Weybridge vandals visit Grasshoppers U10s

An initially cold but bright day saw the visit of Weybridge Vandals. They brought a good sized squad of about 20 players and we did a shared warm up and some ruck and maul exercises to get the blood flowing.

Grasshoppers 25 Weybridge Vandals 20
With a certainly predictability now we started the game slowly and Vandals had scored 2 tries in the first two minutes. The visitors were strong and well disciplined and I thought rucked better than us, especially in the first half. As the game progressed we got some intensity into our game and were defending much better, however we went into the turn around 4 tries down.

The second half started better. An early try by Oscar seemed to spark some self belief and the team were back in the groove. A further try by Oscar, one by Tom and a long run to the line by Emelia had squared the game as the clock counted down. A final push and literally with the last touch of the game Oscar scored in the corner to record a well fought victory

Grasshoppers 0 Weybridge Vandals 30
We played a second game so both squads could play everyone. Although we competed fairly well it was not an ideally balanced team and Bertie played for us for the first time. On this occasion the visitors better organisaion eventually told as they ran in 6 tries though the score line did not fully describe the competitive nature of the game with some strong tackling from both sides.

Grasshoppers v London Scottish U10s report

On 31st November we arrived at London Scottish. A very friendly club and both teams warmed up together. As we had about 15 players matched by London Scottish we formed 3 teams. One Grasshoppers, one London Scottish and a mixed team.

1 Grasshoppers 15 London Scottish 10
A very tightly contested game. London Scottish were a strong team and were out rucking us at the breakdown, though our forwards competed well on their feet. Although London Scottish scored first we eventually ran out winners with tries from Oscar (2) and Tom all by breaking their defensive line and running in from distance.

2. Grasshoppers 25 Mixed team 0
The mixed team played well coming close to scoring on occasion but their lack of familiarity with each other eventually left holes in their defence and Grasshoppers ran in 5 tries. Scores by Ollie, Ben, Tom (2) and Oscar.

3. Mixed Team 10 London Scottish 20
A great game to watch with both sides playing well, the mixed team were playing better as a team and it was keenly contested but London Scottish were just too stong scoring four times to 2.

4. Grasshopper 20 London Scottish 10
After a short rest we agreed to a final game with Grasshoppers and London Scottish both using their squads extensively. Both teams were now in game mode so it was a fast and fiercely contested games. Some excellent tackling and good forward play kept it close but Grasshoppers backs proved too strong with tries from Oscar, Tom and 2 late treies from George G sealed victory.

Match report 16th November 2008

Grasshoppers V Cheshunt

Congratulations to everyone who played at Cheshunt on Sunday.

It was a long drive in dismal weather so it was no surprise to find only 11 players who had made the trip. In contrast Cheshunt had two full squads, they looked larger and more athletic, we were all a little nervous about how the morning would go.

After a short warm -up with the two squad’s separated we started the game.

Game one
Cheshunt 15 Grasshoppers 25

We started the game still sleepy and stiff from the journey. Almost straight from the start Cheshunt ran powerfully forward, we missed tackles in midfield and conceded a try. After the re-start there was a passage of scrappy play, we fumbled and gave away possession, our defence was out of position and Cheshunt ran in for a second try. The third try in the first half came soon after and was given away by weak tackling and slow support. Things were looking bad, 3 nil down after only 5 minutes was this going to be a bad day. For the rest of the first half our players started to wake up, started to tackle, cut out the mistakes and prevented any further scores.

What difference in the second half! Our forwards worked together as a pack and our backs looked well organised and kept their shape throughout. Soon after the re-start a strong maul by our forwards in our half sucked in the defence, quick passes by Ben and Oscar released Tom who ran two thirds of the pitch to score. Our second try was won by aggressive tackling in the Cheshunt half, dislodging the ball for our forwards to win in a well organised ruck, we were too powerful for Cheshunt and made the space for Oscar to run the ball in from short range. We continued to dominate for the rest of the half. Every time Cheshunt attacked our defence was rock solid and the forwards, who were smaller than the opposition, won every ruck and maul, allowing Tom to run in two more tries and Oscar ran in a fifth.

Game Two
Cheshunt 5 Grasshoppers 10

Our team was full of confidence after that so when Cheshunt asked for a second game for their other players our team couldn’t wait to get out onto the pitch. Our players were beginning to tire though, so they could not remain so dominant for this second match. Cheshunt started strongly making repeated runs in the midfield; our defence was strong again and drove back many attacks by holding a straight line. Eventually, after several good phases the home team moved the ball wider and scored. This woke us up and we started to play with more energy again. Oscar took advantage of our strong mauling up front to find space and score. Our final score came was made by Amelia, ripping the ball from an attacker close to our line, running half the length of the pitching and setting George free with a well timed pass to score the winner.

Well played everyone. Everyone played well individually, but most importantly we played as a team. We were not faster or stronger than Cheshunt. We were more organised and supported each other much better, our good technique in tackling and passing was commented on by the Cheshunt parents and our forwards worked hard together and proved that smaller forwards with good technique can dominate heavier opposition.

Grasshoppers B Festival 2nd November 2008

Team 1

Grasshoppers 15 Finchley 10
Our first game started well with an energetic start and good handling skills allowing Oscar and Tom to score a try each in the first half. In the second half Finchley came out strongly and used their bigger, stronger forwards to drive over for two tries but nerves were settled with a third and winning try from Tom with only a minute to go.

Hackney Bulls 15 Grasshoppers 0
A closer game than the score suggests but the opposition forwards dominated giving us little quality ball for our backs. Some robust defence kept Hackney Bulls out for a lot of the game and a couple of decisions going against us prevented us scoring.

Bank of England 10 Grasshoppers 0
A strong BoE team eventually went on to win the tournament. We competed well nearly scoring on a couple of occasions but again strong forwards reduced our ball possession and they managed two scores without answer

Grasshoppers 15 Ham & Fulham 10
Our fourth game and both teams were tiring. This was a very evenly balanced game with Gs scoring first through Oscar but H&M answering quickly. A second try, again by Oscar late in the first half gave us a small advantage. The second half was very competitive with both sets of forwards playing well. H&M equalised with a breakaway but another try from Tom gave us a victory

We eventually finished third in our group so missed out on any of the trophies

Team 2

Finchley 10 Grasshoppers 5
A close well contested game, we had Oliver and Jake as guest players but the lack of familiarity with each other probably worked against us. Again well drilled forwards in the opposition made live difficult but we kept going and went down to a narrow loss two tries to one. Gs scorer was Jake.

Grasshoppers 15 Twickenham 0
Twickenham are always tough opposition and this was very evenly balanced with the first half finishing scoreless. I was convinced that a single score would win it but three tries in the second half, two by Noah on the left wing and one by Jake on the right wing brought us in good winners. The width and ball handling of the team was exemplary with everyone playing as a team.

Teddington 25 Grasshoppers 5
A well drilled Teddington side out ran us in this game and although we had some good attacking moments and scored a good try through Oliver we eventually went down by 5 tries to one.

Rosslyn Park 30 Grasshoppers 0
We were tired at this stage and a strong team that went on to compete in the final were two tries up in the first two minutes . The team kept going and did not concede at 30 points but eventually ended up shipping 8 tries.

U10 s Guilfordians Festival

Grasshoppers vs Battersea 0 -4
Our first competitive game of the season and we came up against a well drilled and strong Battersea team. After only 4 weeks of training they showed they had quickly learnt how to contest the srum pushing us back and being quicker to the ball when loose. We competed well but went down 4 tries to nil.

Grasshoppers vs Weybridge Vandals 2-6
An improved performance saw better handling and passing from Grasshoppers. Two well taken tries from Tom Formby was not enough as Vandals caught us with width to score 6 tries.

Grasshoppers vs Brighton 3 – 2
A very evenly balanced game with chances on both sides. Despite being down 2 tries to one with only 3 minutes of the second half left we stormed back to score 2 late tries and win. Tries by Harry Tolliday and 2 by Oscare Goodenough brought a smile to all our faces with our first competitive win of the season.

Grasshoppers vs Alleyne (0 – 4)
Our last game and everyone played their part. We competed well enough in the centre of the park but again got caught out out as gaps opened up wide and they were well exploited and we went down to 4 tries.