| MATCH REPORT |
| Well what a fabulous game of rugby we all enjoyed on Sunday. I think I can safely say that all of the coaches, parents and supporters were overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and commitment shown by all of the boys this week. The whole team should be extremely proud of the way they played in convincingly beating a strong Bracknell team in one of the key local league fixtures. Personally, I was particularly pleased by the strong team spirit that is starting to develop at Reading, and the smiles and camaraderie amongst the boys after the game showed just how rewarding the game can be when you put in the extra effort. |
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| Every one of the boys played fabulously, so I apologise in advance that
it is not possible to mention all of you individually in the match report. |
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| The only criticism from this week was the regular problem of getting the
boys “fired up” for the game right from the kick-off, which allowed Bracknell to gain
early possession, and score a try after only 5 minutes. However, this seemed to spur
the boys on, and Reading hit back almost immediately. After repeated possession,
Reading earned a penalty from which Tom D found a good touch. From the line-out
Mike made a good break and offloaded to Adam, who committed the defenders before a
beautifully timed pass put Martin away in the corner.
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| Reading kept up the pressure straight from the re-start and were soon
deep in Bracknell territory with a five metre scrum. The ball was worked quickly
down the backs to Tom D, who passed to Jude and then looped round the outside to
make the extra man and score in the corner. With the score now 10 – 5 to Reading
the game was really hotting up, and Bracknell started to run the ball down the
backs, only to get repeatedly flattened by the Reading midfield defence.
Bracknell eventually got a penalty in front of the posts, and kicked the goal to
bring the score to 10 – 8, and everything to play for. |
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| Reading then stepped up the pace, and started to exert real pressure in
the forwards, particularly at scrum time where the Reading front row were starting
to dominate. Reading then scored a fabulous try, passing the ball right along the
line with quick hands to Jude on one wing, who made good yards. The ball was then
recycled and moved quickly along to Martin on the other side of the pitch, who
stepped inside the remaining defenders for the try. The score was now 15 – 8 to
Reading, and the confidence of the Reading boys was starting to show.
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| Immediately from the kick-off Jude made another good run to set up field
position for Reading. The forwards then drove down the pitch with a series of pick
and drives, before forcing Bracknell to concede a penalty. A quick “tap and go” and
Charlie drove hard into Bracknell, closely supported by the forwards and backs.
Ketan was finally on hand to drive the ball over for Reading’s fourth try. The
conversion from Tom D unfortunately hit the post, and the score was 20 – 8, which
allowed some of the supporters to start to relax a little.
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| Reading were now starting to dominate in all phases of play, and soon
they had another penalty in the Bracknell half. Charlie ran the ball again, and
offloaded to Mike who was able to carve through the defence, and run the ball in
under the posts, in his trademark “one handed” style. Tom D made the conversion
to make the score 27 – 8 at half time. |
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| Reading had a commanding lead, but we all knew that Bracknell would come
out fighting in the second half. Bracknell did manage to gain some early possession,
but were not making any headway with ball in hand against the solid Reading tackling.
Bracknell put up a long high kick which Tom E gathered safely, and found a good long
touch to put Reading back into the Bracknell half. |
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| There was no score for the first 15 minutes of the second half, however
as the game wore on the Reading forwards became completely dominant, and were now
winning all of the scrum ball, irrespective of whose put-in. Sam G put in some
strong runs through the middle of the field which set up the platform for the Reading
forwards, who were now hitting all of the rucks and mauls at pace and driving
Bracknell back. |
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| Eventually Bracknell were penalised for hands in the ruck, and Tom
D kicked the penalty to find a good touch in the Bracknell half. Reading then set up
a great catch and drive from the line-out, with the ball then driven off from Jamie
and Nick before offloading to Mike for the score. At 32 – 8 with 10 minutes to go the
game was won, but the tempo of the game remained high, with credit to both sides for
keeping up the competitive spirit. |
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| Reading continued to run the ball through the forwards and backs, before
Bracknell finally conceded a penalty, 5 metres from their own line. The atmosphere
was electric as Reading lined up for the final charge. Charlie hit the defenders
like a steam train, carrying them over the line as he was driven by the Reading pack,
before putting the ball down. Unfortunately, the ref was not able to see the
grounding, and without the luxury of the TMO the try was not allowed. The game
ended 32 – 8, an emphatic victory to Reading. |
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| There is no man of the match this week, as this was truly a team
performance, and every one of the boys gave 100%. My thanks as always to all of
the subs this week, particularly as they didn’t get any game time.
Good news however, given the intensity of the game, that there were no obvious
injuries. |
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| Thanks also of course to Cookie and Fred for their tireless efforts in
supporting the team, and getting them to this point in their development. The
highlight of the day had to be the look of absolute delight on cookie's face at the
end of the game, an emotion shared by all of the players and supporters. |
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| Still some tough games ahead, but with performances like this we can beat
anybody. Bring ‘em on !
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| Roger Cribb |