Oundle outgunned

The Hurricanes came to today’s game with some impressive wins under their belts, and a good focus on “getting set” when in defence, running at the opposition from the whistle, and to “find space” across the width of the field. To add to this, Steve allocated players specific positions at the start of the attacks, and we had fun practising tackles before our matches. This paid off, with a brilliant step up in performance this week.

Match 1: Won 3 - 1. Tries by Thomas O’Brien (1), and George Timmins (2).
All the squad were excellent with their attitudes to tackling, and gave Oundle little chance of getting in the game. In particular, Jack “None Shall Pass” Burton put in some fierce tackles & was a fine example to the team on how to neutralise the opposition. Adam Tyas put in a great forward run followed by a strong pass, and Thomas’s receiving & running skills were rewarded with a fantastic try.

Match 2: Won 6 – 0. Tries by George Timmins (3), Adam Tyas, Jack Burton and Jake Martin (1 each).
A comprehensive win for the team, and a number of players showed a deserved step-up in their confidence. This was best illustrated by Jake “Monster Truck” Martin made some strong tackles, followed by a fantastic run to score a try. Jake also made a further run & offloaded to George for one of the tries within his hat-trick in this game. Recognition also goes to Leo Fertig, who was great at remembering his position in the attacking shape & staying out wide. He was well rewarded when he made a strong burst through Oundle’s defence, and made a fantastic run to within a yard of the try line. Despite being hurt, he was soon eager to get back on – whilst his great run resulted in a further try for George. Jack again showed excellent tackling skills, and made a great breakaway run for this try.

Match 3: Lost 2 – 0.
The Hurricanes boys had a wake-up call in this match: to make sure they didn’t become complacent & take it easy in any of the matches. The Oundle team were fantastic at keeping their width on the pitch, and often had 1 or 2 boys spare, when Hurricanes got ‘sucked in’ to every player being too close to the ball. A few overly-optimistic long passes went astray, which gave the ball away to Oundle. Despite Hurricanes putting in some strong tackles (and turning over Oundle after 7 tackles), it wasn’t enough to stop Oundle. The boys were quick to pick up the lesson on making each pass count, and to keep moving forward.

Match 4: Won 4 – 1. Tries by Jake Martin (2), Leo Fertig & George Timmins (1 each).
The lads were quick to get back to winning ways, and played much better as a strong team. Freddy Verbruggen was one of the lads who showed huge improvements in making crucial tackles, and getting in low – to the extent where one poor Oundle lad is still wishing he’d tied up the drawstring on his shorts a bit tighter…
Jake used his size & strength to carry the ball (plus 2 or 3 opponents) a good way down the pitch, before skilfully handing off to Leo to score a well-deserved try.

Match 5: won 5 – 4. Tries by George Timmins (3) and Jake Martin (2).
A very close and exciting match to finish a great day. Matthew “Simmo” Simpson was instrumental in moving the ball forward (as the guys picked up on Barry’s point to run sideways less, and instead to drive forward). Will “Power House” Leebrook showed great skill in marshalling the team to fill gaps in the defensive line, whilst Jake powered through the line again to score 2 more tries. George “No Mercy” Timmins put in more strong tackles & broke away to secure the match-winning try in the final seconds.

All in all, the boys played fantastically well as a team today. Each and every lad can be proud of playing a critical part in achieving great results against a good team. They listened to the coaching advice, enjoyed putting the tackles in, and showed confidence in using their strength & skills.

Thanks to Steve for coaching the boys so effectively, and putting fun at the heart of the game. Thanks also to Gav, who refereed fairly, and ensured both teams played with respect & in the spirit of the game.