U-9's
Matches
Sun 03 Mar 2019
Chester RUFC
24
30
Wigan RUFC
U-9's
U9s Have A Muddy Good Time At Chester

U9s Have A Muddy Good Time At Chester

Jonny Fairclough7 Mar 2019 - 16:10
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The rain doesn't damped Wigan U9s spirits

Welcome to guest contributor this week, Rob....

Rob:
On Wayne’s team, the lads had to get through a few challenges even before a game could begin, as they had to contend with the driving rain, the overcrowded car parks, no changing room, and a hike over to the pitches.

The hosts had an army of U9s - enough to field five teams plus substitutes and so Wigan divided themselves into three teams for the morning’s rugby.

As the parents got stuck into the teas, coffees and bacon & sausage barms whilst sheltering from the rain under their umbrellas, the boys were unfazed by the conditions and got straight down to business.

Alex, as always, was a real team player and unselfishly made himself available, distributing the ball well, and making good ground every time he had it in his hands.

Reinforcements arrived in time for game 2 - with Benito - who slotted into the line-up and as the morning progressed, came into his own scoring several tries, both direct and with mazy runs, whilst also making some key tackles.

We are not sure if Man of The Match Fin had something in his breakfast, or just if he enjoyed the muddy conditions, but he brought his tackling game along with his passing and try scoring game this week.

George also scored a few tries, memorably one with an added somersault flourish, and another with a swan dive into the mud.

Max had a go out on the wing when Wigan were attacking and showed some powerful running - hugging the touchline, which had referee Wayne lost for words (Edit: Wayne lost of words? Really? Proof needed).

Sam put in a solid morning’s shift and produced some great tackling and determined runs while producing a couple of offloads - which resulted in scores for Wigan.

At the end of the morning, after wave after wave of Chester Teams, the takeaways from the meeting were, as always the lads’ usual high standard of tackling, and - this week in particular - the ball handling and passing skills that have come on in leaps and bounds, especially considering the wet and muddy conditions where there were hardly any knock-ons or loose passes to gift the opposition the ball.

The Wigan lads emerged from the rainy morning covered in mud but having won four and drawn one.

Phil:
Wigan (Phil’s & Bob’s team) made their now customary slow start in game 1, with passive defence covered up by excellent attacking runs.

Although a draw was probably a fair reflection in the end, the Wigan boys will be kicking themselves for the fact it took until game 2 to show their true ability.

Games 2 to 5 resulted in Wigan victories, with each game delivering a better performance than the last.

Sonny led the team as captain superbly in all facets of the game, his try tally making double figures, but it was Toby who took the Man of The Match award for some outstanding defence.

Will & Kian were unstoppable at times with powerhouse running and a couple of huge tackles by each that shook the sidelines.

Tom was confident with the ball in hand, with some evasive attack, and Noah was in the thick of it throughout and led the defensive line with confidence in a brave effort against stronger and bigger opponents.

In the last 3 matches the Wigan defence line-speed suffocated their opponents and made life much easier in the tackling department.

In conclusion, Chester were strong opponents and had several young stars of their own but to sum up, maybe the 10:30 am starts just don't suit us as we only start playing our A game after 11.00!!

Jonny:
Jonny and Mark’s team produced a strong defensive display yet again, and at times the team also put together some lovely periods of passing and support play – despite the atrocious weather.

But it was hard going.

There were lots and lots of Chester players, and in something reminiscent of the film Zulu, it seemed to be an endless series of contests against masses of Chester teams.

No sooner had the lads fought off their opponents, then another wave of Chester players appeared over the horizon.

A quick regroup. A swig of water. A harmonious rendition of Men of Harlech. And away they went again.

Plus, in all five matches, the same Chester referee officiated - and his unfamiliar interpretation of the ball carrying law, which admittedly was applied to both teams, resulted in Wigan having at least half a dozen tries ruled out.

Of the team: Lukus had probably his best game this season. He was everywhere: tackling like he was possessed, popping up all over the pitch in support and scoring some good tries (only permitted when he was carrying the ball in two hands).

Jonah was pretty much immovable in defence and unstoppable in attack, and was the team’s top try scorer despite having several efforts ruled out for not carrying the ball in two hands.

Oliver, chipped in with a couple of tries and also had to be reminded on a few occasion mid-run (by parents, coaches, referee, and teammates) to carry the ball in two hands.

Harry made some strong direct runs as usual, one of them being a cracking effort where he burst through the middle and outpaced his opponents, only for it to be unfortunately disallowed for not carrying the ball in two hands.

Jack supported his teammates throughout – unselfishly taking up the role of scrumhalf more often than not. – and on one occasion he also went racing full length of the pitch, to cross the line, only to have it ruled out for, yep you guessed, not carrying the ball in two hands.

And Archie, at one point looked on the verge of drifting off to a much warmer, dryer, happier place, until he suddenly discovered the ball in his hands, came to, and galloped the length of the pitch through the Chester players like an angry Zebra.

But thankfully he was carrying the ball in two hands.

Awards:
Man of The Match (Wayne’s Team) – Finlay
Man of The Match (Phil’s & Bob’s Team) – Toby
Man of The Match (Jonny & Mark’s Team) - Lukus

Match details

Match date

Sun 03 Mar 2019

Kickoff

11:00

Meet time

10:15

Instructions

Meet at: Chester RUFC, Hare Lane, Littleton, Chester. CH3 7BD
Team overview
Further reading

Team Sponsors

Junior Sponsor - Murr Elektronic