Victory for Under 14s

T's returned to Oakfield on Sunday following last weeks last minute defeat to Upminster as they welcomed Canvey Island for the first fixture between these 2 sides for almost 3 years.

The season has been a tough start for the young team but also one that has seen some much improved performances. Last weeks defeat to Upminster was a clear sign of this ever improving side, having lost the corresponding fixture last season by 60 points to nil.

T's started strongly straight from the kick off as Canvey kicked off. The ball landed in the safe hands of Thomas and he carried the ball deep into the visitors half. Canvey were solid in the contact and pulled off some impressive tackling on our strong runners throughout the game. T's huffed and puffed and spurned quite a few try scoring opportunities before finally opening the scoring. The forwards were solid up front and this enabled Ben to get the ball to Will who, following a dummy, put Thomas in to score. Will added the extra 2 points from the conversion.

T's were quick to add another directly from kick off. The ball was kicked to Harvey this time and he carried well before taking it into contact. With space out wide, the ball was moved quickly to Will who put in a trademark cross-field kick for AJ to grab the ball and streak across 50 meters before scoring under the posts for his first T's try. Will once again added the conversion.

T's were in a purple patch now and soon added their 3rd try of the afternoon. Strong carries from Fred, Sonny & Benji gave Ts strong field position and with Albert controlling the game well from fly half, the backs were starting to put their moves together. Jack carried deep into the Canvey half before finding Thomas. With a simple 2 on 1, he drew in the last defender and passed to Charlie who ran over to score his first ever try too. Will was once again successful with his conversion.

T's almost added another score as Nifemi picked up from a ruck in his own half, before embarking on a powerful run downfield. As he swatted away would be tacklers, he was brought down just short of the line and Canvey managed to clear the ball to safety.

The remainder of the half saw Canvey with more of the ball as the boys defence was tested. One massive hit from Albert as Canvey looked odd's on to score was the highlight of the boys tackling. It was great to see the boys keep their defensive line together so well and not give up many chances.

1st team player, Ant Catchpole spent some time with the forwards this week on their scrummaging and you could see the impact this had as we dominated most scrums, whether it was ours or Canvey's ball. The strength of Joe H and Sonny in the Engine room added to the liveliness of Tyler, who was having a great game around the park and in defence.

The first half ended 21-0 in T's favour

The second half started much like the first with T's seeing plenty of the ball as we rung the changes and brought on the 12 subs that we had with Joe P helping out on Canvey side as they had lost a player to injury.

The first try of the 2nd period came from another strong scrum. The front row of Darius, Jacob & Fred was solid and set a great platform for Lewis at scrum half. He fed the ball to Jaxon who dummied through the defence before taking it to ground. As it looked odds on for Ts to score, an infringement at the breakdown led to a penalty to Ts. Lewis' quick thinking saw him take a tap penalty and feed Logan to score his 2nd try in 2 weeks, a nice early birthday present for him. Connor took over the kicking duties and slotted his first attempt perfectly to take Ts lead out to 28 points to nil.

Jack now took over from Joe P in helping out Canvey with Joe P switching back to our team. Rio and Harvey were having a field day with the ball and carrying strongly with Sam adding some extra power to the forward pack.

T's added their next score from some great hands by the backs. Quick passing from Jaxon & Connor saw the ball spread wide to George. He went on a mazy run that only George can, turning the Canvey defence inside out before scoring. Connor once again scored the conversion.

The half was very stop start with T's defence forcing errors from Canvey whenever they got on the ball. Oliver was making some great tackles on his wing and Daniyal carried well when he got his chance on the ball. Aston was solid again at fullback, and with his defence not really tested, he was able to add more to his attacking game as he saw more of the ball than in previous games.

T's next try came through the forwards as they carried strongly through Darius & Logan. Sam picked the ball up and was too strong for the Canvey defence as he scored close to the corner.

Our boys were having lots of fun and soon added another score. Nifemi once again showed his strength as he looked on to score before being tackled close to the line. Luckily for T's, Connor was on hand to pick up the ball and dive over in the corner.

The last play was called by the ref, but there was still enough time for one more try for T's. The kick off from Canvey was sent straight to Rio and he powered through the Canvey defence before showing his turn of speed and running almost 70 meters to score close to the posts and bring up the 50 for T's. Connor added his 3rd conversion of the day to bring the final score to 52-0 to T's.

A great result for the boys, who are finally starting to show the potential they have in both attack and defence.

Next week will see us travel to Wanstead for the first time