Chelmsford Festival 2016 Plate Winners

We arrived at Chelmsford with everything in our favour, the sun was out, everyone was on time, the kids were up for it and we got to park right next to the pitches!
Drawn in a tough pool alongside Colchester, Braintree and Chelmsford we knew we had to focus and play to our strengths and that's what the boys did. We opened with a 7-1 win over Colchester, a team we have met on several occasions this season. The boys played as a team, unselfishly offloading to put teammates in space and moving up quick to tackle hard and low which disrupted the opposition and lead to multiple turnovers.
Next up were Braintree, a side we have never played before but know from reputation. Big and physical, they sucked us in a bit to playing their way and really tested our boys defence. We kept a flat line, didn't bunch up and everyone tackled like their lives depended on it. Although we snuffed out their attacking moves we just couldn't find a way through their defence either. The clock was running out and we were biting our nails. One of their players pulled off a wicked sidestep and appeared to have a clear run only to be met by Jake Woodford with a try saving tackle that dumped him in touch and brought about the final whistle - losing at the death would have been so unjust but a 0-0 draw somehow didn't reflect the fight and effort our boys had put in to grind out that result.
On to the last pool game against Chelmsford. We had a few players suffering from knocks but the boys were up for it, knowing a win would secure them a place in the knock out stages. The boys warmed up and you could see their desire and determination. They hit the pitch and set about beating a strong Chelmsford team who to their credit held their own until Seamus Byrne made a break away try to put us 1-0 up at half time. The boys constantly put pressure on the opposition with their tackling, rucking and mauling and eventually their hard work was rewarded with another breakaway try from Jake Roberts. It finished 2-0, the same score that Braintree had beaten them by so it came down to the last group game Braintree v Colchester as to which one of us would win the pool. Braintree beat Colchester 8-1 whereas we had only won 7-1 so they were pool winners by virtue of scoring one more try than us but as pool runners up we were in the Plate final against Billericay.

An early lapse of concentration saw Billericay score an easy try but the attitude of our boys was excellent. Max Sanderson, stepping in as Captain for the injured Jake Woodford encouraged his teammates, telling them that they could do it and sure enough they did. Max lead from the front and won a turnover that lead to a try. All square but not for long. The boys had spotted a weakness and exploited it. Attacking the Billericay line they sucked in the defence in numbers leaving space out wide to score again. When the opposition spread themselves wide the boys just ran through the gaps in the middle. We won 7-1 and Chelmsford Festival 2016 Plate Winners.

The boys scored 16 tries and conceded only 2. They won 3 games and drew 1 - undefeated on the day.
A truly great team performance from Jake Woodford, Paddy Akhurst, Max Banks, Seamus Byrne, Freddie Chate, Dylan Curtis, Will Dommett, Ollie Mears, Jack Pillinger, Jake Roberts, Max Sanderson and Oliver Worthy.

Proud Mums and Dads, proud Coaches but most of all proud kids who knew they had played some good rugby today.