Burton U17 Training Fixture

Burton under 17’s Training Match Peel Croft 1st September 2010

In the warmth of a dying summer sun casting long shadows over The Croft, a squad of nearly 40 players took to the field for this training match intended as preparation for the forthcoming intensive rugby week-end at Harper Adams.

The teams, named after their kit as Lexus and Rushton Hickman, were to play the match in four quarters. Both sides looked sharp early on, reflecting good attendance through summer training sessions. The first points came from Rushton. From a piece of scrappy play on the right, a short inside pass followed by a sharp offload from Sam Halton created sufficient space for the backs to move left. With a looping run behind his colleagues, fly-half Henry Whitfield appeared on the left-wing, creating the overlap and went over for the first try of the season.

Thereafter, most of the play was in the opposite half. Lexus put the Rushton scrum under pressure. A sharp attacking run might have resulted in a try only for a sharp pass to be spilt. Following infringement Lexus were penalised but the kick failed to find touch. Lexus pressured and recirculated the ball, with short pass between props and via Jack Champney reaching Chris Brown at centre making a strong run to the right-hand side. He might have gone through, but unselfishly made a short inside pass to Eddie Runagle on his trademark crash run inside. Unfortunately the pass was judged marginally forward, albeit determined without reference to highly experienced but redundant west-country linesman, Armitage (lad not dad), and a beautiful move went unrewarded. So ended the first quarter, Lexus down 5:0 but could have been leading.

The second quarter began evenly, early play notable for a fine tap-tackle by scrum-half Bunting, and a strong run after collecting ball by full back Cooke (one of). Following a tap penalty, prop Carter powered forward for Lexus, creating space and passing to Champney, who ran through to level the score. The quarter ended with Lexus beginning to dictate the passage of play and Rushton on the back foot, not helped by failure to find touch under pressure.

Lexus continued where they left off, although Rushton began the third quarter more solidly, this time relieving pressure by finding touch when necessary. Although Lexus looked stronger and more confident, the scrums were evenly matched and mutually disruptive. Although they might have scored on a number of occasions, Lexus moves through the backs broke down before the try line was reached. The breakthrough was made by Callum Nicholls with a long diagonal run inside beating flailing tackles by four or five players to score on the left. Rushton created a good move at the end of the quarter, involving forwards and backs and re-circulating the ball, but without a score.

The final period saw sharp play between respective forwards and half-backs. A long kick was collected by full back Cooke, who did well to stand up but lack of quick support led to a penalty. Strong forward pressure from Lexus was stopped by a good close tackle from Kieran Hawketts and both a jinking run from Popp and sharp burst from Jordan- Turner at centre were also held. Following forward pressure, Ashley Alum at hooker twisted out of a tackle and went over for a try.

The Rushton re-start was collected by their opponents full-back and passed between Bowen and Halton in the forwards, collected by the fly-half who released Jordan-Turner to accelerate to the left-hand side, but for the attack to break down. An untidy line-out on the right was won by Lexus, Tom Hunt cutting inside with good pass to Sandeman, running well and offloading from the tackle to reach Popp, back to Sandemann, Hunt and Sammons, a strong run from the backs leading to an inside pass to Eddie Runagle who went over for a deserved try. Popp scored the conversion with a hard low kick through the posts. Lexus continued their strong play, eventually resulting in a second try for Ashley Alum and a convincing win for the team.

The players, often alongside unfamiliar colleagues, put great effort into this competitive training game which bodes well for the season to come. It provided an absorbing match for coaches and the parents, who, on a wet and cold Sunday morning in February, will cast back their minds and wistfully recall this pleasant evening, Panama hats, ice clinking in the Pimm’s and straws in the Daiquiris’, and think to themselves “WHY DON’T THEY PLAY ****** CRICKET”.