A fine win for the U13s at Sunny Consett

On arrival at Consett RFC this morning, the sun was shining, the ambient temperature a balmy 20 degrees, the air was still…. ZZZ… ZZZ… OK, reality check, time to wake up! Initially it was raining, the pitch was a bog and there was a gale blowing. Although the rain did stop, the conditions were trying for the players for the whole of the match.

This fixture was to be played as a “mixed” ability game, combining some of the more established players along with some of the newer and less experienced ones. The final player count, considering the late drop-outs, was 13, so we decided with Consett to play 13-side on half a pitch. Considering the cold and rain, this was the right choice. Captain Johnson decided to play with the wind for the first half.

From the kick-off, it was obvious that Consett have improved since our last meeting and have gained a few handy players. However it was also soon evident that our boys were up for the game and proceeded to get stuck in and compete with a big strong Consett pack and some useful backs.

After some good work from several players, the ball ended up with Freddy to barge over, with an excellent run. Conversion missed – would this be a bad day at the office for fly half Will V?
Another try soon followed from Aiden, this time converted by Will. Consett replied with 2 tries, both conversions missed. We got another try from Aiden, again converted by Will. Consett scored one last time before the interval making it 19-15 to Mowden.

The second half Mowden were playing into the strong wind, so would have to run the ball as much as possible. After getting close to the Consett line, David J took the ball on and charged over for a good team try. Conversion by Will, who was now beginning to look like the first kick would be his only miss of the day. Consett were far from beaten at any point during the game and each time we edged further ahead they reeled us back in with a score from one of their good runners.
Two more tries in the second half from Aiden and Freddy, both converted by Will sealed the game in our favour, with the final score 40-29.

At the end of the game, the delight was evident on faces of every single player in the team. All players from 1 to 13 played an important part in this game and are a credit to themselves and the team. Everyone that made the trip up to Consett should be proud of themselves, as should the parents that stood in the rain and mud for two hours!

Although Freddy and Aiden scored the lion’s share of the tries, this didn’t reflect the fact that all the players were involved in the win. With Freddy/Aiden being in the right place at the right time on a couple of occasions after a prolonged build up and some great play by the whole team. With 5 out of 6 conversions on a windy day, Will played a vital role.

The MOTM chosen by the Consett coach was Aiden, the MOTM chosen by us was Captain Johnson.

Unfortunately, we have to end on something of a sour note…. Our two boys – as reward for being chosen MOTMs – had to down a pint of peppermint cordial against two of the Consett boys and we were sadly well beaten…! More drinking practice to be arranged!!!

Well done to every player that was on that muddy pitch today – you all deserve a pat on the back and it’s excellent to see some of the newer players stepping up to the mark alongside our more experienced players.

Roll on next season!

Ian.