The Chronicle January 2020

37 ST EDWARD’S CHRONICLE

motivated and displayed determination and humour: George Knee, with his great kicking skill and pace; Finn Cowan, with his endless encouragement in the pack and hunger to get the ball; Edward Crofts who stoically works hard in the pack every match to get the ball to the backs; Luca Tartaglia-Baker who is a brave tackler and works tirelessly in the pack; Keegan Boyd who is always there at the breakdowns and is keen to tackle; Felipe Herrera who has stepped up and is developing well as a player; Joe Kelly who has worked hard in the backs; and Joshua Wilmot who has a blistering pace when he gets going. Junior Colts Despite a difficult start to the season, due to a number of injuries and some very strong opposition, the JCA’s finished well with two good wins in our final three games. One of the best tries of the season came against The Oratory: a series of pick-and-go phases followed by a number of impressive offloads from forwards and backs eventually reached Freddie Walton on the wing who scored in the corner. Our most notable victory came against Uppingham during which the boys produced some intelligent attacking play and a fantastic defence in the last 15 minutes to win 19-5. Every player has made valuable contributions to the team over the course of the season, however notable performances include: Freddie Boanas (Captain), James Culley, Archie Crawford, Bertie Withers Green and Hamza Ali, a stand out performer at fullback, who barely missed a tackle all season. The JCB’s have moved from strength to strength throughout the season; they have showed grit and resilience against some tough competition. The start of the season was challenging with some of our toughest fixtures of the season in the first three weeks, however the boys took this as a challenge and managed themselves well throughout. As a result of their hard work, the JCB’s only lost narrowly to a very strong Rugby XV, showing during the game that they had learnt from their mistakes with large phases of the game defended inside their own half. It was a turning point in the season and the team went on to win their next three games, a narrow victory against Stowe in harrowing conditions highlighting their fight and determination. They went on to further demonstrate their skills in difficult conditions against Uppingham and showed attacking prowess versus St Benedict’s, leaving the season with a 50% win ratio going into the final game against Malvern. Standout players

ensured the boys were victorious 24-12. The Oratory simply couldn’t live with the intensity of the boys’ pace and dynamism in attack or their defensive effort. This team does not really have any standout players and it would be wrong to single anyone out. The pack has been a force to be reckoned with, often driving the opposition several metres from a line out or breaking the line in open play. The backs have been creative in attack and resolute in defence. The team have averaged over 30 points a game in attack, scoring 331 points in total. The Yearlings B have played some excellent flowing rugby with great rucking skills and ferocious defence. Later in the season, the boys added some great cross- kicking skills to their game plan with great effect, the standout game being the 7–0 win over Rugby. Most of the game was played in the 22 as the boys defended their try-line ferociously. Top try-scorer for the season was winger James Choi with 11. Elsewhere, in the Yearlings D excellent tries were scored throughout the season mostly by the Greenwood-Pumfrey combination in the centres, but many players joined in the solid performances in forwards and backs, James Palin, Monty Slater and Theodore Matthews perhaps standing out. It was brilliant however to see Angus Hayes score a good try supporting the ball-carrier on an awful day at Stowe, epitomising the spirit that the boys showed in school fixtures. The players of the season were Tom Phillips, a feisty determined boy who can play hooker, flanker or fly-half, and indeed kick for points, and captain Joe Woodroffe, entirely new to the game, who developed a great pass from scrum-half and moved around the field with alacrity.

include Charles Turner, who had never played before this year but who scored 16 tries over the season, developing massively throughout; Marcus Thame who returned from injury and was nothing but phenomenal; and Andrey Pirogov who developed the most as a player. The JCC’s have enjoyed a number of successes this season. Large squads travelled to Uppingham and MCS and came home with a good number of tries on the scoreboard. At home, victory was secured against Cheltenham College, a game played under difficult conditions. The team has greatly benefited from the leadership of Max Maddox, who has led from the front at training and during matches. The title of top try scorer must go to Euan English whose powerful movement on the pitch has earned him plaudits from coaches and teammates alike. Yearlings The Yearlings A season was a vintage one. They have been extremely coachable and dedicated, as epitomised by Tom Gardiner, who has only played about 10 minutes all season, but has been ever-present at training and at matches. Their team spirit and support for one another has been a hallmark of their identity. They are blessed with two essential qualities – physicality and raw power, making all 18 players formidable. The two games they lost were winnable; more importantly the team learned from their mistakes. For example, a narrow one-point loss in horrendous conditions away to Stowe made the boys reflect on their lack of mental focus and resilience. Playing the hitherto-unbeaten Oratory the following week, a superb first half

Harry Badham

The stellar U14A squad: Toby Barlow, Tomas Carroll-Orea, George Freeland, Elliot Sarooshi, Jack Routledge, James Turnbull, Michael Hirst, Matt Sell, Charlie Mason, William Allen, Leo Clayton-Bennett, Kit Holland, Lysander Tarrant, Buster Relton, Louis Badham, Olly Gurney, Jack Wood and Dylan Driscoll.