Windsor U16's v Reading LEAGUE
22nd January 2006by Dr FT Bosh
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A highly motivated squad travelled to Reading this Sunday, for their first league fixture of the season. Captain Ed Clemance has been ruled out with a fractured wrist and so flanker Rehmen Grewal steps up to be appointed skipper for the rest of the season. The squad also welcomed back centre Ross Cumplen.
The travelling fans were looking forward to this fixture and were entertained with a feast of power based, skilful rugby. The team posted a record score of 74 points and blew Reading away.
If there was any doubt about Windsor’s intentions they would have been dispelled in the opening moments, when prop Tom Birch’s thunderous tackle felled the Reading ball carrier. The ball was quickly recycled and spun down the three-quarter line. It was only a handling error that stopped Windsor scoring at the first attempt, but this gave Reading little solace, as on the next possession scrum half Andy Pedder’s half break and beautifully weighted pass, put a charging Ross Cumplen in for his first score.
From the restart Windsor piled on the pressure. Second row Baldeep Sahota and Jamie Curtis worked with prop Caspar Hughes to disrupt any Reading forward momentum and the Windsor forwards gave Pedder great ball to work with. On the next possession an inside run from Cumplen saw him break to the blindside. As he drew his man flanker Rehmen Grewel called for the ball and finished the score off.
Reading came back hard at Windsor and managed to get a penalty just outside the visitors 22. A neatly slotted kick gave them their only points of the game. From this point until half time the game was all Windsor. With the forwards securing the ball and Pedder keeping fly half Jonny Whitehead supplied with good ball to run onto, the Windsor three-quarters always had forward momentum and were a perpetual threat. Reading tackled well, but were continually overrun as the Windsor players supported every possession. The next score came from a link between the three quarters, putting winger Sam Turner into some space. He broke his opponents tackle and cut back inside the full back to score the first of four tries on the day.
Two more tries came in quick succession. Powerful running from a quickly taken penalty saw Cumplen get a second and shortly after Turner got another when Pedder’s beautifully timed pop pass enabled the Windsor winger to crash through the defence and score under the posts.
At 27 – 3 up, the forwards decided to get in on the act. Tom Birch’s open field run raised shouts of encouragement from the crowd, but when his offload went to Caspar Hughes and the powerful Windsor prop barged his way 20 metres upfield they were in rapture. As he was finally slowed down a storming Baldeep Sahota took the ball through the last few defenders to score a superb forward’s drive try. The referee blew for half time as Whitehead slotted over his 4th conversion.
Although the scoreline might not reflect it, Reading had a lot of fight left in them and came out in the second half to disrupt Windsor with some passion and determination. For the opening 10 minutes it was all Reading possession, but they were unable to convert it into points. Strong tackling and aggressive play in the loose made sure that territory was hard won for the home side and slowly, but surely, the Windsor dominance began to re-assert itself. A powerful forward drive utilising the combined forces of Hughes’s hand offs, Curtis’s aggression and Sahota’s strength put Windsor in great field possession. The ball was recycled to Whitehead who made a nippy half break inside his man. Connecting with the remainder of the three-quarter line Cumplen ran in for his third score before coming off the field. A re-shuffle in the backs saw Pedder go to centre and James Farrant come on at scrum half and Bradley Lema had a run out at wing.
Before the Reading wing had had a chance to assess this new threat, it was on them. Lema showed his paces and made a 40 yard run up the wing’s channel before being pulled down by the fullback. From the resulting maul, it was the ever hard working Jamie Curtis who broke free and defied the Reading defence to stop him as he bulldozed his way over to score.
Lema soon got his own chance to get on the score sheet when the ball came down the line to him. A searing change of pace and cut inside enabled him to get under the posts for a classic winger’s try.
Next to make a decisive break was flanker Seb Barfoot. Ripping the ball loose from the tackle he sprinted straight upfield and laid the ball off to Lema, Lema got to with in 10 yards of the Reading line before being tackled. The ball was recycled and spun down the entire three quarter line to Turner on the opposite wing, who ran in for his hat trick.
By now the fight was going out of Reading and the forwards looked tired. As they were forced into their own goal area to try and kick for touch a chasing James Farrant charged down the kick and a supporting Caspar Hughes dropped on the ball to score.
As the referee was checking his watch for full time, the ball came out from a maul on the halfway line. It came through the hands of the three-quarters to Turner at pace. He out stripped his man and broke the full back’s tackle to score his fourth and give Jonny Whitehead an easy 7th conversion.
It was a tour de force by the Windsor side. They never let up, turned possession into points with power, flair and imagination and, to quote a Reading spectator, the three-quarters “had a nice day out.”
Jamie Curtis was declared Man of the Match for "superb commitment, making valuable ground with the ball and great support play throughout the match" and everyone associated with this squad will look forward to next week’s league fixture against Bracknell.
Result
Windsor 74 Reading 3
Scorers:
Trys: Cumplen (3),Grewal, Turner (4), Sahota, Curtis, Lema, Hughes.
Conversions: Whitehead (7)