Sevenoaks, however heads then fell as suddenly tags weren’t coming off and the ball wasn’t staying in hands. The half-time team talk was delivered in a loud enough tone to wake the players up sufficiently to produce a stirring second half fight back; from 3-0 in the first half, to come back to lose 7-4 was a fabulous performance, against what was a well-drilled team, who (it was nice to see) played the game in the right spirit. The final game saw us face Beaconsfield – a game that we were always ahead in, once more saw the quirk of the “last play turnover” cost us dear, however the 4-4 draw was celebrated and off we marched to the presentation ceremony having come fourth.
You will have noticed the lack of match detail above; however events I recall (which I can’t necessarily attribute to specific games) are, Jake on slinking runs scoring some excellent tries; Harvey bursting down the wing, desperate to get to the corner; Harry, tagging like a demon (whilst occasionally offside); the look of delight from Charlie as he broke away to score; Ethan and Nicholas finally running straight, and getting further than they thought they might; Darragh surging through the line and being stopped just short; Joshua taking the referee to one side to explain his shortcomings (just like his father); Keir marshalling the defence and tagging like a man (or boy) possessed; Alice on a surging run, laying the ball off to set up a try; Joshua and Nicholas chasing to opposite corners to try and prevent the opposition scoring; and, finally, Nicholas (spurred on by a perceived injustice) taking the ball straight through the middle of the opposition to score!
For embodying the spirit of the team, in never accepting defeat on the pitch and battling until the last whistle, the Player of the Tournament was Nicholas Bennett.
So after a couple of days of running, tagging, wall climbing, bouncy castle-ing, football, sweets, burgers, the bizarre pastime of watching others play DS and all round fun (despite the weather), it was time to take the tents down (much easier than putting them up) and wend our way home.
Thanks from Tom & Anna, Graham & Katharine, myself and Tracey to all the parents and the players. They can be rightly proud of their achievements over both the season and this weekend and can look forward to a promising U8s campaign in September.
If there are any budding match reporters, please feel free to get in touch!
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