TOMASZ CHADWICK: Agonising defeat for Odin’s Warriors was hard to take

Despite the positive sign of Kevin Williams’ returning to play at Silver Royd, Sunday was a sad day for Scarborough RUFC’s junior section, as our under-15s side were knocked out of the Yorkshire Bowl.

Odin’s Warriors as they are fondly known, took on a very skilled side from Old Rishworthians, a team which had pace in abundance and a number of strong ball carriers.

The game started at a frenetic pace, with a try scored by the opponents in a matter of minutes.

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It was at this point the supporters feared the worst, but credit where it’s due, our side bounced back instantly and managed to score in response, through a strong carry by Sean Mould.

The game then became a bit of a stalemate, with the opposition showing more promise in attack, but Scarborough’s defence always came to the rescue, including a number of unbelievable last-ditch tackles by Reece Corney.

The breakthrough for the opposition came shortly after, after a good kick from Evans was fielded by the opposition full-back, the skilful player managed to evade a number of tackles before setting up a speedy winger to score in the corner for 12-5.

The score remained like this until five minutes before the end of the game.

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In truth the opposition showed good control throughout the second half, not really offering our young lads a sniff of their line.

But the heart and character shown by this team truly was phenomenal and after a number of heavy collisions, where our boys really were putting their bodies on the line, Sean Mould was there again to crash over from five meters out.

In agonising circumstances the conversion attempt to level the scores struck the post, keeping our lads two points behind, and after a desperate last-minute attempt to salvage the game, one dropped ball led to the final whistle.

Sport can be cruel at times and the sadness and misery on the faces of these boys was difficult to witness.

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But, where there’s a setback, there can be a comeback and I’m sure this team will win this cup in the near future.

They should hold their heads high for the remainder of the season and continue to enjoy playing together.

Sometimes things don’t work out for the best but I’m sure they’ll have made plenty of fond memories along the way.

Last Wednesday, Filey teacher Tom Ratcliffe and Craig Farrell of Graham School organised a fixture for their year nine sides at Silver Royd.

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Both Tom and Craig are connected to the club in a number of ways but even if they weren’t we would always be happy to host school fixtures here.

My role is to facilitate rugby where possible and I’m always delighted to help schools plan fixtures especially when we can host them.

On March 16 we have another Tag Rugby festival for our local primary schools and we already have 10 schools bringing teams.

This will promise to be another great event for Scarborough RUFC and the Active Youth Scheme, giving children at such a young age the chance to put their skills to the test in a competitive but fun environment.

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This Sunday our under-14s will be playing at home against Malton (11am kick-off) and our minis section will be busy in action.

We have an East Yorkshire Festival, organised by Nick Ingham, our minis chairman, where we are expecting a number of teams from East Yorkshire at under-sevens and under-eights to descend upon Silver Royd and take part in what will be an exciting tournament.

In addition to this, our under-nines to under-12s will be playing at Bridlington.

In my last article, I mentioned the Else family and how they have a multitude of ties within the club.

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At the end of minis training on Sunday, I was helping James Cliffe, one of our under-sixes coaches, tidy up following his session.

His son was helping him by trying to carry a tyre and despite his struggles in doing so, I thought this was another perfect example of how families can use Scarborough RUFC to better their lives.

This Sunday is Mothering Sunday, so I wanted to send a big thank-you to all of the mums that have some involvement with the club.

Whether they be our team managers, those that take pictures, or those that drop off and pick their kids up so that they can continue to play at Scarborough RUFC.

A big thank-you to you all and I hope you have a well earned, wonderful day.

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