A great start to the season for the Under 15 team who have been rewarded for all their hard work in training with a win against Newlands School. Andrew Trevis (Captain) and Ryan Scott (Vice Captain) led the warm up well and prior to the whistle initiating the start, heads were up and all players looked switched on.

Shoreham College received the kick off and unfortunately knocked the ball forward which gave Newlands an opportunity with a scrum within our half; not the greatest of starts. However, the Backs, led by Ryan Scott and Jake Robinson, were quickly up in defence and put pressure on the Newlands players forcing handling errors. The Forwards created an excellent, stable platform for Jake Robinson to work from and soon the pace and agility of Connor Strong, Ross Ball, Callum Ritchie and Max Gardiner was fully unleashed. James Harrison played the most intelligent game at full back and either supported the ball-carrier in contact, was there for the off-load or anticipated the kick over the head and was back in position for the counter-attack. Fortunately for Shoreham College, Ross Ball scored to the right of the posts after a well worked chain of passing and support within the Forwards;  Newlands replied before half time.

Half time score: Shoreham College 5                      Newlands School 5

Shoreham College kicked off the second half and the Forwards were once again applying pressure, Jack Woods, Daniel Mountford, Bertie Hinkley, Jack Hemblade and Cesar Fraile were awesome in the loose play, hitting rucks hard and driving their legs in mauls and Luke White was instrumental in many tackles around contact areas. Shoreham played most of the Rugby in and around the Newlands 22 metre area and soon enough Seb Day scored in the right hand corner from a quick tap and go penalty; closely followed by Ryan Elson (2 tries) making a mad dash down three quarters of the pitch, Ryan Scott under the posts and finally James Harrison to the left of the posts in support. Changes to the line up were; Ryan Elson for Ross Ball, Max Rummery for Callum Ritchie, Will Thomas for Luke White and Dillan Saunders for Max Gardiner. All the substitutes made a tremendous impact on the game and fresh legs are always appreciated by those who have seen the game through from the kick off. A truly hard game; messy handling in parts by us forcing errors, but a thoroughly enjoyable run out none-the-less.

Final score: Shoreham College 30   Newlands School 5

Most Valuable Players;

Cesar Fraile – mobile, versatile, hard hitting and great spirit to attack the opposition when in possession.

James Harrison – vision in attack, great anticipation and positional play in defence and made every tackle count.