Welwyn Run Off With The Cup!

The A team travelled to the prestigious Richmond Festival and needed to be up for the battle from the start as they met a formidable Brighton side who had conquered the South of England at last years EITHAD tournament. It was a pulsating game with Welwyn in the ascendancy for most of this. However a stern rear-guard action from the South Coast team kept us at bay and despite going close we were held up on the opponent’s line on two occasions. Our forwards put in a magnificent display and set an incredibly high standard to maintain throughout the tournament but maintain it they did! The game finished Brighton 0 Welwyn 0 but it was a moral victory to us if nothing else.

In game 2 we met the hosts, Richmond, B. A comfortable win followed but unfortunately the Referee seemed to slow the game down at every opportunity and we never really managed to get into our stride. 2 tries in each half were enough to secure victory with Kier completing a well taken brace of tries. Alfie and Luca also joined him on the score sheet following good work from Andrew and Isaac. Final Score Richmond B 0 Welwyn 20.

Our third game was against a strong London Irish side who had won both their previous games in an impressive manner. This was the first time that we needed to be at our defensive best as we had to soak up an enormous amount of pressure before we could show any attacking flair. In the second half Alfie turned the game in our favour with some quick thinking at our scrum 7 metres from the Irish line. He caught the Irish boys off guard and slipped past his opposite scrum half to give us the lead. Although we remained pinned in our own half as our opponents used their heavy artillery to try and break through our defence, the closest they came was in the last play off the match. However a superb last gasp tackle from Kier pushed them into the corner and into touch and the win was ours. London Irish 0 Welwyn 5.

After a very short break we played what turned out to be our last game of the day against a huge Blackheath side. Whatever they feed them in Kent we should ask for a big supply as they were by far the biggest side we have played in Under 9 Rugby. If you thought Luca, Harry A, Gus and Cameron were big then believe us they made them look like a set of sprightly scrum half’s! Still what we have always had is a fantastic set of backs and at last our wingers were able to use their pace to good effect. Johann completed a good move involving Jack Briars, Louis, Kyle and Alfie by racing away to score in the corner. In the second half, some good work by Gus helped us gain possession and Luca used all his power to drive past 3 defenders to give us the comfort of a two try lead. Credit must go to Blackheath however as they continued to try and get a score on the board and the Welwyn shut out was finally breached in the last few moments as they did crash over to score. The final whistle went soon afterwards for a final score of Blackheath 5 Welwyn 10.

So out came the calculators as we had a similar record to Brighton with one game left each. Brighton played first against the Blackheath side we had just played but with the game at one try apiece the heavens opened and a torrential downpour left our pitch unplayable. After around a half an hour break they did manage to finish the game with Brighton clinching a 2 – 1 win in the last play meaning that we required a 6 nil victory against Newport to book our place in the final against Group 2 winners, Worcester. However Newport had decided that they were better off down the M4 than to meet a rampant Welwyn Express and were nowhere to be seen. This left the organisers with a difficult decision. If they awarded us a 6 (the maximum score) nil win then we would be through but conversely if they scrubbed all of Newport’s results then Brighton would be through as they beat Richmond 6 nil. Thankfully sportsmanship and indeed friendship won the day as we agreed with Brighton and Worcester that the tournament should be shared as joint winners as the pitches were almost unplayable at this stage. So this is the 3rd time we have been to Richmond’s high class festival and we are still unbeaten with an overall record of Played 15 W 12 D 3 L 0. Oh and just to cap another memorable day, our Captain, Cameron, got to run of with the Cup first although obviously we will share this with Brighton and Worcester over the next 12 months.

Finally we would like to thank all the parents for their support and for those who helped out on the day either scoring or erecting our tent. The new tent was certainly needed late on!

The Cup Winners

Welwyn with one of the joint Cup winners - Brighton