MINI MATTERS Week 33 Sunday 16 th April 2018 - HOLT TOUR! Hello Datchworth, Mini Section Coaches, Managers, Players, Parents and Supporters, Last weekend 165 Datchworth people toured to North Norfolk for our annual team-building and touring rugby festival. We were lucky with good weather and I think most people had a great time. As you will see from the age-group reports below in addition to on-tour fun on Friday and Saturday the players also gave a great account of themselves across the age groups during the Festival on Sunday Firstly though the U6s who as-ever trained at Datchworth! U6s Training at Datchworth A slightly quieter morning than usual at Datchworth this Sunday due to most teams being on tour. This did have its benefits however and allowed the U6s to spread their wings a little and borrow both U7s training pitches, thanks U7s, and hope you had fun on the tour! It was an overcast morning but a warm one which was a pleasant change from the last few months. A respectable 16 members of the team turned up for training and following some relay running we got straight in to the session. We started things off with a few rounds of tag stuck in the mud to get the blood flowing and then moved into a passing in units drill. The team have really got to grips with these types of drills and can now execute them at pace which shows some good progression and is great to see. If we can manage to bring this to an actual game scenario then we will be flying! The session continued with the Rhinos vs Tigers game we introduced last week to help improve the team s reaction times and give them some additional tagging practice. We then finished off with an assault course and the usual couple of games of bulldog. We haven t done an assault course for a few weeks and it was evident that all the team appear to have put on a few pounds over the Easter break based on how hard they were hitting the tackle bags! Well done to all the bulldog winners and a special well done to this week s player of the week, Henry F. It was a great performance from Henry this week and over the last few months Henry has shown great improvement in all the areas we have been practising. Notably Henry s passing during the unit relays and footwork over the hurdles in the assault course showed some great skill. Well done Henry! See you all next week
U7s Holt Tour The U7 s took six kids on tour to Holt, (not enough according to the judge and jury for which we paid our fines for), and to say they enjoyed themselves was an understatement. Rugby aside, the whole weekend was fantastically organised with brilliant activities and above everything else, a great show of Datchworth community. All the kids and coaches were made to feel really welcome by the other age group, Coaches and Managers and we were really proud to take part. The Datchworth U7 s consisting of Martha, Felix, Jasper, Ted, Charley and Finlay did themselves really proud and got stuck into all their games. They were great sports, did the club proud by not arguing with the ref once, took decisions and moved on and above all, played the best rugby we have witnessed in their short playing careers. We saw great passing, handling, observation of the offside rule and not a single forward pass in the five games they played. It was impossible to call a player of the week this week, so it goes to them all. A great team who came together against some tough opponents and loved every minute of it. A big thank you to all the parents who were great fun, (even though we lost the quiz), you all made it a fab weekend and we are already looking forward to next year. And finally, to Coach Dave... you are gold!
U8s Holt Tour The weekend started on Friday when 13 U8 players made their way to Hilltop Outdoor Centre for an action-packed weekend of activities and tag rugby. We met early Friday evening and, after picking up their lovely navy tour jumpers, the kids played in the grounds with their team mates. We then met up in the Seaview Clubhouse onsite and, after for a shortish speech from our Club Chairman, we were treated to karaoke and disco for all. Well done to Coach Pip for persevering with the duet with the Chairman... it wasn t easy singing Club Tropicana with the unique vocal tones of Mr Howard! Keen to start the day s activities, the kids rose early for breakfast on Saturday. After a hearty breakfast, our squad split into two groups and took part in four activities throughout the day. Our parents could also participate in the activities if they wanted too. There was crate stacking (well done to Joshua s dad for stacking over 20 crates... I think it could have been a Hilltop record), archery (although not everyone was fully awake during the important safety talk... wake up Chewbacca!) and a big zip wire (were those safety goggles really necessary, Sid?!). The kids also enjoyed a fun obstacle course. One of the kids enjoyed it a little too much... even choosing to dip his legs in some stinky stagnant water! After dinner on Saturday night, we went back to the Clubhouse where we sat in our squad age groups for a quiz. Well done to our U8 team who came joint third (I think?!) with the U9s. If only we had someone on our team with a Geography degree to help with the Geography round and we might have come first! After the quiz came the Kangaroo Court... much to the relief of our coaches, we only had one member of our team summoned before the Judge (who on earth would bring a football on a rugby tour, Mr Hill?). Our parent took his punishment well. Mind you... he has had some practice as this isn t the first time this particular parent has been found guilty at the Hilltop Kangaroo Court! The evening finished with another disco and a thoroughly entertaining dance-off between the U10 and U12 parents!
After breakfast on Sunday, the players set off for the Holt RFC Festival. The players proudly put on their U8 green shirts, split into two teams and played some great tag rugby. Despite the last-minute change of rules regarding the number of passes at the start of the game for one of the teams, and some very physical opposition for the other team, our players tagged brilliantly, passed well and scored some wonderful tries. It was another long day for the kids and parents, especially after the excitement of the last few days away; but the kids did so, so well and the coaches were very proud of the squad. It was lovely to spend the weekend with a great bunch of kids (and parents!) who got on brilliantly. We were thankful it didn t rain over the weekend and, even though the sun didn t shine as much as it did during our first tour last year, (which saved me a fortune in sun cream!), I think everyone enjoyed themselves immensely. Look out for the photos on the U8 Facebook page this week. U9s Holt Tour We had a good mix of 'seasoned tourists' and newcomers for the U9's 3rd tour to Holt. The weather did not disappoint and the activities were fantastic as ever. Various ages played a little warmup Rugby Saturday afternoon, then to the evening entertainment, sadly the title of quiz champions was lost to the U10 and U12s and court was once again in session with our very own Coach Duncan, Coach Peach and coach Ashleys Dad in front of the jury... Although a 'little' jaded Sunday morning, the players played 5 games against some strong competition. We had enough for almost two teams with our numbers but played quick rotation so everyone got a good amount of gameplay, every player stepped up and gave it their all, our players used the crash ball with effect, putting in great tackles, the usual instruction and support from all the players gave us some great Rugby, Birthday boy Kirston gave us all some much-needed sugar with his delicious birthday cake. Huge thanks to everyone for making the effort to come on tour this Season, great fun all round.
U10s Holt Tour Game 1 Vs Henley Crusaders; We won 2-1 a tough game which we didn t compete at the ruck but a great team try for Elwood made it 2-0 and although they scored Theo T, Mackenzie and David L we re a brick wall. Will Sharpe is some player at pace. Result won 2-1 Game 2 Vs Holt; We won 1-0; How on earth there boys were aged 10 I ll never know they were big boys! Before the game we did some rucking training and Simon gave the boys a great tip. The game was the toughest game I ve seen the boys play they never missed a tackle Trent, Theo W and Tom were awesome and as Will S, Finlay G were injured Jake and Finlay N came on and we re both brilliant as when David was injured jack A cane on and was awesome and then with a big Freddie tackle Elwood jumped on a bad pass and run from halfway with 5 holt players homing in scored in the corner. We then defended very well against good team stopping them getting anywhere near our line. A great win. Game 3 Vs Crusaders Emeralds; Was a funny game we started
without a few stronger players and were quickly a try down Trent and Theo W plus Finlay N helped turn it around we the brought on Elwood and Theo T and Finlay G and it worked we gelled better and with a better structure we scored 3 tries to finish 3-1 Freddie and Jack again were brilliant Game 4 Vs Walsham: We won 3-0; This was a tough game with numerous foul play infringements from the opposition and a horrendous high tackle on poor Freddy leading to the game being finished early by the referee. The best thing to come out of this game was the Datchworth boys showed absolutely no sign of reacting to the opposition s poor attitude and disregard for the games core values and focused on playing rugby. Game 5 Vs Henley Eagles; We won 2-1. Henley were a good team we got In front and would have scored 2 more tries with Will S and Finlay G both through but the referee stopped play for injuries. Elwood then scored a great tray and came off exhausted. We then had to take a fair bit of relentless pressure and conceded a try but everyone put a shift in and all the boys held out for a great win. Datchworth U10s - Played 5 - Won 5 Darren, Simon, David, Jeremy and Terence along with all of the help from Marie and husband Ben are so proud of all of the U10s; they all played their part in a great day s rugby. U11s Holt Tour The under 11's had a fantastic weekend as ever on tour. We had Alby, Charlie, George, Mateo, Max, Oliver, Sammy J, Theo, Tom P, Jack, James, Matty, Reece and Sam B with us all weekend or for Sunday. Friday kicked off with the usual evening of unstructured fun and from what I can remember seemed to carry on quite late... On Saturday our events were the 3D Maze, Orienteering then Air Jump and Assault Course after lunch. Everyone was really brave attempting the tricky climbs on the 3D Maze, with a special appearance from special forces Brendan Two Zero if you could spot him through the camouflage! The dare devil challenges followed after lunch with the "how high can you go" Air Jump and well done to those everyone as it was a bit scary and especially those who braved the 10m jump... including our ringer gymnast Woody leaping off! It was all finished off with some great fun getting all the kids truely covered in mud and swamp juice.
In the evening we put in a sterling effort on the Quiz despite having a smaller team we came 3rd just a couple of points behind the joint googlers, er sorry, winners. And then there was the Court... well, some things need to stay on tour but let's just say the right Heinous Crimes were duty prosecuted and yet again the punishment tasted lovely thank you! Thanks to those who travelled a long was just to play on Sunday. We had a lot of rugby to get through, with five games against mostly new opponents for us namely: Crusaders Gold, Henley, Norwich Lions, Holt Lions and Shelford Tigers. We got off to a cracking and motivational start with a 7-0 win against Crusaders. Overall, we had a mixed set of results, beating Crusaders and Norwich well, just losing out to Holt in a tense and close game where we had a few unlucky decisions, and losing to good sides from Henley and Shelford. But the games, like the whole weekend, was really about the team work and team spirit. We were really on our game with some excellent rucking and support between forwards Alby, Oliver, Sammy, Tom P and Mateo working together well, Tom P ripping the ball effectively. At scrum half we switched around between Theo, Reece and Charlie. George made some great attacking runs from full back, as well as playing fly half also with Sam B and Tom P switching into that role. In the centres and wings we had a combination of Jack, Matty and Max with James also playing at full back. When we managed to get space we put in some lovely passing moves and made a lot of yards on a big pitch.
We didn't have any single player of the week because that would have been unfair to everyone today in what was a huge team effort and 100% from all individuals - who were all thoroughly worn out at the end and all played fantastically well. We simply could not ask for anything more. Well done to everyone and in particular Sam Bell who was playing his first competitive games of rugby having recently joined us. U12s Holt Tour The U12s had 15 boys touring for their final visit to Hill Top and the Holt Festival. The U12 squad enjoyed the Big Swing, Abseiling, High Ropes and the Aerial Assault Course on Saturday in small groups all the boys, (and families), tried new things and supported each-other with each new
challenge. On Sunday things turned to the Rugby! Last Season the boys played some fantastic ontour rugby but with two late nights and a smaller touring squad we were not sure what to expect this time round.. The U12 boys first game was against a good Crusaders side and after some truly brilliant passages of play and some determined defence the boys ran home 3-0 winners with three great tries; 1 from Harry King and 2 from a resurgent and powerful Mackenzie Ellis. The boys were massively energised by the win and we went into the second game with heightened expectations! Next up we played Deeping Dragons in a scrappier and even more closely fought game... the game was 1-1 as we moved into the closing stages of the game. Quick thinking from Thomas Howard with a penalty near the Deeping Try line resulted in a 2-1 Win with two tries from Thomas Howard. So the U12s were two from two with our hosts from Holt next to play. It was immediately clear that the picturesque town of Holt must be twinned with Luton, (another town full of giants)! The Holt boys were very big strong lads and from the outset it was clear we were going to struggle to win any breakdown contests with our much smaller squad, (now down to 12 fit and available players), and with the impact of the two late nights starting to kick-in we were soundly beaten by a very good
Holt side out of principle I stopped counting when Holt were 5 tries up! By the last game we were really struggling with a depleted U12 squad but we were keen to end our Mini Tours on a high. The boys worked hard against a good Westcliff side but ultimately, we came up short losing a hard-fought game. And so we ended up our Mini Touring Journey with a 50% win rate on the day in 2018, but a considerably better return over the full 6 year period The Coaching team were delighted with the whole squad Harry King and Tom Moore both played tremendously well Alex Donavon was a tackling machine, William P, Morgan M, Kobie, Thomas H, Kyle and Mackenzie all gave 100%, Oliver G did well at full-back, (particularly in the first two games). Miles is a truly great addition to our squad, on and off, the pitch and he was absolutely in the thick of the action throughout the morning on his first Tour with us. Jack Ingram did well and made one very notable tackle. Lastly, we should highlight that Theo T was having a storming morning during the first couple of games before breaking his finger and despite the best of intent Jack Lennon s knee restricted him from playing best wishes for a quick recovery to both boys. Thanks to all the boys, (and parents), who toured this year, great behaviour, great camaraderie and great Rugby on Sunday. We are looking forward to the new challenges of Youth Rugby with you all next Season! Girls Rugby @ Datchworth This week we ran our 2nd girls Warrior Camp at the club and were joined by Rosie Galligan and Hannah Botterman from Saracens Women team. It was a small group due to a lack of availability through Easter holidays and the Minis tour but that meant the girls got some quality time working with Rosie and Hannah on some attacking moves. We finished off with what may well become the signature event of the girls training sessions - the tackle bag relay. The event has given us 2 potential new squad members as the season draws to a close. The final all girls training session will be on 29th April followed by a trip in to London to watch Hannah and Rosie play for Sarries in the final of the Premier 15s competition. If you would like to join us on our visit please contact me ASAP on girlsrugby@datchworthsportsclub.com Next Rugby arrangements Saturday 21 st / Sunday 22 nd April Sat 21 st April U9 & U10 County Rugby Festival at Hemel / Camelot RFC Sun 22 nd April U11 & U12 Country Rugby Festival at Barnet Elizabethans RFC Sun 22 nd April U6s / U7s / U8s - Training at Datchworth (as below)
Sunday 22 nd April Parking Arrangements: The Youth Section will be undertaking Car Parking Duty on Sunday 22 nd April. Rugby Taster Session for local Cubs 24 th April Club News & Event Information: Can all coaches who are able to support this session please meet at Datchworth by 6:30 on Tuesday evening. Datchworth Rugby Club AGM Monday 30 th April 2018 @ 8:30PM 2018 AGM AGENDA 1. Minutes of the 2017 AGM 2. Senior section report 3. Youth section report 4. Mini section report 5. Treasurer s report 6. Chairman s report 7. Election of officers 8. Any other business If anyone would like to take a broader role in the Club please let me know and we are always pleased to see people from across the Club at our AGM.
Mini Mid-Week Training: Wednesday 18 th April The first sessions are approx. 6:30 till 7:30 and the second session 7:35 till 8:35. Details and locations as below: Age Group Time / Date / Location Notes U9s 6:30 till 7:30 PM Second Team Pitch Wed 18th April Confirmed Session (Manager to Confirm Details) U10s 6:30 till 7:30 PM Flood lit training pitch Wed 18th April Session U11s 6:30 till 7:30 PM Flood Lit training pitch Wed 18th April Session U12s 7:35 till 8:35 PM Flood lit training pitch Wed 18th April Session Mid-Week Training Pitch Space Allocation as usual Mini Section Fixtures Plan 2017/18 Season: Week Date Datchworth RFC Mini Section Provisional 17/18 Season DRFC Parking Duty Sat 21 Apr U9 & U10 County Festival at Hemel Rugby Club N/A 34 Sun 22 Apr U11 & U12 County Festival at Barnet Elizabethans U6 / U7 / U8 Training at Datchworth N/A Youth 35 Sun 29 Apr U7 & U8 County Tag Festival at Hertford RFC U9 / U10 / U11 / U12 - Training at Datchworth N/A Youth 36 Mon 30 Apr Sun 06 May AGM @ 8.30 PM Final Training / Awards Day / End of Season BBQ N/A Minis
Closing Notes & Roundup As you can see from the different age-group reports the 2018 Tour Weekend was an enormous success both on and off the pitch. My thanks go to everyone who helped this year, Will, Woody and Elizabeth with the bar; Darren with the Disco and Karaoke, Danny and Woody with the Court and of course everyone who was called to Court for being good sports. Well done to the U10s for another unbeaten festival performance! Both Nicola and I are hugely appreciative of the kind emails and thanks many of you have sent. We now turn to the important matter of the County Festivals for the older age group this weekend and the tag age groups the following weekend; after which we just have Awards Day before we can all take our summer-break and enjoy watching some cricket! Have a good week and see you next weekend, Best wishes, Andrew Andrew Howard Chairman Mini Section