Old Whits (4) – Teddington (3)
Tries: Max (2), Jack, Stefano

Old Whits U12s hosted Teddington in a rearranged Waterfall Cup game on 30th Jan. It was another closely fought game as both sides traded tries throughout. Whits were missing a number of players through injury and illness which meant that some were asked to play in positions that they were less comfortable with.

Whits started well, showing their attacking intent with some lovely flowing rugby and excellent support play. It did not take long for Max to set off on one of his powerful runs, leaving a trail of defenders in his wake to touch the ball down for Whits first try. Teddington had come off the back of a heavy defeat the previous week, so could have been forgiven for letting their heads go down, but they responded with real character and took the game right back to Whits.

Whits were sometimes hesitant at the breakdown, this gave Teddington a lot of ball to attack with and meant Whits were limited in the amount of possession they had to score. There was some brave tackling from the Whits defence, on more than one occasion the defence drove the attacker back from the try line to prevent a score. Zephan, Henry and Eli led from the front in this respect, Eli’s speed off the line meant he was penalised for being offside on more than one occasion when he was probably legal. Ethan too was a one-man menace in defence and attack, on one occasion literally hauling the attacker back from the line and dumping him on the ground. But eventually if you give the opposition too much ball, they will make you pay for it and so it was here with Teddington crossing the line twice after a period of relentless pressure leaving Whits trailing 2-1.

Once again Max took the game by the scruff and powered over for his second of the game and 4th in 2 matches. He is proving to be prolific, having realised that if he brings determination and aggression to his obvious speed and size he will prove very hard to stop. We are sure he will continue to score many more in this cup campaign.

Whits went in at the half at 2-2 and we discussed the need to be quicker to the rucks and commit more men. The players clearly listened and started the 2nd half with intent. Jack, was incredibly busy at scrum half distributing well and making more than his fair share of tackles. Early in the 2nd half he received the ball from a lovely pass from Ollie and set off with the try line in his sights. Ignoring the pleas of the spectators to pass to Mustafa, he darted past the defence to score a well taken try and once again give Whits the lead.

Once again Teddington showed tremendous character to fight back, hammering away at Whits try line. But the Whits defence proved equally determined, repeatedly driving them back when a try look certain. Joseph and Mustafa were fearless in their defence, proving that technique and attitude is more important than size. Similarly, Conn was tireless in getting to the breakdown and rucking off players twice his size with his superior technique. Rio and Samuel, playing for Whits in only their 2nd and 3rd weeks at the club, looked like they had been playing for years and were both busy in defence and worked hard to support the attacks. Eventually Teddington realised that they weren’t going through the Whits defence so decided to go around it by moving it out wide in a well worked move to bring the scores level again at 3-3.

From the kick-off Whits pushed Teddington back, forcing them to kick the ball clear. Mustafa picked up the ball in his own half and with the pitch opening up in front of him, danced his way through the Teddington team like a young Jason Robinson. He eventually ran out of space but with the defensive line broken and disorganised, Stef showed brilliant support play to pick up the ball and sprint in to score a well-deserved try for Whits to take the lead.

As the game drew on, Whits began to control the game as they did the previous week, suggesting that they have the edge on other teams when it comes to fitness. In the final minute, Ollie, playing at flyhalf, sent a wonderful pass out to Zephan on the wing. Zephan showed his usual power and pace to burst through 3 defenders and touch down in the corner only to be denied by the honest and honourable Whits touch judge who made himself the least popular man at Croham Road by calling that his foot was in touch.

This proved to be the last play of the match, leaving Whits worthy winners at 4 tries to 3.

Many thanks to Alan Lamas for agreeing to referee and for handling the game so well. Both sides appreciated the time he took to speak to the players afterwards to offer his observations on how they played.

TREDS awards were given to:

Stefano: worked hard all game and was asked to play in 3 different positions (fullback, wing, 2nd row) which he did without complaining. Came off injured but was soon begging to be allowed back on. Scored a try through great support play and no shortage of pace.

Jack: Industrious all game, getting to the breakdown quickly to retain momentum and tackled his heart out. A great to finish to score his well-deserved try.

Ethan: hard working in defence and attack and growing in confidence as he learns how to utilise his strength and power to terrify defenders and attackers alike.

*A special TREDS mention to Thomas who was unable to play having fractured his arm playing football but still turned up to support his team! Well done Thomas!