Match Reports

Under 15s 10 v 5 Willenhall U15s

As the Willenhall players arrived the Longton coaches looked on in disbelief, astounded that under 15s players could be so tall and broad shouldered - one of them wore a full beard that made Sebastian Chabel look clean shaven!

Our boys, however, were totally unfazed by the size of the opposition, as they now play with a belief that they are at least the match of any of the local sides.

Longton kicked off and took the game to Willenhall from the start.  An early big hit caused a Willenhall knock-on and gave Longton a scrum.  The home pack were more than equal to the challenge, keeping the ball and driving the bigger opposition pack backwards, making an early convincing statement of intent.

The early exchanges were pretty even with both sets of forwards and backs driving at their opposition, but being thwarted by good tackling on both sides.

A Longton scrum 5-minutes into the game and 10-metres out from the Willenhall try line saw Nathan (hooker) strike the ball back well.  Charlie (scrum half) got quick ball out to Harry (fly half) who ran further in field before straightening and charging through the Willenhall cover to score a great try.  Regrettably, the conversion was missed.  5 - 0 to the home team

Willenhall restarted, but failed to make the 10-metre line.  However, Longton accepted the kick, cleanly caught the high ball, then took it straight back into Willenhall's half to set up a ruck, which was defended well by the opposition.

After 15 minutes of aggressive play from both sides, Longton won a ball at the ruck just inside the Willenhall half.  Again Charlie got quick ball to Harry, who quickly got it out to Taz who used his excellent side-step to good effect and weaved his way down the left wing to secure a great try.  Harry attempted the tough conversion - the kick had the distance but not the accuracy.  Longton 10 - 0 Willenhall.

Another ten minutes hard play from both sides saw several scrums and line-outs, with both sides attacking and defending well in equal measure. 

With 5 minutes of the 1st-half left, the Willenhall winger broke through a number of missed tackles (the old Longton enemy) to score for the visitors.  Fortunately, he elected not to touch down between the posts and the conversion was missed.  Longton 10 - 5 Willenhall.

Half-time came and with it a much needed break for both teams, who had been playing at a considerable and sustained pace.

Early in the second half, a couple of injuries to front row players from both teams resulted in the remaining scrums being uncontested.

The second-half was a hard fought slog for both teams.  Longton almost scored again about 20 minutes in, when a great attacking move saw the ball shipped through several pairs of hands and recycled through a couple of well-managed rucks.  Replacement lock Ryan crossed the line to score, but was adjudged (correctly) by the referee to have made a second movement whilst on the floor held in the tackle and the try was not given. 

Willenhall also almost levelled the score with some fast foot work and speedy ball through hands, but Longton's cover defence was again up to the challenge with pressure from the Longton tacklers forcing a forward pass by the visitors. 

Longton had a couple of further chances themselves, but "white-line fever" saw players hanging on to the ball too long, when a pass to a team-mate would have allowed an overlap to be exploited and a try to be scored.

Full-time brought a well-deserved 10-5 win for Longton who had been on the front- foot practically all game.  Both teams played with real heart and passion.  Every player who crossed the turf was able to come off with their head held high.  With a limited number of exceptions the discipline of both teams was also commendable. 

Other players not already mentioned were Ashley (prop), Ryan (prop) Grant (prop/lock) all were solid and dependable in set play, carrying the ball well in the loose.  Liam (hooker) playing his first game in this position, played very well and threw the ball well into the line-outs.  Matt and Jordan (flankers) put in good work throughout, putting pressure on Willenhall.  Rhys (flanker) worked very hard, particularly in the ruck.  Liam (lock/back-row) was solid and dependable throughout.  Aiden (lock/winger) showed his versitility and played exceptionally well in his first time in the second row spoiling many Willenhall line outs.  Dale (no 8 and capt) played well thoughout the match and made a number of significant carries, typically leading from the front. Wingers Tristian and Jakob made some good yards up field, defending very well with important tackles.  Ethan (centre) playing on his birthday had a massive impact on the game in attack and defence casuing problems for the Willenhall defence.  Suli (full back) again showed what an excellent counter-attacker he is as well as putting in some very important tackles.

The Longton forwards' training is paying dividends.  They held their own scrums and  line-outs and also managed to win or frustrate some of Willenhall's line-outs.  The backs' coaching is also working with players holding their positions to cover in defence, attacking space better, and transferring moves well from the training ground to matches.  

Longton Under15s next match is scheduled to be 7th March at home to Crewe & Nantwich. 

AC/IP