Driffield RUFC U17 62
Novocastrian RUFC U17 5
Sunday saw Driffield host Novocastrians in the quarter final of the National Under 17 Cup.
Driffield started brightly and when Novocastrians conceded a penalty in the centre of the field, but just inside the Novo’s half, Brigham slotted the penalty to give Driffield an early lead and settle the nerves.
With a bigger pack Driffield were starting to pressure the Novo’s line and eventually Sheader picked up from the base of the ruck to go over. Brigham added the extra points.
Novos now started to find their feet and after a period of midfield play it was Novo’s winger who broke the Driffield tackles to touch down in the corner.
Driffield as ever responded and following some flowing back play Blacker touched down in the corner to make the half time score 15-5.
The half time team talk highlighted how important the next score might be and so it proved. The first half started with a Novo’s lineout on their five metre line, and when the ball broke free it was Newborn who was the first to react to pick up the ball and crash over. Brigham added the extra points.
Driffield pressure told again and from open play Warcup broke the Novo’s line again to add further to their player woes. With some swift hands from the backs Kelly used his pace to out run the Novo’s centre and winger to score, Brigham again adding the extra points.
Unfortunately for the Novo’s team the tries kept coming with another for Newborn, MacPhee, two from Reed and superb kick display from Brigham, with the score finished 62-5.
This was a fantastic team performance from all the players. Harrison and Clappison dominated in the tight all game. Beachell and Warcup made their usual impact in the tackle area. The back row of Rhodes, Rough and Nellen won the battle at the breakdown to give the platform for the win.
Other highlights in the game included; Higgins nearly scoring within 20 seconds of coming on, Sirrs ruck work, Watts at inside centre provided a different dimension using his distribution game and Lewis’ one-handed off load to set up Reeds second. Brigham and MacPhee playing up from the under 16s looked very assured at this age group.
Thank you to Novocastrians for making the journey down from Newcastle. The game was played in a fantastic spirit all the way through, their players were a credit to their club. Driffield now face the winners of Cockermouth and Chester in the next round.
Squad: Blacker, Sirr, Reed,Watts, Kelly, Brigham, Sheader, Harrison, Lewis, Clappison, Beachell, Warcup, Nellen, MacPhee, Higgins, Rhodes.
Doncaster RUFC U14 31
Driffield RUFC U17 24
Sunday saw Driffield travel to Doncaster on the first really sunny day of the year .
Doncaster are one of the best teams in the region, and it is the better teams that attract large numbers of players, so not only are they a good side, but they also have numerous substitution options during the game.
At the U14 level there is no limit to the number of substitutions that can be made so that everyone is able to get a game, however this policy does naturally give an advantage to the larger teams.
Doncaster kicked off and it was clear very early on that they were a well organised and well drilled team that were going to really challenge Driffield.
Some good defending from Driffield kept Doncaster at bay, although this was not to last as they eventually broke through to score their first in order to send a clear message to Driffield.
Driffield however were not going to be dominated and an immediate response saw Harry Jackson break through to score his first of the day and to give a clear message in return to Doncaster that the match was going to be a real battle.
Just three minutes later a fantastic run from Elliott Clarke to chase the ball, following a clearance kick, forced an error with the Doncaster full back resulting in Driffield gaining significant ground and possession well within the Doncaster 22. A cleaver pass through to Harry Jackson gave him the space to charge through and score Driffield’s second on the left corner of the pitch.
Doncaster then ratcheted up the pressure and a sustained period from them saw the Driffield defence tested to the full with the forwards having to battle at every stage to stop and spoil the Doncaster march forward.
Driffield showed real character and were able to both contain Doncaster and to create an opportunity for Harry Jackson to run through and score his third of the day.
Rugby is a team game, and the Driffield squad works really well as a team, however Harry Jackson does stand out for his sheer determination and tenaciousness when he has the ball. As his third try was impressive in that most other players would have succumbed to the opposition tackles, Jackson somehow managed to remain on his feet and battle through in order to create the opportunity to score.
The half time whistle blew with the score line of Doncaster 5 to Driffield 17.
The second half saw Doncaster with renewed vigour and scored a try straight from the kick-off.
However an immediate response from Driffield once again saw Harry Jackson run through to score his fourth.
The heat of the day, and the high intensity of the game saw Doncaster take advantage of their large squad and score two further tries leaving the score at 24 points each with just under 10 minutes to play.
A battling Driffield ran their hearts out and at no stage did they give up or back away from the challenge. However Doncaster were just able to score and convert a final try just before full time resulting in a final score of Doncaster 31 to Driffield 24.
The Driffield team had played some of the best rugby that I have seen them play this season and can they be rightly proud of their achievement against an extremely good and large Doncaster squad.
The coaches praised the whole team for their effort, commitment and character.
Man of the match was confirmed as Harry Jackson in well-deserved recognition for his exceptional performance.
Recognition was also given to the forwards for their physicality during a hard-fought game, and other players commended were Elliott Clarke and James Burn for their contributions.