Reports 2008-9

Sunday November 2nd

Sunderland 14 Durham City 10

A last minute fixture change had us travelling to Sunderland. The conditions where a lot different to previous games, as was the performance. As usual, we had a strong squad to choose from and Sandy Rae was named captain.
In previous years we have always had the upper hand over Sunderland and it was always going to be highly competitive and the boys needed to start quickly and win the contact areas. From the first whistle what we had was a tired and laboured team performance which gave the initiative straight to Sunderland. They scored an early try and we simply did not match them with both the backs and forwards very disappointing. Although we pulled a try back through Ben Langthorne they quickly scored again to give them a 14-5 lead at half time.
At half time the boys were left in no doubt what the coaches thought and there was a slight improvement, but the support play was still non existent and the backs were constantly losing their shape. We did score the only try of the half through Sandy Rae but it was never going to be enough, and in the end we got what we deserved, nothing!!

Man Of The Match: Unlike previous games, today there were very few boys who stood out. Only two really did themselves justice, James Elliot continued to probe and get involved despite being in the wars but the MOM goes to BEN LANGTHORNE. He scored a good try and led by example with his strong tackling and ‘never say die’ attitude while always trying to encourage his team mates.

Sunday November 2nd

Seaton Carew 0 Durham City 25

The team was changed around for the second game and the coaches were looking for a significant improvement. James Holmes led the team and although still below par, City took the game to Seaton and were soon rewarded with a try from James Ward. This set the pattern for the first half and further tries were to follow from Zack Guendouz, Sandy Rae and Timmy Welsh which effectively closed out the game by half time. The squad was rotated again for the second half any only one further try was scored by James Ward. It’s worth noting that no conversions were kicked all day by City and this is another area that needs work.

Man Of The Match: More to choose from in this match with some good individual performances. James Ward continued his solid start to the season and Timmy Welsh played well on the wing. The coaches decided that the MOM had to go to ZACK GUENDOUZ; he seems to improve every week and is always willing to listen and take on advise. Some great forward runs and an excellent try capped a good day for him.

October 19th

Bishop Auckland 0 - 54 Durham City

Another fine day and it was our first visit to Bishop for some time. A squad of 16 were down for the double header with Ryton.
Ben Langthorne was named captain, and as with previous games this season the boys started very brightly. An early try from winger Will Moreland set us up for a strong display, with the forwards and backs combining well. Harry Yetman, starting at scrum half kept the backs on the front foot with quick ball and soon we were further in front through two tries from James Holmes, both converted by Luke Henderson. This came as a blow to Bishop who were just starting to impose themselves on the game. We finished the half with two more tries from James Ward and Zack Guedouz.
The second half followed a similar pattern with three more tries scored by Ben Langthorne, Euan Gardiner and James Ward completing what was in the end a comfortable win.

Man Of The Match: Again, many good performances from all over the pitch. Harry Yetman had a strong game at scrum half, along with Luke Henderson at fly half playing at his usual high level. Alasdair Denby had a strong game, as did James Holmes, but the MOM goes to BEN LANGTHORNE. Highly competitive in the contact areas and his excellent work in the scrum and line out just shaded it.

October 19th

Ryton 0 - 39 Durham City

The starting line up was changed from the previous game, both in personnel and positions but the performance remained at a high level. All the boys were determined to carry on where they’d left off and the coaches weren’t disappointed. Early tries from Zack Guendouz and James Ward settled things down, and with constant prompting from James Elliot at scrum half the game was played mostly in Ryton’s half. One of the most pleasing aspects was the performance from some of the less experienced players, with Shaun Myers and Jack Cooper both having solid games.
James Elliot and Euan Gardiner completed the scoring in the first half to give us a 22-0 lead. There was no let up in the second half, and a fantastic try from Spencer Snowball typified the great attitude shown by all the boys. Further tries from Luke Henderson and James Elliot rounded off a good day for City

Man Of The Match: Always difficult but one performance stood out in this game. Not the biggest, and not the strongest but SPENCER SNOWBALL’s attitude is fantastic and his improvement from last year is obvious. Although taking a heavy knock, he came back on and never missed a tackle and his storming try was full of aggression and strong running.

Sunday October 12th

Alnwick v Durham City (Training)

The County 7’s were given a miss today as the coaches believed that a quality 12 a side game would be much more beneficial for the boys at such and early point in the season. Alnwick kindly agreed to host us and a squad of 17 made the trip north on what was another lovely morning.

The format was to be four 12 minute games, rotating the squad as often as we could. In summary, the first game was a tight affair with Alnwick coming out on top 14 – 12 with both our tries coming from Luke Henderson. The second went the way of City 14 – 0 with tries from Ben Langthorne and Zack Guendouz. In the third we took control early on through James Holmes, and further tries from James Ward and Jonathan Hedley paved the way for a 17 – 7 win. The final game was really tough with some fierce tackling from both sides. City having a smaller squad visibly tired and went down 14 – 7 with James Ward getting the late consolation try.

Overall, this was an excellent outing for the boys, and they certainly raised their game against one of the strongest teams in Northumberland. A lot will be learnt from this, while the boys handled the physicality really well, the forwards need to protect the ball better, and the backs must work on their shape in both attack and in defence. Finally, we need to work on all aspects of the kicking game.

Man Of The Match: Again, similar to last week all boys performed well but three stood out. James Ward for his strong running with the ball, Ben Langthorne for his tackling and work in both the contact areas and the line out, but for his overall game, and massive improvement on last year the MOM would have to go to ZACK GUENDOUZ (so keen was he to get to the breakdown, he was even seen clearing out our own scrum half................James ‘Billy’ Elliott didn’t know what had hit him!!)

Sunday October 5th

Blaydon 0 Durham City 80

On a bright sunny day ideal for rugby we had a squad of 17 available for the first day of the season.

Timmy Welsh captained the side and City made a positive start, looking very sharp and full of running. Following some early exchanges, James Holmes charged over the line for the first score. This was successfully converted by Luke Henderson and he had more kicking practise shortly afterwards when Ben Langthorne scored following strong pressure from the forwards. This set the scene for the rest of the game, and City were too strong for Blaydon in all departments. The backs cut through their defence at will with James Elliott bagging four tries and Luke Henderson a brace.

Changes were made throughout the game, with all the boys getting plenty of time on the pitch. It was particularly pleasing to see the fringe players putting in strong performances as we will certainly need the full squad this year. Zack Guendouz, Will Moreland and Taylor Ottaway all went over for tries, while Spencer Snowball’s tackling continues to improve.

Further tries from Matthew Stephenson and Timmy Welsh completed the scoring.

Man of The Match: Such a strong team performance makes this impossible. The forwards dominated in the contact and the backs, with Luke Henderson dictating play along with strong running and great handling from Sandy Rae always posed a threat.
Possibly just edging it on the day would be JAMES ELLIOTT at scrum half, who made the most of the forwards efforts, keeping the backs on the front foot all day.

There’s no doubt this was a good day, but we’ll meet stronger opposition in the weeks to come and the boys must concentrate on using the ball and the full width of the pitch. At times they can become complacent and a little ball greedy, something the coaches will need to work on in training.

News 2008-9

Durham City Rugby U11’s make it 3 in a row!

Durham City U11’s were the winners of the County Cup competition held at West Hartlepool RFC last Sunday.

This is the 3rd consecutive year the boys have won the title following their success at U9 and U10 Levels.

Even more impressive is the fact that not one single try has been conceded in any of the three competitions!

The latest County Cup win saw some impressive performances scoring 138 points along the way.

In the group stages Blaydon were beaten 56-0 and Darlington 40-0.

Billingham were dispatched 21-0 in the quarter final setting up a semi against Bishop Auckland.

A 21-0 win against Bishop took Durham into the final against Middlesbrough RFC.

The game was tied 0-0 following extra time which meant City won on the “least tries conceded” criteria.

The Durham team has enjoyed a very successful season, winning almost all of their games with an ever strengthening squad of players.

Next year will be their final year in the Mini’s section and they will take some stopping in completing the 4 in a row Grand Slam!

Bishop Auckland 0 - 54 Durham City

Ryton 0 - 39 Durham City

Sunday October 5th

Blaydon 0 Durham City 80