MINI MATTERS February 15 th 2015

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1 MINI MATTERS February 15 th 2015 Hello Datchworth Mini Section Coaches, Managers, Players, Parents and Supporters, This weekend we enjoyed another busy weekend of events for the Datchworth Rugby community. On Saturday a group of Mini and Youth players and parents headed to Twickenham to watch the England V Italy game what better way to spend Valentine s Day! It was great to see the children enjoy a good England performance, for many it was their first experience of Twickenham. On Sunday all Mini Age groups took part in a local derby against Stevenage. Most age groups enjoyed a good deal of success on the pitch and we are looking forward to hosting Welwyn for the Charles Morris Cup weekend at Datchworth next Sunday. Next Weekend. Saturday 22 nd Feb 2015 Charles Morris Cup Datchworth Vs Welwyn The big local derby with Welwyn will take place at Datchworth next weekend. Please meet at 10AM for a 10:30 Kick Off at Datch. U9s on Car Park duty. Match Reports from Sunday 15 th Feb 2015 Datchworth V Stevenage U7 Match Report The U7s had a good turnout despite the loss of some regulars to halfterm commitments! The children played very well and enjoyed a good degree of success.

2 U8 Match Report by Paul Ward Despite holidays and illness the U8s managed to get a side out against Stevenage today and played two games, winning both. In the first game we applied a lot of pressure in defence, forcing Stevenage to turn over ball and then scoring on our restarts. At half time we were well ahead as a result, but Stevenage responded well and had the edge of scoring in the second half, but it ended up 8-5. The second game was more even and we were drawing at half time following some more determined play from Stevenage. After an injection of urgency, particularly in our defensive line, we managed to pull ahead and despite their last minute score we edged it 8-7. It was really encouraging that support of the ball carrier is improving, notably Tom taking the ball at pace as well as Fergus and Sammy getting stuck in. Charlie scored a great couple of tries and was in the thick of it throughout, getting Player of the Week. Well done everyone! U9 Match Report by Andrew Howard The U9s enjoyed comfortable wins against Stevenage this morning. We had time for a few drills before the fixtures with Stevenage where we worked on the boys taking the ball into contact before looking for space. With a good response to the drills we went into the games in confident mood. The Datchworth Greens today were: William Paine, Nelson DeWolfe, Ronan Hawes, Kyle Haskett, Alick Broster, Alex Donovan, Thomas Moore. The Green side played a single game against Stevenage and ran home 9-3 Winners. Nelson continued to play well scoring a number of Try s. Thomas Moore is continuing to make good progress with some excellent off-loads. William, Ronan, Kyle and Alick put a huge amount of pressure on Stevenage with excellent tackling and line-speed. Alex Donovan also continues to tackle exceptionally well. The Datchworth Blues today were, Mackenzie Ellis, Elliot Clifford, Fabian Whitfield, Alex Van-Wyk, Thomas Howard, Theo Tilley, Max Coltman, Matthew McGinty. The Blue side also played a single game against Stevenage and had a very comfortable 12-1 win. Stevenage couldn t live with Elliot s pace who scored a lot of the Try s. The defensive play and pressure was also very strong with Theo and Mackenize punching holes in the Stevenage defence throughout the game. Thomas Howard and Matthew Mc Ginty both made some excellent tackles and each delivered a number of good passes into space. Alex and Fabian both made powerful and confident forward runs and were both careful to look after the ball in contact. Max was able to use his pace to good effect and was a handful when-ever he got the ball.

3 This week the Parent s choice player of the week went to Elliot who had a storming morning. The best effort award went to Thomas Moore for his confident performance. Coach s Player of the week went to Nelson who played very well during the first game and trained with confidence and maturity before and after the games with Stevenage. U10 Match Report by Graham Smith - Played 3 won 3! Stevenage came to Datchworth on a mild spring morning no doubt still smarting from the trouncing we gave them at North Rd earlier this season and keen to avenge those heavy losses. Datchworth were without some key players but we have strength in depth and were able to field two good teams of mixed ability. Match 1 - Datchworth 10 Stevenage 1 Team - Barney, Carter, Stanley, Ieuan, William, Ruby, Sam, Alex Try Scorers Barney (1) Stanley (3) Ieuan (5) Alex (1) Some strong running by Datchworth plus solid defence; Stevenage never really got going and couldn t handle the firepower and pace of Datchworth in open play newbie Alex collecting a slick pass from Sam and outpacing the cover to score. Stevenage did ruck very well and stole possession on several occasions. This has been an area for development for the Datchworth U10s all season and we still need to work on it. That said a convincing win for Datchworth with some slick handling, passing and running. Match 2 - Datchworth 10 Stevenage 0 Team - Conner, Sidney, Harry, George, Hein Og, Cameron, Kit, Tyler Try Scorers Conner (2) Sidney (4) Harry (2) George (1) Kit (1) More of the same from Datchworth Sidney s pace and hard tackling by George kept the scoreboard ticking over. Cameron was very busy in defence and Kit showed some real gas to sprint in for a try. Harry was up in defence very quickly and made some telling tackles. Match 3 - Datchworth 4 Stevenage 0 For this (to even things up) we started with the development players and allowed Stevenage two extra players as well. A much closer match as you d expect but we were still too strong overall a good try from Cameron who had been in the thick of it all day. U11 Match Report by Phil Goff - Home game against Stevenage RFC 3 is the magic number! Another great morning of rugby down at a rather foggy Datchworth this week against Stevenage RFC, which resulted in another lossless morning for our plucky Under 11 s winning all 3 of the games played, and a great morning of rugby played in good spirit on both sides. In the first game we saw some lovely passing rugby, especially from the likes of Joshua Staddon who was making some great offloads in the tackle (as well as putting in several of his own tackles in

4 defence!). Isaac was on form showing his very powerful running and excellent cover tackles, and some fantastic jinxing runs came in from Spencer and Spike. Jonathan was also on form this morning, doing some great clearing of the ruck as well as stealing ball and making some great ground. In the end Spencer scored a lovely solo try, Isaac scored 2 through strong runs and Spike scored 1 through some lovely running avoiding contact. A 4-2 win to Datch to start the morning. Game 2 saw us change things up a bit, and we saw Benjamin putting in some great tackles during the match to stop Stevenage progressing. Also our latest recruit Joshua Higgins had some good ball time, and made ground several times for the team. Spike was charged with being scrum half for this match, and he showed some great passing and pick and go s from the tackle area, which led to him getting 2 tries during the match. In the second half, Thomas Paine had a great run up the line to take his first try of the morning, and a great high ball catch and drive from William Goff led to another. Defence was outstanding in this game particularly again from the tenacious Joshua Staddon and Spike, leading to a clean sheet with us winning 4-0. After a short break we played our third match of the morning. Yet again we saw our lads really gelling as a team and working together, leading to Thomas Paine, Spencer, Spike and Jonathan all getting over the line to take their very well deserved tries. Ollie again showed his spirit and put in some nice tackles to halt the Stevenage advance, and William Bacon and Thomas Beechey also showed their power when they put their heads down and drive those legs! Cameron also impressed getting into the breakdown area and acting as scrum half when needed. Another win for Datch 4-1. This week, as every week, it was a challenge to choose Player of the Week. We couldn t split it into 13 unfortunately, although each and every player deserved the plaudits, but in the end Spike took the award for his excellent running, passing, evasion and try scoring. U12 Match Report by Phil Barnes U12s Datchworth v Stevenage - 15/02/2015 Our first home game! The U12s played 2 keenly contested games against Stevenage, narrowly losing the first and then winning the second game. We welcomed back Rowan for the first time this year and enjoyed the company of Angus for a guest appearance. Again we were so close to a full team but late withdrawals meant we were limited to 12. 1st Game v Stevenage Lost Datch started this game in sleep mode and Stevenage had scored within 30 seconds with a strong run from their rather large inside centre. Thankfully this seemed to wake them up and they started to play some decent rugby showing good hands to move the ball wide. Tackling picked up but Stevenage were able to cross the line again to extend their lead. Then Will R opened the Datch scoring with a typical mazy run (a try converted by Angus). The forwards struggled in the scrum against the bigger Stevenage scrum so we did not have the usual steady flow of ball. Paddy the poacher and Ollie B were constantly ripping the ball to enable us to push

5 forward. Stevenage extended their lead but to their credit Datch kept up the pressure on Stevenage and Ollie B completed the scoring with a strong run. Matt played a fine game at full back and was able to carry the ball and linked well with the other backs. Datch pressed for the equalizing try but it was not to be as time ran out. 2nd Game v Stevenage Won 21-7 Datch picked up the pace a little in this game and managed to secure more ball which meant that we were constantly attacking the Stevenage line. Ollie B opened the scoring (despite Stevenage calls for a knockon, the ref (me) said it came off his knee). Moral: Play the whistle. Again Datch were strong in the maul area of the game as Paddy was able to rip the ball away from the Stevenage players. Olly T had a fine game and carried the ball strongly and distributed the ball well. Little Kieron was introduced to the joys of front row and enjoyed the experience (enough to request more time in that role!). Will B equally enjoyed his run out on the wing and was able to carry the ball forward with confidence. Will R displayed his aggressive running style and crossed for 2 further tries to complete the Datch scoring. Match Summary If you start a game half asleep you will struggle to compete and we need to work on getting the players in the right attitude for kick off (it s the typical Datch trait of waking up 15 mins into the game!). Despite this we did start to tackle as the games progressed but we do need to work on defending as a line and making it harder for the oppo to play against us. The 2nd game showed what we are capable of with a bit of space and time as we passed the ball confidently to break down the Stevenage Defence. Other News & Information Sunday 1 st March On Sunday 1 st March we have a home training weekend as we prepare the Mini squads for the fast approaching end of Season County Festivals. The Club house will also be hosting a First Aid Course being delivered by one of our Club Sponsors, Sarah McGuiness from Critical Response Training. If you have a free afternoon why not stay in the Club House after training for some hot food and drinks and to watch England play Ireland in Dublin which is kicking off at 3PM. This should be a great game and there is sure to be an excellent atmosphere in the club house. Audio issues are also being resolved so the big screen will come with proper volume as well for this game! Holt Tour 2015 Please Book Your Places: I am pleased to report that we are still making progress in relation to the Tour, but we are going to extend the deadline further as we still need to build up numbers across the age groups. Final payments and completed forms MUST be in by the 1 st of March. Please send all questions to mrsnicolahoward@outlook.com, your managers will also be able to help. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY OUTSTANDING DEPOSITS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Further Reminder..Dinner Dance Auction The Mini & Youth Dinner dance is taking place at Brocket Hall on Friday 6 th March. Each year we hold a fund-raising Auction as part of this event which is a key contributor to the Club. If anyone is able to

6 help us provide an Auction Item that would be very much appreciated. Please drop me an if you have anything that you are able to provide. World Cup Tickets Rounds of Golf. Spa Weekends. Wine.New Cars Signed Shirts...Signed Balls. Pictures..Club Ties. Cufflinks.. etc. etc. etc. etc.. Car Parking U9s on Car Park Duty 22 nd Feb As you will have seen in previous newsletters we are having challenges with Car Parking this Season. Unfortunately despite excellent support from the U7s who provided a fantastic team of Parking Marshalls we had a couple of issues occur again this morning. Two cars were parked on the pavement obstructing the pavement along the Green, more seriously four vehicles parked at the bottom of the village on the bend where the road is not wide enough or suitable for parking. The parish council were present and have photographs of the parking issues that arose. Next weekend we expect a very busy morning as we play host to Welwyn RFC for the Charles Morris Cup. The U9s are on Car Parking Duty. Please can I please ask everyone to park considerately around the village and to be very mindful not to block any driveways or access routes. The Parish Council are going to be inspecting the parking situation but hopefully between the village hall, the Club car park and the Turkey Farm car park we can have a weekend free of any parking issues. Thank you U7s for your efforts today which were much appreciated. There is No Mid-Week Mini Training at Datchworth this week U9 U11 the 18 th February 2015 We are going to resume in late February with Club Coaches. Keep an eye out for confirmed arrangements and dates. Repeat Request.Still looking for help! The Club has established a relationship with a player called Kenneth Holm who is looking to come and play for our First XV. Kenneth is from Denmark and has played for their U20s and National Side. He is also an IRB level 2 qualified Coach and has offered to volunteer on Sunday mornings with the Mini Section as required. The Club has managed to help Kenneth secure suitable work and we are trying to find him a room to rent. He is looking to stay for 6 months. If anyone has a room for rent or knows of something that might be suitable in the Datchworth area please drop me an that I can pass forward to Ian Reid who is looking after the detailed arrangements. Fixture & Event Provisional Planner February to Easter Weekend 2015 Week Date 22-Feb 01-Mar 08-Mar Datchworth RFC Mini Section Fixture & Events Card 2014/15 Season Home fixture V Welwyn RFC Charles Morris Cup U9s on Car Parking Duty Training at Datchworth - First Aid Course in Club House - Ireland V England (3PM Kick Off) Friday 6 th March Dinner & Dance at Brocket Hall Training at Datchworth

7 27 13-Mar 14-Mar Quiz Night in the Club House Mini Team entered England V Scotland in the Club House XX 15-Mar 21-Mar 22-Mar Sat 28 th March 29-Mar 05-Apr Away fixture at Chess Valley - Croxley Guild of Sport VP Lunch England V France in the Club House Home fixture V Barnet Elizabethans County Contact Festival at Barnet RFC for U9s and U10s County Contact Festival at Harpenden RFC for U11s and U12s - U7s & U8s Training at Datchworth Confirmed - U9s & U10s Training at Datchworth TBC (tournament on Sat) Easter Sunday No Rugby Closing Notes This weekend has been a busy one at the Club that has seen more International games, it was super to see a group of Datchworth Mini s at Twickenham. Next weekend we look forward to hosting our neighbours Welwyn for the Charles Morris Cup fixture. We will be holding a short presentation in the Club House of the Charles Morris Cup and it would be great if as many parents, Coaches and Managers can stop for the presentation. Thank you all for your ongoing support and commitment to the Club, I was very grateful to the U7s for such a good turn out to support the Car Park marshalling; I was also very grateful to Rob McGuiness for refereeing the U11s fixtures at short notice. Have a great week and see you all next weekend. Best wishes, Andrew Andrew Howard Chairman Mini Section