Under 15

Saturday 22^nd March

Colwyn Bay 7 South Woodham Ferris 15

Colwyn bay hosted touring side South Woodham Ferries on Saturday in an entertaining, fast and open game that saw the bay having to defend a lot early on. A defensive scrum on our 5m line was well cleared by the monster boot of Tom Roberts who kicked good field position all afternoon, and an excellent tackle by Dan Parry saved an almost certain try . The bay held on for about 15 minutes but the relentless pressure and some loose and missed tackles saw them concede a try, but the conversion attempt was unsuccessful due to the windy conditions. Jamie Williams won a lot of good line out ball and it was off one of these the Bay got a good drive on to get into the opposition 22, but came away without points.

Winger Matt Jones put in some good tackling, but again by good pressure from South Woodham Ferries was turned into points when they scored a try just before half time and once again the kick was wide of the mark as the visitors took a ten nil lead into the interval. Again a huge boot from Tom in his own 22 reached the opposition 10 but we lost the lineout. it was Colwyn Bay who was playing better rugby in this half and had their opponents on the back foot for long periods and when Ben Stewart took the ball from a line out and ran in under the posts it was game on. Fly-half Spencer Lumby added the extra’s. Centre Gaz Williams got the crowd going when he intercepted and burst into the opposition 22 and we got a penalty when South Woodham Ferries were done for an infringement in the ruck and it looked like the Bay could have gone into the lead when they drove it over the line but it was held up according to the match official. But it was the touring side that was going to have the last say in this thrilling encounter when they won a scrum on our 5m and their no.8 picked up and charged over .

Final score Colwyn Bay 7 South Woodham Ferries 15.

13th January '08

Colwyn Bay 52 Hoylake 7

Colwyn bay proved to strong an opposition for Hoylake as they romped to a 52 - 7 victory scoring 8 tries with winger Matt Jones scoring 3 of these. Other tries came from Gaz Williams 2 and Ben Stewart 2 and Tom Roberts , Fly-Half Spencer Lumby added 4 conversions to his points tally and Tom Roberts got 2 conversions ,one of which was right out wide. A lot of players played well but Man Of The Match was prop forward Ben Stewart who caught the ball off a restart and ran all the way to score his second try of the day, his work rate was immense through out .

13th January '08

Due to appalling pitch conditions at Brookfield Drive Colwyn Bay had to travel to Oswestry who were kind enough to accommodate us for this fixture. The Bay were on the front foot from the off and it didn't take long for new comer second row Jake Yates to power over for the first try and this early period was probable the best period of the whole game for Colwyn Bay because as the points piled on the board they started to loose their shape a bit and white line fever set in, never the less the conditions were bad and the pitch turned into a mud bath but there was a lot of good individual performances as they ran in ten tries in all. Try scorers were Tom Roberts (3) Gaz Williams (2) Jack Yates, Tom Johnson, Will Evans, Josh Ward and Glyn Griffith, Joe Chaplin and Will Evans kicked the conversions.

18th November '07

Colwyn Bay u15's 70 Newtown 0

Due to the ever growing junior section at Colwyn Bay Rugby Club the u15's had to entertain visitors Newtown at Rydal school. The game started off a bit scrappy from both sides with nobody taking any real responsibility in the loose, but as the game wore on the Bay clicked and some good handling skills saw the ball spread out wide for Tom Roberts to go over in the corner for the first of his three tries and from that point onwards Newtown were on the back foot. Chris Thomas showed nifty feet out on the wing and went over to score, further tries form Ieuan and Jamie Williams gave the bay a comfortable lead at half time. After the turn around the Bay continued in the same vein with little resistance from there opposition and powerful running from No 8 Jamie to go over for his second try which was converted by Tom Roberts. Ben Dalton came on in the second half and took over at scrum half and scored a very fine try. Gaz Williams now at centre was next to go on the score sheet with a fine individual effort. This was a game of very few rucks and mauls as the Bay were able to break through tackles every time and second row Ryan Davies stretched his legs to try, then flanker Ieuan Davies got his second try of the day which was successfully converted by Tom Roberts. Tom then converted his own try after he scored under Neath the posts and Captain Gaz Williams rounded off the the rout with his second try which again was convert by Tom. Aled Hughes and Will Evans showed good sportsmanship when they both played a half a game each for Newtown to make up the numbers- well done lads. this was a fine performance by Colwyn Bay taking all the spoils winning 70 points to nil.

11th November '07

Travelling away with only 14 players is never a good idea when you need 15 players to make a team. However that is how the U15's set off for Hoylake. Ieuan - never again please. The weather was poor & on arrival the opposition looked to have a certain physical & (Ieuan) numerical advantage. But Hoylake proved to be both good & sporting hosts as they made up the Colwyn Bay numbers with players of their own, namely Rogan (1st. half) & Harry (2nd. Half) whom both played with purpose & endeavour for their visitors - we would like to thank them for that. After Colwyn Bays late arrival (Ieuan) & both teams paying their respects as is the time honoured fashion at 11 o'clock on 11th of November the two teams eventually got to start their game.

Hoylake won the toss & chose to take the kick-off this allowing Colwyn Bay to choose ends & elect to play with the wind & driving rain at their backs. Receiving the kick the Bay immediately went on the attack with Ben Stewart making a marauding & difficult to stop run through the heart of the Hoylake defence. The run was eventually stopped by the 6 foot 6 inch Hoylake No. 8.. Unfortunately in doing this he injured his neck & was temporarily rested from the action. At the following scrum the Bay again went on the attack & Captain Gaz Williams went over near the posts for the Bays first try, which Spencer Lumby converted.

From the restart Colwyn Bay quickly recycled & immediately put Hoylake on the back foot again when Lumby put in a well placed kick to take advantage of the elements. This became a recurrent & useful tactic for the rest of the first half as the Bay took every opportunity to let the wind help their attacking cause. On this instance the ball bounced into touch, Hoylake threw-in crookedly, the wind playing it's part again & Colwyn Bay had another attacking scrum. From here on it became apparent that the Bay had chosen ends wisely & they continued to take control of the game with a good mixture of a kicking into space & chasing well or running the ball when possession was good & the defence was disorganised. The visitors had a number of half chances to score but had to be satisfied with a 17 - 0 lead at half time with unconverted tries coming from stand in prop Rhodri Lloyd & full back Joe Chaplin. As luck would have it the weather started to abate around about half time & although the Bay were able to think about running the ball a little more in the second half the kicking option remained available. A positional change saw centre Liam Eynon swap with Gaz Williams at scrum half but this had little effect on the game as Eynon was provided with a plentiful supply of ball from the forwards for which to feed the ever more hungry backs. Tom Roberts & his new centre partner now began to make some telling & frequent runs at the

Hoylake defence which lead to a further 4 tries. One each for themselves, a second for Chaplin & a well taken try from short range but with almost no room in which to manoeuvre by Tom Johnson & his dancing feet. Two of these were converted giving Lumby his second & one for Chaplin. It all sounds like one way traffic but Hoylake played their part with a relatively inexperienced team for whom the uncontested Scrummaging put at a disadvantage. In the end their determination lead to Colwyn Bay giving away 2 penalties when defending both of which were taken quickly & lead to unconverted tries. The return fixture will be a more competitive & wholly tougher affair. All the Bay players played well but mention must be made of; Luke Pearce who looked keen & made a number of good runs, Chris "twinkle toes" Thomas who should have been given more ball to show off his fast moving feet & David Rushton who left the field with an injured shoulder after showing a good work rate & having made a number of good tackles.

Final Score Hoylake 10 Colwyn Bay 41

The U15's managed to record their first victory in, this, their third match of the season, after suffering heavy defeats in the two previous fixtures. Colwyn Bay took control of the match early on, exhibiting far more determination up front & everyone showing greater ability to execute basic skills. Direct running, better support work & some well controlled rucking helped to set the tone for the game. Shortly after kick-off a good surge by the forwards led to centre, Will Evans, collecting a ball from a ruck on the opposition 5 metre line & going over for the first try. The second try of the game gave winger Josh Ward his first in Colwyn Bay colours. Again good forward work provided the platform & then quick transfer of the ball along the back line gave Ward the opportunity to show his pace as he beat the covering defence, from 20 meters out.

Another Ward try saw the winger collect a well placed diagonal kick from just outside his 22 by Stand-Off Spencer Lumby which bounced kindly, on the half way line into Ward's hands leaving him clear of most of the defenders to run in & score under the posts. It was also first time on the score sheet for Ben Stewart. After the backs had moved the ball along the line & Josh Ward had made a good run to straighten up the attack the resultant maul, just short of the Oswestry line, looked to be coming to nothing when Stewart ripped the ball clear & crashed through a number of hapless defenders to increase Colwyn Bay's commanding lead. Will Evans collected a second for himself in the second half & starting scrum half Gaz Williams, now at flanker, finished the Bays try scoring with a solo effort when he scooped up a loose ball at an Oswestry line-out, just inside their half, & proved to strong for the defence.

The game was not over however & Oswestry, who had battled hard throughout, ended the game with the last word, as Colwyn Bay, in their effort to keep a clean sheet, transgressed at a ruck & gave away a penalty 10 meters out. Oswestry got over the line to secure 5 points but were unable to convert. Final score Oswestry 5 - Colwyn Bay 38 , with 2 conversions each to Will Evans & Spencer Lumby. A decision on Man of the Match was not made but Will Evans was top points scorer with 14.

30th September '07

The U15's played their first ever fixture against Lymm who proved to be a well drilled team & very quickly got on the score sheet with a well executed move in the backs which left the previously untried Bay back line combination wondering what had hit them. This was a wake up call to the Bay who were under the cosh again from the restart but started to defend with more determination in the forwards & soon began to provide some possession for the backs.

But the Bay's general play & defensive organisation showed their rustiness & unfamiliarity with each other. Lymm were in control throughout & soon had further scores on the board. The game was interrupted for some time whilst 2 injuries were dealt with. But this was more of a hindrance to the Bay than Lymm & the game , once restarted continued with a similar pattern. Throughout the game, when the opportunity presented itself both Bay centres, Josh Ward & newcomer Tom Roberts showed that there will be plenty more to come once they have settled in. With Ward running hard to break the tackle line from some well distributed ball from Roberts. Better support may have resulted in more concerted periods of attack, but Lymm were well organised & determined in defence as well as attack. In all Lymm racked up 54 unanswered points with 10 tries & 2 conversions. They Bay went close once after a determined bit of play by Josh Ward & some good support from his team mates but the ball was held up over the line.

The Under 15's should not be to disappointed. The team fielded was somewhat untried & no-one gave up when heads could easily have gone down. Make no mistake without the determination shown to the end this could have been a real cricket score. Two other new faces in the team were Joe Chaplin at full back, who's courageous tackle stopped another certain try & Ben Stewart who came on at prop who also made an impact, both at the scrums & in the loose. Other players who need to be mentioned are Tom Johnson who did a fine job, filling in at fly-half & having to play under some pressure & Luke Pierce who played his first full game at hooker. No. 8 Jay Williams was Captain for the match & led by good example.