Blacksticks Blue" Under14 Junior Vase Quarter Final
Sunday 2nd March 2008
Sunday 10th February 2008
Bolton U14's 5 Blackburn 3
First time playing at home since the end of November and a chance to build
further on the last few weeks' rejuvenation in the U14's Team. Blackburn
were going to be an evenly matched team but the lads were ready; the pitches
were playable at last in 2008 and the weather was unseasonable warm and dry
- time to play some rugby!
From the kick off it was obvious this was going to be a close match with
Bolton soaking up a massive amount of pressure and finding it difficult to
progress out of their half. The defence held solid despite Blackburn coming
back at them time after time. A blow to the team came mid way through the
half when the talisman of the last two matches Marcus 'Raging Bull'
Stuchbury got his hand broken in a tackle (he's ok but will be out of action
for a while). The game was hard but fair with a number of stoppages to peel
bodies up and make running repairs. Blackburn battered Bolton in the 22 and
even crossed the line once only to drop the ball before grounding; a lucky
let off! This only steeled the determination of the U14's and some
crunching tackles including a try saver from Sam 'Hitman' Garrett maintained
the balance. But the deadlock was finally broken on the stroke of half time
when Bolton conceded a penalty under posts and Blackburn slotted it over to
go 3-0 up into the second half.
After a water and orange stop and a few words of 'encouragement' from their
Coach the Bolton Team put immediate pressure on Blackburn in the second half
and started to work the ball across the pitch and close in quickly at the
breakdown; fighting for every ball and starting to reverse the turnovers
suffered in the first half. The reward came 6mins into the half with a
characteristic spinning and turning drive to the whitewash for Yousuf
'Slither' Sidat; finally stretching over his head on his back to ground the
ball. The extras incomplete the match stood at a nail biting 5-3 to Bolton
until the final whistle.
The Team again rallied to the cause throughout on an uncharacteristically
hot February day that took its toll. Both team's efforts were immense and
bodies took a serious hit rate throughout the game. Bolton's players proved
their strength as a team again and are showing greater resilience in each
match. The Flankers Hampson and Kay were constantly in the thick of it;
with Liam 'The Poacher' Hampson showing great skill on the blind side
peeling away with the ball at the scrum after some interesting variations at
the put-in from Sam 'Cool Hands' Kelly - don't play cards with him! A great
game again and some very tired and bruised players at the end of it; but
satisfied with a challenging win under a lot of pressure.
Man of the Match - Josh Kay - High work rate at Flanker in attack and
defence, played out of his skin
Tackler of the Match - Sam Garrett - single-handedly broke a clear Blackburn
attack in our 22.
Sunday 3rd February 2008
Bolton U14's 22 Rochdale 26
Seventh Round of the Junior Challenge and the U14's take a trip out to play the unbeaten Division's leaders Rochdale.
Coming off the back of last weeks victory at Eccles the team had high spirits and were not going to be intimidated by the
success of the opposition. Twenty-one players in the squad on the day gave the strength in depth to build on last week.
From the kick off Bolton showed they were up for the challenge from Rochdale and after 2mins an interception and then
a well worked drive from Marcus 'Raging Bull' Stuchbury, offloading to Ollie 'Tank Buster' Parkinson who drew the
opposition to put Yousuf 'Snakehips' Sidat through to blister over the line to score. Rochdale looked stunned!
They did not expect this Bolton side at all. The crowd went wild - well those from Bolton anyway!
All the pressure went onto Rochdale for the next 20mins until the Bolton defence switched off too soon for half time
and allowed the opposition an easy run through the middle to score. But then the lights came on again and Bolton
drove the ball down the pitch again and the 'Raging Bull' wrestled through the defence to touch down as the 1st
Half was coming to a close. It closed 10-7 to Bolton with our scores remaining unconverted.
Second half and the oranges hadn't worked; Bolton allowed Rochdale to establish control with three tries all from
missed tackles allowing the break through to the line. The Home team had some speedy players and they closed in on
the line too fast for Bolton's covering defence despite the chase down to the line. 18mins into the second half and
Bolton are trailing 10-26.
From the next re-start it looked like Bolton could follow England's path and implode with kicks going direct to touch
and all sorts of mishaps. But with Fly Half Timms taking a 'chill pill' breather on the bench 'Snake Hips' was pulled into
the No.10 position and Sam 'Cool Head' Kelly flicked a simple short pass out of a successful scrum to provide Sid with
a collection at pace to burst through the Rochdale defence and scorch down over the line beneath the posts.
With Timms off the pitch, up steps Tom 'Sure Foot' Swift to pop over the extras and we are at least looking to salvage the
first bonus point of the season at 17-26.
But the game was still on for Bolton and with the final whistle approaching the 'Raging Bull' gets another pass at pace
from Kelly holding steady at the breakdown and the Rochdale defence parted like the Red Sea as Stuchbury swan
dived over the line. Top marks for rugby not much for 'showboating'.
The next few minutes were a tense affair as the match official notified that the whistle would go at the next breakdown.
Bolton put in a mighty effort to keep the ball live and move into good attacking position - and they nearly did it. In the
end the score ended 22-26 to the Home team but it was a great match - Christmas brought this group of players team
spirit and confidence; for the Coaches it brought this Team - Well done lads, might not have been a win but the Team
was successful!
Man of the Match - Marcus Stuchbury - parting the defence before him and
then a swan dive - show boating but worth the prize!
Tackler of the Match - Yousuf Sidat - massive in attack and defence
Sunday 27th January 2008
Bolton U14’s 32 Eccles 0
A return match with Eccles seven weeks since we last played them in the Junior Challenge and got well and truly beaten. In
between preparations haven’t gone too well with only one training session on grass and all matches called off because
of the pitch conditions. However with 18 keen and able players turning up on the day we were going to get
back in the swing and have a game of rugby. And boy did we! Changes in position strengthened the centre with the
mighty pairing of Ollie ‘torpedo’ Parkinson and Richard ‘missile’ Sanders ready to take on all comers.
The pack was up to full strength and the half back pairing of Kelly & Timms were ready to distribute the ball and with
the wings bristling with talent this week it was the jigsaw coming together at last. From the kick off there was a new
team out there. The ball was moving out from the breakdown and we were pinning back the opposition.
Eight minutes in and the gates opened for James ‘knee trembler’ Timms after great play from the Centre’s offloading in
the tackle and the Forwards supporting the run of the game. Then followed a try from Yousuf ‘Sid Snakehips’ Sidat and
another from Parkinson before the break. The weather was against good kicking with a powerful gusty cross wind
throughout keeping it down to only one conversion on the day, but at half time the score stood at 17-0 to Bolton.
Second half commences with a received kick being taken 70m up the pitch by Sid to score at blistering pace.
Followed mid way through the half by a trademark driving finish by Fullback Ed ‘The Assassin’ Holmes. Finally at the
death of the game the ball flicked back to returning Lock Marcus ‘The Bull’ Stuchbury in the Bolton 22m is taken the full
length of the pitch through all comers from the Eccles side to make the final score 32-0 to the visiting U14’s!
A match worth watching start to finish. Both sides worked hard and it was by no means the walkover the score would
indicate. Bolton came together as a team and worked for one another; a pleasure to see, well done to everyone on the
pitch!
Man of the Match – Marcus Stuchbury – that final try did it all, there was no stopping him!
Tackler of the Match – Liam Hampson – massive work rate at Flanker
Bolton U14’s 10 Ashton Under Lyne 12
The day of the Quarter Final dawned full of anticipation. A good run since Christmas had seen the Bolton U14’s build on the skills they had developed to play with confidence as a team. On the day they were down by two major playmakers through injury but a full strength squad was available otherwise and we welcomed back Eddie Morton after breaking his arm early in the New Year.
The weather at Ashton was clear but cold and very blustery; overnight rain had made the pitch very heavy underfoot. From the start Bolton were pinned in their 22 for a good five minutes. But they defended exceptionally, repelling continued drives from the well matched Ashton side. The set piece worked well and when in possession the ball was being distributed efficiently by scrum half Sam ‘The Feeder’ Kelly. The ball eventually worked out wide on 7 mins and Richard ‘Fleet Foot’ Sanders flew down the left flank to put Bolton on the scoreboard. The weather against the conversion it stood at 5-0. Another hard slog then until coming up to 20mins a couple of missed tackles let Ashton in under the posts which they could then convert to make it 7-5 to the home team. Still raging back and forth around the middle of the pitch the game was full of hard tackling and controlled but slow ball in the conditions. Unfortunately Bolton’s concentration lapsed momentarily again right on the stroke of half time to allow in an unconverted try to go into the break 12-5 down to Ashton.
Team talk and oranges and on with the 2nd half! More of the same resilience in defence and determination in attack. The push went back and forth until Bolton started to dominate the Ashton 22 area. The home team let the odd bit of frustration get to their tackling but our U14’s kept on driving and stayed calm shrugging off all that came at them, especially Ollie ‘Iron Jaw’ Parkinson. All seemed back on track when Michael ‘Lightening’ Lawton hit full pace down the right wing only to be brought down just short of the line and despite stretching out to ground it over the line it was a second attempt and adjudged as a no score. Eventually though with 6mins left a set piece from a tap penalty put Lock Alex ‘Anchorman’ Ault head down driving over the line to bring it to 10-12. The pressure on Ashton didn’t let up now as Bolton could smell opportunity in front of them. In the dying seconds of the game a penalty was awarded to Bolton; within Sander’s kicking range but against a fearsome swirling cross wind. With the reassurance from all to go for it as the Official had signalled time was up Sanders stepped up and missed by only a metre – a great kick in the conditions. The wind then kept the ball in play and Ashton tried to work it up field! The game was still on momentarily until a final infringement called it a day. A lost game for Bolton but another example of how far they have come; a credit to themselves and the club. Their patience and perseverance kept them going, working for the team together. The travelling Bolton support rallied them throughout and outweighed the home team’s – thanks to all who came along.
The team played as one, listening to one another and making some great strategic decisions under Captain Sam Kelly. The pack worked effectively together and the control at the break down was exceptional in the conditions. The Coaches couldn’t have asked for more on the day; it just didn’t break right. But this team is still building and will only improve from here.
Man of the Match – Alex Ault – in at every opportunity and seemed to come out of every defending position with turn over ball, plus a great forwards try.
Tackler of the Match – Ed Holmes – covering tackles across the pitch and then defending the long ball repeated when Ashton got the wind to their advantage in the second half
