Felsted Prep v St St Faith's Cambridge

1^st XV: Won 24 - 14

Having taken virtually all the 1^st XV away to Dublin on tour the hope was that they would carry their form through to this week. They did not disappoint. This was a fierce contest against a previously unbeaten St Faith’s side and only our very best was good enough to beat them. In the first half we dominated upfront and were the more physical and demanding side and deserved our 12 – 0 lead with both tries being scored by Will Barker. In the second half St Faith’s showed their spirit and determination and fought their way back into the game, mainly through the boot. Two tries allowed them to move into the lead 12 – 14. However, we were not to be denied victory and a period of pressure in the opposition 22 lead to a Tom Walker try following some outstanding scrummaging as we took a 19 – 14 lead. Any worries about losing the game were then dispelled by a strong Jonathan Salami try in the left corner.

The team were all superb today and showed a confidence, determination and desire that comes from winning. Luke Bury, Sam Wisbey, Toby Guild and Tom Walker had all been awarded full colours and their colours’ ties in assembly this morning and they all showed why. Gregoire Imber was outstanding up front and in the loose, as was Harry Sturge whilst Cameron Cowie and Thomas Jardine worked tirelessly in the second row. Ollie Stonham and Barnaby Stoner both showed why they won ‘potential’ awards on tour, and Jem Salmon and Jonathan Salami were immense on the wings, especially in defence. At scrum half Will Buttleman was at his ‘nuggety’ best. It was however our three senior players who proved the difference: Tom and Tom were both a class act and Will Barker, who was individually outstanding, showed exactly why he is Captain of Rugby.

Tries: Will Barker (2), Tom Walker, Jonathan Salami

Conv: Tom Hitchcock (2) 

2^nd XV: Lost 22 -7
 A close first half with St Faiths winning more ball to go in at half time 12-0 in the lead. Felsted came back with a try early in the second half but simply did not win enough ball. 

 3^rd XV: Won 36 - 10

Playing St Faith's immediately after the half-term break has always proved difficult, however the boys rose to the challenge and came out as convincing 36-10 victors. The team played some lovely, controlled rugby in the first half and, once they got the rustiness out of their handling and decision making, started to get the points. St Faith's came back into it briefly in the second half as our forwards failed to hit rucks with the necessary drive and body shape and we allowed them 2 tries. Thankfully we steadied the ship and ran in two more tries.

Try scorers: J Clarke (2), Dowling, Beale, Timmis and McIlvenna,

3 conversions from J Head

Man of the Match - J Clarke 

4^th XV: Won 32 - 5

After a long half term, the boys knew they were going to a bit rusty only after one games session, but they were determined to keep playing for each other and to remain unbeaten. James Cotterill was one of the stars of the show again, scoring his 2^nd hat-trick of the year with some of his barnstorming runs and the boys were great at the support play and rucking also. But the Man of the Match had to go to Samuel Barratt. Starting at flanker, we soon realised they had a kicker and swapped Amaar with Samuel, which was where he shone. Without scoring a try but taking four crucial catches, which swung the momentum back into our favour, scoring from almost every single counter attack. It was a great performance also by Tobias Butler, Harry Britton and Serge Savva who all also scored tries. The final score was 32-5 which mean we remain unbeaten after our 5 games with 1 remaining. 

5^th XV: Won 61 - 10

The 7th November 2012 will go down in history as the date of the first win for the mighty Felsted Prep 5th XV; and what a win it was...

Captain Joe Wahl won the toss in a cold but bright Wednesday afternoon in Cambridge and cleverly opted to attack uphill in the first half giving St Faiths the sun in their eyes. The tone was set from the kick off with John Barber scoring a try straight from Felsted receiving the kick off after some incredibly direct and powerful running. St Faith’s knew they were in a game and Felsted's historic slow starts were a dim and distant memory.

Felsted maintained their excellent start by quickly adding two more tries through excellent support play, offloading and attacking running with the ball finally being grounded by Will Ginsburg twice. Still the Felsted pressure continued and with St Faith’s struggling to keep up with the powerful mauling and quick rucking on show, a scrum was given to Felsted about 5 metres from the St Faith's try line. The superb scrummaging from the 5ths kept the ball well until Silas Turner-Jones executed the perfect number 8 pick up to drive the ball over the line. With three more tries delivered from Alex Bunn, Will Ginsburg and John Barber before half time, Felsted went to collect their couple of jelly babies each (how many is that Sir?) leading 39-0. There was some distraction as an RAF fly past took place but the key messages were conveyed and the boys took to the field for the second half determined to improve the score.

Half time saw Ed Davis replaced by Ed Yeatts on the left wing, and Finlay reminded to defend the other end of the field this time! All of Ed's substitute's energy was evident when he ran in an excellent try straight after the break. A much improved St Faith's side started to give as good as they got and, after more tries from Joe Wahl, Alex Bunn and Will "four tries" Ginsburg, there began an incredibly open, competitive and combative passage of play in the Felsted 22. There then followed a Felsted substitution replacing George "pat the dog before the line out" Harvey for Ed Davis after George's hard running had taken its toll on his legs. With the score at 61-0 it was good for our boys to know that the game was not over as St Faith's scored one good battling try followed by one fast breakaway try to take the score to 61-10.

Any concerns of a St Faith's comeback were quickly settled by the sound of the full time whistle and everyone relaxed to bask in the glory of a well earned and much deserved first win for the 5th XV. It was a real team effort and, whilst Will Newnham, Boomer Entwisle, Bram Emsley, Elliot Reeve, Jordan Guerrero and Joey Ginsburg have yet to be mentioned, this is not because of their lack of contribution - I could write much more in them match report given the space! Well played boys, you have all worked so hard for this win.

RHS await at home on Saturday...bring them on! 

U11 A: Won 21-10

What a day! The boys started well and quickly realised they were up against a good St Faith's side. There was a small element of rustiness in the early stages, but the game was very evenly contested. However, the boys went down two tries to one by the end of the first half, making the score 10-7 as St Faith's did not convert. However, the second half told the real tale. The boys kept their heads high and showed some real grit and determination. Tackling was superb and they really took it to the St Faith's boys. We managed to score two unanswered tries in the second half making the final score a very deserved 21-10. A very satisfying afternoon and the boys did the School proud showing real character to come from behind and illustrates that they are continuing to develop. Thank you for the rousing support from the parents and thank you to Mr Townsend for refereeing. 

U11 B: Won 56 - 0

After a long lay off over half term and with only one training session before we faced St Faith’s, it was very gratifying to see the boys play with determination and commitment. We dominated in all aspects of play, both in the forwards and backs. Once we had secured the ball either in open play or from set phases, the backs worked well moving the ball out to the wings, giving our runners space to exploit the opposition’s defence. A thoroughly deserved win boys, well done. 

U11 C: Felsted Won 55 – 34

The Squad was larger than normal as this was our last match and several players deserved to play in a competitive match and the squad had practised with enthusiasm and determination.

The Squad:

The starting line up was: Forwards; Aiden Swan-McSorley, Cameron Wallace, Dominic Savva, Scrum Half: Lewis Isaacs, Fly half: Harvey Minks, Centres: Samuel Winter and Sebastian Martinez-Minett, Wing: Joshua O'Conner. As the game developed forwards were substituted: Henry Barker, Archie Pritchard and Elliot Smith, and in the backs came Ethan Weatherstone, Thomas Gilbert, Orlando Drewitt-Barlow, Matthew Reagen and Oliver Craig.

Everyone played with energy and showed they knew how to play with good positive rucks and mauls and winning most of the scrums. The backs passed it out down the line and made some terrific runs through the gaps and round the outside. Dominic led the team and pack from the front and Harvey distributed the ball efficiently and ran forcefully. Sebastian and Samuel were extremely strong runners cutting the opposition apart in the first half, thanks to the possession the forwards had battled for in the rucks. Oliver Craig showed us how to run strongly through tackles to score.