Mixed bag of results for youngsters

It all started on Saturday afternoon before the 1st XV game when an Under-11s side took on their counterparts from Keighley. This was an outstanding curtain-raiser for the senior game with a great show of skill and work ethic from both teams. The home coaches were extremely happy with their players saying it was their best showing of the year.Moving onto Sunday it was the turn of the older junior boys with the Under-13s, Under-14s and Under-16s all in action. Starting with the Under-13s it was a tough day at the office away to Pocklington. The only try from the away team on the day was a try from Toby Taylor after some good work from Robbie Kerr. Although they were on the end of a heavy defeat 45-5 there was some excellent performances not least from Dan Boyes, who was the smallest on the field, but with some great tackling and attitude he was man of the match. The Under-14s were at home to Pocklington and these boys were massively excited for their first run out on the first team pitch. I was lucky enough to be stand-in coach for the day and it was a pleasure to see how far this group have come. With ball-retention at its best and a great deal of work rate the boys came out on top quite easily. There was a number of excellent performances with Ed Hopper leading the way with his first game in a while. He was excellent at the breakdown and worked hard to be the link between backs and forwards all day long. I’m very excited to see from afar how this group develops over the coming years as I think there is massive potential in a number of these players.Finishing off with the Under-16s group and again for this team it was a hard day at the office against a big and well-drilled Pocklington side. With a slow start Pock raced into the lead and the home side found possession hard to come by in the first half. With a mountain to climb in the second half, the boys stuck to their task better and with great teamwork they clawed the score back a little and gained some respect in the process. This team again is one with a huge amount of potential they just need it channelled in the right way and with good work from their coaches I’m sure they’ll bounce back.