U13 A Vs Medway (H)

A a Bright day at the Paddock, Our U13’ A team played a Medway U13 A team on the 1st XV pitch.

The following boys represented the A team:

Baker, Beaufoy, Dixon, Gilbey, Killick, Kitchen, Skein, Thomas (L), Wilson (J), Burgess

Brooke, Ebsworth, Gollan, Johnson, Keenor, Lindsay, Maynard, Parker, Pearl, Smith

A stunning performance from the U13A team on Sunday against last year's Kent cup runners Medway. Oaks took control from the first whistle and never looked back. We created continual pressure and were clinical in converting all try opportunities with great handling in tricky conditions. At half time it was 35-0 to Oaks

The visitors asked to play the second half as a new match (RFU directive is 50 point lead and the game is stopped) given they had travelled a long way.

Oaks continued the second half where they left off the first with every squad member getting game time and making a great contribution. The second half score was 45-10

It is unfair to single out players as it was a complete team performance with excellent tackling and rucking and some clinical back play

It was a performance that shocked our opposition but also won massive respect - easily the best performance of the year and also very pleasing to see players coming up into the team from the Bs performing well, which underlines the fantastic depth of the squad. Well done to everyone that took part.

U13 A Sevenoaks Lions - Kent Cup

On a bright and Sunny Sunday Afternoon at Sidcup, the current Kent Cup holders played three matches in the first weekend of three in the Kent cup rugby tournament. The following boys represented the Sevenoaks Lions:

Baker, Beaufoy, Dixon, Killick, Kitchen, Latrobe, Skein, Smith, Thomas (L), Wilson (J),

Box, Brooke, Ebsworth, Gollan, Hewitt, Johnson, Lindsay, Maynard, Parker, Pearl

Our U13’s A team played three games against, Old Elthamian’s, Beckenham and Sidcup. Sevenoaks Lions brushed all three clubs to one side as they totally dominated and made their intentions clear to all the other U13 clubs in the tournament.

Old Elthamian’s - Tries scored by Smith, Wilson, Ebsworth, Gollan, Johnson, Ebsworth. Gamed stopped at 6-0

Beckenham - Tries scored by Johnson, Box (2), Smith, Gollan. Win 5-0

Sidcup - Tries scored by Beaufoy (2), Kitchen, Baker, Parker, Gollan

Well done to all the boys in the Sevenoaks Lions (A)

U13 B Sevenoaks Tigers - Kent Cup

Our U13 B team - Sevenoaks Tigers, played their first three qualifying matches at Old Colf’s ground. The following boys represented the Sevenoaks Tigers:

Clarke, Daly, Hansen, Hedger, Holland, Gilbey, Raymond, Satrettin, Thomas (F), Van-Niekerk,

Francombe, Avery, Holden, Keenor, Lay, Lenaghan, Rumsey, Shoobridge, Stratton, Waller

Our boys played magnificent rugby against very strong teams in Medway A, Gravesend A, and Old Colfes B team.

The boys won one their match against Old Colfes B’s and narrowly lost to Medway A and Gravesend A.

Our try scorers on the day were, Francombe, Avery, Shoobridge, Lenaghan, Van-Niekerk, Satrettin, Gilbey

All three games were close affairs with our boys doing us proud again. Well done boys

U13 B Vs Tunbridge Wells (A)

On this cold grey Remembrance Sunday morning, Sevenoaks B’s travelled to Tunbridge Wells for a game of tough rugby. The following boys represented the U13’s:

Thomas (F), Holland, Satrettin, Clarke, Gilbey, Hansen, Fordyce-Gray, Raymond, Van-Niekerk, Burgess, Francombe, Lenaghan, Gollan, Lay, Shoobridge, Holden, Stratton, Onuoha

Our boys started off brightly imposing their game onto the hosts with an early display of hunger and aggression which ultimately resulted in a try within a minute. With their tails up, our boys continued to dominate until the hosts latched onto a loose pass, completely against the run of play, to level the scores 5-5. Our boys then endured some good pressure from the hosts and we were able to play the ball out to the wings where we scored our second try. With more grit and determination we firmly camped out in the hosts half scoring two more tries bringing the score to 20-5. The whistle was blown 5 minutes before halftime and this started the minute silence for the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.

Respecting the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.

The second half began with much the same intensity as the beginning of the first half, but this time our boys went out with intent and freedom to express their style of rugby. Our pack totally dominated winning ruck after ruck, scrum after scrum. The forwards showed great discipline and maturity as they drove and held the ball, signalling to our backs that it was now their time to turn on the magic. The backs didn’t disappoint. They ran the line beautifully, with great handling and inventiveness usually seen by teams several age groups older. Our hosts had no response to the speed and power of the backs coupled with the forwards getting to the breakdown quicker than their hosts and winning good ball for the backs to start again. Wave after wave of attack saw our boys easily win the game 65-10.

Tries scored by Alfie, Finn T, Alex H, Sam L, Will, Felic, Max G, Hendrick (2) and Ian(3)

U13 A Vs Westcombe Park (A)

On a crisp sunny morning in Orpington the Sevenoaks U13 A’s travelled to our hosts Westcombe Park RFC to play some glorious rugby. The A team were represented by:

Wilson (J), Dixon, Latrobe, Skein, Baker, Kitchen, Beaufoy, Hansen, Smith, Avery, Lindsay, Gollan, Hewitt, Shoobridge, Ebsworth, Lay, Brooke

The U13’s A team started the match with the intent of showing our hosts their power, agility and skill. From the first kick of the match our boys received the ball and duly dispatched it with precision and power into our hosts half with a try. The hosts then dug in and made it difficult for our boys who were firmly camped in the hosts half. We saw some great disciplined play from Kitchen with fierce piercing, powerful runs from Smith and Dixon which piled pressure on the hosts. Further pressure was given by Beaufoy, Latrobe, Skein, Wilson, Hansen and Baker. The forward worked as a well drilled machine; clearing rucks, winning scrums and giving clean ball to the backs via the excellent Avery our scrum half. The hard work from the forwards eventually broke down our hosts and the tries began flowing.

The backs matched our magnificent forwards with a wonderful display of ball handling. The super-quick Ebsworth, frightened the hosts by running in tries at blistering speed which was great to watch. The backs were well marshalled by Lindsay with superb play from Gollan, Hewitt, Shoobridge, Lay and Brooke. The backs continued throughout the whole game showing their speed, guile and awareness by playing some fantastic champagne rugby. The move of the match came when Lindsay chipped the ball for Smith to come running in at pace, catching the ball and placing it for a try. Magnificent!

Well done to our boys who won 35-5.

U13 B Vs Westcombe Park (A)

On a crisp sunny morning in Orpington the Sevenoaks U13 B’s travelled to our hosts Westcombe Park RFC to play some glorious rugby. The B team were represented by:

Gallagher, Holland, Satrettin, Clarke, Van-Niekerk, Killick, Gilbey, Thomas (F), Thomas (L), Blackmore, Francombe , Lenaghan, Malan, Chaboissier, Rumsey, Head, Gustard, Holden

The boys followed the A team’s impressive win with some fantastic moves of their own. Scoring their first of eight tries within 1 minute of play, the B team played some marvellous rugby. Our boys pressed and dominated the hosts all over the pitch, running riot from the forwards through to the backs.

There was some fantastic play by the Thomas brothers Finn and Liam, linking up to score a beautiful try which started in the middle of the field with a piercing Satrettin run and offload. Some industrious play by both Killick and Gilbey which gained the team space and tries, with Gilbey running in three tries from well within his own half. Clarke produced tackle after tackle and gained good ground for the team supported by Gallagher and Holland. Van-Niekerk unleashing his devastating pace from the forwards was a joy to see.

The backs were equally awesome matching the forwards, with good distribution ball from Blackmore and Malan our scrum halves through to our superb back line. The backs handling and support play was excellent with Francombe, Lenaghan, Head and Holden dictating the play out to our wingers Rumsey, Gustard and Chaboissier.

Our hosts were fantastic on a day where our boys played some the best rugby we have seen. Well done Sevenoaks U13 B’s who won 40-nil.

U13 B Vs Old Beccs (H)

On a cold, wet and muddy morning, Sevenoaks U13 B team welcomed Old Beccs to the paddock. The following boys represented Sevenoaks B:

Fordyce-Gray, Skein, Gallagher, Hedger, Raymond, Stevens, Gilbey, Thomas (F), Wilson (R), Avery, Burgess, Davis-O'Malley, D'Alessio, Francombe, Lenaghan, Onuoha, Keenor, Stratton, Waller

With the rain driving down on the field, our boys dug in deep for a first half of rugby that was well matched by a big, strong Beccehamian U13 team. The visitors put our boys under good pressure with both teams, rucking, mauling and tackling in a enthralling first half encounter. Our boys came close to scoring several times through Avery and Gilbey but on both occasions we were stopped yards from the touchline. The scoreline at half time remained 0-0 with all the boys putting in a good shift.

The second half started with more intensity from our boys and we began to spread out finding the full width of the of the pitch which provided them with crucial overlaps. This put our opposition under pressure and the boys could feel a try was on its way. The forwards dug deep and turned over several scrums which in-turn allowed our backs to have the confidence to run at the opposition. With eight minutes remaining, Keenor scored our first try in the far corner. This opened the gates and gave our boys the belief they could go out and win. Further tries were scored by Keenor and Lenaghan, with a marvellous powerful run from Finn Thomas resulting in an excellent try. Whilst the forwards worked hard in the second half to give our backs the platform to play rugby, our backs didn’t disappoint and they spun the ball out wide at every opportunity. Our boys upped the tempo with minutes remaining looking fresh as though they had just started the game finishing strongly at the end.

Well done to our boys winning the game 20-0.

U13 A Vs Old Alleynian (A)

On a wet and grey autumnal day, Sevenoaks U13 A’s travelled to Dulwich Common in South East London where they played one of the oldest clubs in London, Old Alleynian’s A U13’s. The following boys represented Sevenoaks U13’s team:

Baker, Dixon, Gilbey, Kitchen, Killick, Skein, Thomas (F), Wilson (J), Brooke, Ebsworth, Francombe, Gollan, Lindsay, Lay, Maynard, Hewitt

Our A team boys put in a strong performance against the hosts working the ball well to the backs who were sublime. This showed with three successive tries by Ebsworth who ran the opposition ragged with his quick turn of pace and lightning speed. The home team managed a try in the first half after putting our forwards under pressure. Our boys responded through Kitchen who ran riot through the opposition finishing well.

The second half started in much the same manner as the first but the home team upped the pressure on our boys. Whilst we only scored a further two tries through Gollan and Wilson and the hosts scoring only one try, our boys professionally saw out a tricky second half.

Well done to the A team for putting in a strong performance away from home on a grey and wet day, winning 30-10. A good solid performance all round.

U13 B Vs Old Alleynian (A)

On a grey autumnal day, Sevenoaks U13’s travelled to Dulwich Common in South East London where they played one of the oldest clubs in London, Old Alleynian’s U13’s. The following boys represented Sevenoaks U13’s B team:

Beaufoy, Clarke, Daly, Hansen, Holland, Latrobe, Satrettin, Thomas (L), Blackmore, Burgess, Chaboissier, Hewitt, Head, Holden, Keenor, Lenaghan, Shoobridge, Stratton

Our boys started strongly against the opposition playing a ferocious attacking style of rugby. The forwards put on an incredible amount of pressure which resulted in giving play to our backs who were also in fine form, scoring a succession of tries through, Hewitt, Shoobridge and Chaboissier. Our forwards also managed a good well worked try through some excellent play by Clark. The hosts managed to get one breakaway try in the first half.

The second half started much like the first and whilst we applied good pressure on the home team scoring through Shoobridge and Keenor we did allow our game play to slip. The home team scored a good try and this then resulted in two more successive tries; but our boys dug deep and responded under fierce pressure from the home team by running in two more tries by Beaufoy and Keenor.

The match ended with a 40-20 victory to our magnificent U13 B team. Well done boys.

U13 B Vs Cranbrook (A)

Clear blue skies and plenty of sunshine this weekend where Sevenoaks B’s travelled to Cranbrook. The following boys represented the Sevenoaks B’s:

Thomas (F), Raymond, Holland, Satrettin, Daly, Hedger, Van-Niekerk, Stevens, Thomas (L), Hewitt, Rumsey, Onuoha, Malan, Keenor, Gustard, Waller, Blackmore, Francombe

The referee asked the two captains which country the Ryder cup (golf) was being played in over the weekend. The Cranbrook captain like a hopeful University challenge contestant immediately replied FRANCE and won the right to receive the kick!

Right from the whistle and kick, the well drilled Oaks side hit every tackle and ruck with great determination and it was not long before a try by Satrettin went into the corner.

Such was the power, tackling and rucking level the boys soon went up 4 tries in the first 20 minutes. In the forwards Hendrik and Finn Thomas were standout and in the backs Liam Thomas and Tom Hewitt played some fantastic running rugby to completely shell shock the Cranbrook B team.

The forwards were once again outstanding with plenty of turnovers and aggressive rucking resulting in a dominating first session with a hat-trick of tries for F Thomas who grows in confidence every week and ran riot for a period, and two for Van Niekerk - his partner in mayhem. Stevens was a great anchor for the scrum at 8 and Satrettin produced another composed performance along with front row colleague Holland. Daly got through a lot of work on the ground and never gave an inch and Hedger again was solid and reliable after recovering from an early knock.

Hewitt, very lively at full back scored a great individual try returning a kick half of the pitch. Onuoha was a constant threat both with smart running and also fierce tackling.

There were big performances all round the backs, with some great running lines from Malan, Gustard and Waller and the finishing of Keenor which dovetailed with the imagination and creativity of Francombe and Thomas L, meaning the coaches once again have selection headaches and proving the depth of squad within this age group with the B’s ended up winning 55-15.

U13 A Vs Cranbrook (A)

On a beautiful sunny day in the picturesque town of Cranbrook, Sevenoaks A’s played a fantastic game of rugby against our hosts. The following boys represented the Sevenoaks A’s:

Wilson (J), Dixon, Latrobe, Skein, Baker, Kitchen, Killick, Gilbey, Smith, Maynard, Lindsay, Johnson, Parker, Lay, Gollan, Brooke

Sevenoaks A’s, playing uphill with the sun behind them scored a succession of early tries stamping their authority on the game. With our boys firmly camped in the Cranbrook half, the hosts were struggling to get into the game. Smith, Kitchen, Baker and Dixon, totally dominating in the pack, piling on relentless pressure on the opposing pack. With the forwards dominating, the backs complimented by spinning the ball out wide and showing a level of skill and fluidity that was a joy to watch. Maynard, Johnson and Brooke running the back line and powering through the hosts with quick runs by Parker and Gollan showing our class.

The hosts did come back with a couple of good tries but our boys did not lose their heads and they simply upped their game dominating with a flourish of tries towards the end with quick clean ball out from the scrums by Lindsay.

A great morning of rugby where our boys won 70-20 against well drilled opposition in glorious sunshine.

U13 A Vs Dorking (A)

On a cold, blustery and rainy day, Sevenoaks A came up against the 2017-18 Surrey Champions, Dorking.  The following boys represented the A Team:

Dixon, Skein, Baker, Kitchen, Killick, Gilbey, Smith, Latrobe, Pearl, Maynard, Lindsay, Johnson, Ebsworth, Parker, Lay, Brooke

The first competitive game of the season at Dorking saw the A team absorb a lot of pressure early on from a very well drilled Dorking side. Dorking looked good from the outset and after a couple of slipped tackles, they nearly scored but for a last gasp ankle tap from Max Lindsay which brought the winger down inches from the try line.  Sevenoaks slowly but surely got back in the game and after some good play, the ball went wide to Sam Lay who crossed the line for a try in the right hand corner with a number of opposition players trying to force him out.  Inspired by the try, Sevenoaks soon scored an excellent team try in the left hand corner through Louis Parker after slick handling by the backs. The second half began as the first had ended and with the slope of the pitch on their side. Sevenoaks piled on the pressure scoring again. Sevenoaks led 2-0 and with the forwards taking control of the scrums, Ben Pearl started to control the game from scrum half.  Although Dorking managed to score a try, Pearl’s clever breaks from the scrums and rucks led to two tries for him, which brought the final score to 4-1 in Sevenoaks’ favour.  Although the team hasn’t played together for 5 months, it was an encouraging start to the season especially considering the playing conditions and strength of the opposition. A great start from the Kent champions to convincingly beat their Surrey equivalents.

U13 B Vs Dorking (A)

On a cold, blustery and wet day, Sevenoaks B played against Dorking B.  The B team was represented by:

Daly, Gallagher, Fordyce-Gray, Clarke, Hedger, Hansen, Latrobe, Thomas F, Blackmore, Avery, Thomas L, Lenaghan, Hewitt, Head, Francombe, Shoobridge, Keenor, Holden

The game kicked off at a frantic pace with both teams making turns to attack, and it was Sevenoaks who scored first with a brilliant try by Finn Thomas.  In similar fashion to the A team, the B team’s second try was a beauty with Sam Keenor putting the ball down in the left hand corner after slick passing by the entire back-line.  Sevenoaks led 2-0 at half-time and with the forwards taking control of the scrums, they even got penalised for pushing the Dorking scrum back for more than 1.5 meters.  Although Dorking then managed to score a try, good defence by Liam Thomas and a few good runs from Sam Keenor led to the third try, with Max Avery running almost three quarters of the pitch to score a fourth.  With Dorking attacking wave after wave, their monster prop finally managed to score a consolation try, although he dropped the ball as he was crossing the line.  Final score was 4-2 in Sevenoaks’ favour and considering this was a mixed B team who has never played together, it was a great start to the season. 

U13 Vs Parkhouse (A)

On this miserable, grey and rainy Sunday morning the Sevenoaks U13’s travelled to Parkhouse RFC in Bromley Kent.

The following boys represented Sevenoaks:

Satrettin, Hewitt, Burgess, Waller, Holland, Van Niekerk, Stevens,

Chaboissier, Stratton, Rumsey, Davis-O’Malley

Our hosts Parkhouse RFC are a smaller club who have great coaches and were very welcoming and hospitable to us.

The match was played in extremely wet conditions and our boys went down to an early try from kick-off to an excellent individual player. Sevenoaks returned the favour in the very next play. Whilst the rain kept pouring down on the pitch our team dug deep and played as a team with relentless efficiency. Wave after wave of attacking play saw our team come through as comfortable winners bringing sunshine to all the travelling supporters. There were ten different try scorers but 11 winners on the pitch as Sevenoaks beat Parkhouse convincingly.

Our boys played fair, had an excellent attitude on and off the pitch and more importantly worked as a team.

Well done boys.

U13's coached by Joe Schmidt and Hika Reid

The Daly Boys thanking Joe Schmidt - Head Coach of Ireland

On this beautiful summers morning we had the pleasure of two distinguished rugby professionals and legends train our U13’s squad.

Joe Schmidt a New Zealand-born rugby union coach, who is currently the head coach of Ireland, with whom he has won three Six Nations Championships in five years. We also had Hika Reid a former hooker for the New Zealand national side, the All Blacks, between 1980 and 1986.

Our U13’s were trained by both coaches in a morning where both Joe and Hika’s experience were invaluable to our boys. Joe put our boys through some fast paced small sided games, to help build stamina, agility and quick thinking. Hika trained the forwards in scrummaging, rucking and mauling.

This was a fantastic morning of rugby training, and something our boys will never forget.

Hika and Kam

Welcome Back Everyone!

Sunday September 2nd saw our U13s return to training on a glorious Autumn day.

The emphasis this year will be on fitness, team positions and most importantly fun!

Welcome back everyone!