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U 11 Match Report

Sunday 19^th October 2008

A day of mixed fortunes for the young Ashbrooke side saw them both win and lose in two closely contested games.

Sunderland u11s vs. Hartlepool RFC u11s

A strong Sunderland pack had the best of the opening encounters with both teams eager to test each others drive.

An intercepted pass allowed forward L Dow to power his way through the Hartlepool defence on the right flank. With support from the his fellow forwards he was able to maintain his momentum, riding several tackles before he was able to get the ball down to make it 5-0 to Sunderland.. Dow successfully sent the ball high over the posts for a conversion to leave Sunderland with an early 7-0 lead.

Both side dug deep and a put on a great display of rugby, with both going close to scoring.

A Hartlepool put-in at the scrum looked to give the visitors the advantage they needed. A strong drive from the Sunderland forward line regained possession which enabled the home team to move the ball forward. Some well timed passes unlocked the Hartlepool defence allowing D Mullin to take ball over and up the tally to 12-0. D Mullin retained his composure at the conversion and increased the Home margin to 14-0.

The teams looked rejuvenated after the half time break and good play from both sides looked as though the game would end without further score.

A Hartlepool line-out gave Sunderland possession on the half way line with D Mullin intercepting the throw-in and running it home to increase the Sunderland lead to 19-0. A second well placed kick brought the final score to 21-0.

Sunderland u11s vs. Middlesbrough RFC u11s

The second tie of the day was against a very strong and well drilled Middlesbrough pack that pushed Sunderland hard over the course of the game.

Middlesbrough played some good rugby and asked many questions of the Sunderland fullbacks before scoring early in the half. The conversion was successful and left Sunderland trailing 0-7 in the opening minutes.

Determined driving and tackling from the home side allowed them to demonstrate their ability to play fast open rugby. Going close on several occasions the Sunderland forward line made many good runs into the Middlesbrough backs with J Fraser having the best effort.

A late drive and try from the Middlesbrough pack raised their haul for the day to 0-12, the conversion was narrowly missed and the game resulted in a stalemate for the remainder of the match.

Sunderland — A Dodds, M Edmunson, J Sword, D Mullin, Ja Frazer, Je Frazer, B Padgett (c), G Fearon, L Dow, W Nicholson, W Green, B Hulley, M Hulley, J Maw, A McLennan, S Trafford, H Gills.

With a move to 11 a side rugby, Sunderland RFC are now actively recruiting players. Players of all abilities are welcome and no experience of rugby is necessary. All Players must be in Year 6 at school. If you would like to join Sunderland RFC please contact Coach Graeme Edmunson on 0785 0616255 for more information.

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