13a vs Paarl Boys
On Saturday we played an exceptionally strong Paarl Boys side. The Sacs U13A rugby team had not beaten them since 1999 and playing with no boots was not going to make it any easier. It was a long drive to Paarl and we arrived early to prepare for this difficult match. We received an inspiring speech from our coaches beforehand and warmed-up thoroughly. We won the toss and kicked off with the sun behind us. We started on the back foot, getting the feeling of playing barefoot. We did extremely well in our lineout malls by pushing them back numerous meters. The ground was slippery and unfortunately, being unaccustomed to playing without boots, this was taking its toll. They came back strong and they were able to score the first try of the match. It was not converted which made the score 5-0. We had some great play by Thomas Doyle and Thomas Theron but we were unable to break through their defence. The muddy, slippery field resulted in handling errors and lots of scrums. We were not able to put the ball over the line in the first half, so it ended at 5-0. We got a talk from our coaches, which raised our spirits and made us determined to try even harder.
They kicked off putting us into our half but with great kicking we got a lineout on their 5 meter line. This move went well, resulting in our first try by myself. The score was 5-5. This picked our hopes up but with handling errors and miss-tackles, they were able to score, making the score 10-5. With not much time remaining, we fought back but they came back even harder and with phenomenal speed by their wing, they managed to score again. The score was now 17-5. We now played our hearts out, but it was too late, the final whistle blew at 17-5.
Unlucky to the boys.
Lets pick ourselves up by beating Wynberg next week. “We can”,will be our motto! Come on boys, we are a phenomenal team and we will end this season on a good note!
