Minis Match Reports
20 April 2008
Away at Westcombe
Park
|
|
U – 7 |
U – 8 |
|
Upminster |
30 - 45 |
0 - 10 |
|
Sevenoaks |
15 - 25 |
X |
|
|
15 - 25 |
X |
|
Tunbridge Wells |
20 - 35 |
X |
|
Old Colfeians |
X |
10 - 20 |
|
Medway |
X |
20 - 25 |
|
|
X |
0 - 10 |
Stone’s Mini Section
travelled to Orpington on Sunday for the 34th
Stones’ Under 7s were
pooled with Upminster, Sevenoaks,
The Under
8s first game was against Old Colfeians and not long into the game Folkestone
were awarded a penalty from which they scored the opening try. Old
Colfeians came back and scored with some good running
skills, then Folkestone scored again but the referee disallowed it, a fact the
Folkestone supporters could not understand at first, until it was noticed that one
of the Stones players had his tags on the same side; Folkestone ended up losing
by 2 tries. Next up were Upminster who won their game, but not without
Folkestone putting up a good fight, especially as one of the team was injured
but carried on playing. Medway were next and it was a case of Folkestone scored
first then Medway, then Folkestone etc, but in the end Medway were a hard team
to beat and they ended up winning narrowly. Last up were
Under 7s
10 February 2008
Away at Ashford with Whitstable
|
|
Ashford |
Whitstable
|
|
U-9 |
10 - 10 |
5 - 5 |
|
U-9 B |
10 - 20 |
5 - 10 |
|
U-10 |
5 - 5 |
10 -0 |
Folkestone Minis travelled to Ashford for matches
against the host club and Whitstable. Everyone present was having difficulty in
recognising the ‘’big, shiny thing in the sky’ that seemed to raise the
temperature well above zero. However, the unseasonal weather brought out the
best in all the players from all the three clubs, with some fantastic running
rugby played in almost cricket like conditions.
Folkestone
U9s
fielded a squad of 21 players; which gave the coaches an opportunity to play 2
strong squads against the home side and fellow visitors Whitstable. Folkestone
A played Ashford A in a very hard fought game that saw Ashford rucking well and
taking possession away from Stones many times; but the determination in Charlie
Lou, Jack Hobbs and Luke was almost always enough to stifle any Ashford
movement and kept pushing them back with some crunching tackles. Ashford's
determination on home ground led them to score after a brilliant
individual effort, however, Stones replied with equal skills running the
ball in with good lateral movement. Ashford were a bit taken aback at the
swift reply, and rallied to score again. Luke took the ball over the Ashford
line to equalize after being tackled twice, the final score a
creditable 2-2 draw.
Folkestone B vs. Whitstable B was a real display
of strength and determination by Folkestone against a physically
larger Whitstable team. Jonathan ran across the entire pitch to make
tackle after tackle, and with great efforts also from Jack Lewis and Charlie
Hewitt, Stones played with great spirit. Despite an
excellent try by Mike, Stones were overcome by Whitstable by 2 tries to 1.
Folkestone A vs. Whitstable A was a
great display of Folkestone running play; Faris, Louis and Jack
Howarth making territory, with Luke and Guy tackling with determination. Stones
were a little less reticent in the ruck and mauls than in the first game and
possession was hard fought. Faris had a great run from the halfway line toward
the Whitstable try line, but finding himself without support was bundled
into touch about a yard from the try line. Luke scored in this match too
which provided a score that reflected the game fairly Folkestone A 1 Whitstable A 1
Folkestone B versus Ashford B was a good display
from Stones who did not give up until the final whistle. Good individual
efforts from Lou, Zac, Mike and Daniel, with Jonathan keeping up his tackling
performance, and Luke stepping up as scrum half. The final result Ashford 4
Folkestone 2 didn’t reflect the effort that Stones put into their game. To
round off the morning there were some players in the Ashford squad
who had not had games, so both Whitstable and Folkestone provided players for a
barbarian-squad, and regardless of the result everyone left the pitch happy
after a good game of
Folkestone
U10s
first match against Ashford started with good Folkestone tackling but Ashford
pressure resulted in the first score going to Ashford. However Folkestone
bounced back with an excellent run from Charlie Watson who scored in the
corner. Once again strong defensive work and a try saving tackle from James
Porter kept the scores even; Douglas Wood made an excellent breakaway but was
denied a score. Cameron Seagrove came on for the second half replacing Isaac
Bergin. More defensive work was needed by Folkestone particularly by Euan
Nicholls. Jack Lord was very strong in the line out providing good ball for the
backs, Cameron Sanders having a great side stepping run and Jack Edwards having
a crashing charge.
The final score of 5 to 5 was a fair result from
two determined sides and was a fine contest.
Folkestone next match against Whitstable had
them all in a determined mood, after strong Stones pressure Jack Lord finally
crossed the line for the first try with
George way playing in the Barbarians team was
one of their best tacklers against Whitstable ; Jamie Hughes who was on loan to
them scored their winning try giving them a 20 to 0 victory.
Douglas
Wood breaks through for the U10s
26 January 2008
Minis at
Away at Maidstone
with Thanet
|
|
|
Thanet |
|
U-7 |
30 - 20 |
x |
|
U-8 |
40 - 40 |
30 - 35 |
|
U-9 |
10 - 0 |
15 - 15 |
|
U-10 |
30 - 0 |
5 - 5 |
|
U- 11 |
10 - 30 |
10 - 20 |
|
U- 12 |
|
|
Folkestone Minis travelled to
Folkestone Under
7s travelled with fifteen youngsters where they mixed well with Thanet
and
The sun was shining, the Mums were smiling and the
kids were keen and eager to get some mud on their Folkestone Rugby tops.
Eleven lads from the Under 8s played
and were spilt into two teams; to make it to an even number a lad
from Maidstone came and joined one of the teams. Their
first game was against Thanet and the team consisted of, Iauen, Nick, Barney,
Ryan, Richard and Patrick, the scores were very close only 1 point in it
but right at the end Thanet scored their final try. The next game they
drew 8 tries all. Team 2 consisted of, Robert, William, Max, Mason, Josh
and Michael from
Twenty of the mighty Under 9s travelled to
The reds first game was against Thanet. Max
broke through to score the reds only try of the game with Thanet equalizing. A
1 -1 result. The Greens first match proved to be one of the best the under 9s
have played this season. They were up against the hosts,
The reds took on a joint Thanet/Maidstone team –
‘Thanstones’! Olly and Isaac made some good runs, being well supported by the
likes of Luke and Jack. Guy was working his pack well and moving the ball
quickly out from the scrum. Finally the penny was dropping, passing the ball
really worked! The reds quickly got the ball out wide for Max to slip, dodge
and weave to score his second try of the day. ‘Thanstones’ tried to take on the
now rampant reds, but stout defence by Luke and Faris made sure they didn’t get
through. Another quick ball to Max, and our own ‘Billy whiz’ went over for his
third of the day, setting up a challenge for highest try scorer of the day. A 2
– 0 win for the Folkestone Reds. The reds next came up against
The greens were up against Thanet next. The
initial start looked good, with Jack Savage putting in some good tackles and
Luke supporting him well. The ‘green devils’ -
as they wanted to call themselves - were mauling well, and Jack Hobbs
put in a good run to go over for his third try of the day – trying to keep up
with Max! Thanet came back hard and it seemed to go wrong with the green devils
– they had a devil of a job to catch the ball! With fumbles galore Thanet went
over. With a crucial line out, only meters from our try line, Jack Savage put
in a good straight line out ball only for the greens to drop it and Thanet go
over in the last second of the game. Folkestone Greens 1 Thanet 2.
The inevitable happened - the Folkestone Greens
took on the Folkestone Reds! And what a game, the greens managed to shake off
their fumble devil and put some good passages of play together, with Jack Hobbs
scoring, taking his tally level with Max! The reds pushed up and took on the
greens at their own game putting in some big tackles; again Luke and Faris
keeping things tidy and allowing Max to run through and score his 5th
try of the day. The greens seizing the moment put together a maul that would
have any defence quaking. With Jack Hobbs, Thomas, Alistair, Zac, Luke and Jack
Savage putting the effort into driving the Maul, Charlie popped out and scored
a superb try with seconds to go. Folkestone Greens 2 – Folkestone Reds 1. With
their spirits lifted the greens took on the combined team of ‘Thanstone’. Luke
opened the scoring for the greens and went over quickly again for his second
try of the day. Charlie, energised after his efforts against the reds, went
over for his second try. ‘Thanstones’ came back with a try but it was really
all one way traffic with Jack Hobbs going over two more times. ‘Thanstones’
made a last ditch effort and scored twice more, but alas the game was green.
Folkestone Greens 5 – ‘Thanstone’ 3.
The last game of the day saw the reds take on
Thanet again. The lads put on a great effort and Max was looking dangerous.
Unfortunately Thanet broke the deadlock and scored. The reds were pushing hard
and almost went over but a touch decision went against them. Thanet countered
and went over for a second time. Folkestone Reds 0 – Thanet 2. A good day was
had by all, the coaches were hoarse and the boys muddy! Chris, Chris and Mark were
pleased with the way the under 9s were finally putting it all together, maybe
they were finally listening to the coaches, maybe the London Irish coaches had
said some magic words?! Who knows, but the 9s played some excellent rugby and
it was a privilege to watch. Our thanks go to Chris Stephens for refereeing
many of the matches
Comparing the quality of play with even a year
ago Folkestone Under 10s carry on
improving. This is in part due to an influx of new players, namely Jack Lord,
James Porter, Matthew McMahon, Dean Perkins and Tejachandra Thota. In line with
club policy all 15 squad players had an equal amount of playing time with the
team being swapped around at every half of each match to make sure everyone had
a fun morning’s rugby. The Under 10s first game was against Thanet. Douglas
Wood was soon well ahead in the tackling count but despite this Folkestone were
down by one try at half time. Into the second half and George Way had a good
run at the try line but was stopped by strong Thanet defence before Euan
Nicholls managed to save the game for Stones with a late try to even the match
at 5 all. Against Maidstone Stones played one of their best ever matches; great
forward play from Daniel Hughes, Isaac Bergin, Jack Lord, Saul Biggs, Teja
Thota allowed plenty of ball to the backs Alvin Coleman, Jack Edwards, Dean
Perkins, Cameron Sanders, George Way and
particularly to Alex Lynch, the flying wing who scored 4 tries. With Euan
Nicholls controlling the game from the number 10 position he also managed to
score 2 tries; whilst at the same time great defensive play by Folkestone kept
a clean sheet, winning by 30 points to 0. In the final game against another
Thanet side it looked like it was going to be Folkestone’s turn to take a
beating being three tries down at half time, despite strong tackling from the
tireless Douglas Wood and Jack Edwards. However the comeback kids came on at
half time to produce an exciting finish with a try from Alex Lynch, and a
penalty try which Douglas Wood wants to claim. Alvin Coleman then ran the
length of the pitch to within 7 metres of the try line only to be brought down
by a great tackle from Thanet and Folkestone were denied the draw they
thoroughly deserved.
The Under
11s travelled with only eleven players and so fielded a Barbarians team.
Nick lodge went over first after Thanet had taken the ball over twice but the
deficit would have been more without Sam Turner on the wing making the best
tackles of his life. Rob Gunn had a tremendous game at full back, saving at least
2 tries and then ended up somehow going over for Stones second try of the game.
Toby Keet was like a bulldog who would not let go of whoever tried to run past
him and Greg Wood was pouncing on all who tried to get the ball. But man
of the match was Chris Walker who, despite being the smallest player on the
pitch, took out Thanet’s biggest player three times in the first half and twice
in the second. Max Walters was moved up to prop with Sai Thota and Harry
Blackadder making up an unfamiliar back row with Benjamin Powell and Jack Amos
taking their usual front row slots. At the end of an entertaining game Thanet
ran out the winners by 20 points to 10. For the game against Maidstone all
started again in the same positions and they got off to a fantastic start with
Robert Gunn catching the kick-off and running the length of the pitch before
off-loading to Greg Wood to go over and get the opening score. The
travelling spectators were now hoping for a Stones’ win but the home side ran
in three tries before half time after some defensive lapses. The move of the
match, however, was by Sam Turner who caught the ball at full stretch then ran
the length of the pitch to score a fantastic try. Again lack of concentration
allowed
U7A
U7B
U10
U12
18 November 2007
Home against Sittingbourne and Thanet
|
|
Sittingbourne |
Thanet
|
|
U-7 |
25 - 25 |
30 - 35 |
|
U-8 |
25 - 25 |
30 - 15 |
|
U-9 |
|
|
|
U-10 |
15 - 20 |
x |
|
U- 11 |
0 - 35 |
5 - 25 |
|
U- 12 |
x |
5 - 5 |
Folkestone Minis entertained their counterparts
from Sittingbourne and Thanet rugby clubs on what turned out to be the coldest
day of the year since last winter; telling on both players and spectators. At Under 7 level there were several
casualties to the cold with players from all sides finding it difficult to tag
the opposition in the conditions and sessions were cut short. Folkestone
achieved a draw with Sittingbourne 25 - 25, and lost to Thanet 30 points to 35.
The Under 8s squad was made up of Barney,
Ryan,
Another great turn out from the Under
10's squad enabled two teams to be formed. The first game was against
Sittingbourne where the visitors just piped the home side in a very close and
exciting match. However the next Folkestone team playing the same Sittingbourne
squad were able to overall the opposition 20 points to nil, thanks perhaps to
their colleagues tiring them out? The team are finally beginning to listen to
their coaches and seeing the importance of recycling the ball from rucks and
mauls to create overlap situations.
Although the Under 11s lost both their games they
showed that they were beginning to improve. With a new front row of Lucy, Jack
and Sai and a new scrum half in Nick, with Greg at fly half it will take time
for the players to learn to work together, but overall a good effort all round,
but they were outclassed by the opposition on the day.
With Sittingbourne not
fielding an Under 12s team it allowed Stones to play Thanet twice. In the
opener a well fought match resulted in honours, even with both teams scoring a
solitary try. After a short break the second game resulted in another very
close and evenly fought match, this time the home team winning by two tries to
one. Dyan Roberts and Tom Boreham were the scorers in a morning where the
players were finally beginning to look and play like a proper rugby team
14 October 2007
The under 7's squad
representing FRFC @
Back left to right -
Louis Watson,Harry Thorpe,Nat Parmenter & Thomas Clarke
Front left to right -
Maia Daw, Jack Seagrove, Edward Garrard & Ruben Pinfold.
They
played in a round robin tournament with Sittingbourne, Ashford, Thanet and
Maia
was captain for the day and along with Thomas, Nat, Louis and Harry scored some
very good tries.
Overall
a good performance thoroughly enjoyed by all.
NB. Anybody born between
01.09.2000 and 31.08.2001 ( or alternatively is or is about to turn 6 ) and is
interested in playing rugby please contact the club
And here’s some scary photos of the
Mighty Under 9 Squad
