The story is in the scoreline – today’s game was a rout Abingdon started off at a gallop, with Max and then James running the ball in from distance for a quick 10-0 lead. James bagged his second after Callum won the ball from an opposition throw, then Sasha scored under the posts after catching the ball from a 22-drop out from Bicester. Straight from the kick-off James then got his hat-trick before the end of the first period. 29 – 0 and still two-thirds of the game to go.

The second period started much as the first had ended. From a scrum on the Abingdon 10-metre line, James picked up from the no.8 position and ran through poor tackling to score, and Callum ran to the blind side of a ruck 30 yards and in for a try. Max converted for 41-0. Adam then scored after a mazy run from midfield, and Sasha, catching the ball from the kick-off ran through to score. Max converted again for 55-0. Bicester finally got on the score sheet with a well worked try. After a penalty, the fly-half made a neat cross field kick that was well fielded by the Bicester wing. Though tackled, he managed to recycle the ball and a team-mate managed to cross for a try. However, the Bicester fight-back was short lived, and Callum crossed from short range twice in a minute for 65-5 at the end of the period.

 Straight from the kick that started the third period, Sacha again got to the ball first and ran the ball in for a try. Whilst they must have been hugely dispirited by now, Bicester managed a second try when one of their centres ran through three tackles on the right to score an excellent try, which was converted for 72-12. Thomas made it 77-12 after a rampaging run from George, and Max made it 84-12 when he ran back a clearance kick from inside his own half under the posts. Joel got the cheer of the day with his first competitive try after a good backs move to make it 89-12. Bicester scored the final points running in a consolation try after the ball had been lost in midfield. Final score 89-19.

It may sound churlish to be critical of such an apparently one- sided game, and the fact that Abingdon scored many excellent tries is fantastic. But to be fair to Bicester, they competed very well in the set pieces and at the breakdown - it was their open-field tackling that let them down and was the difference between the teams. The majority of the Abingdon points came from strong solo runs from distance, and against stronger sides that tackle better they will need better teamwork to win the game.

 Nevertheless, another fine win, well done all!

At Junior level, the annual county tournament is a 10-a-side competition, and this year we were fortunate to have enough players to field a team in both the A and B competitions. Splitting up the teams is always a problem for the coaches, and this year they decided to field strong runners in the A-team and the front row players in the B-team. This worked spectacularly well, with the A-team making the cup semi-final before losing to Banbury in the semi-final, despite losing Alex to knee ligament damage. The B-team got to the plate final, finally losing to Witney, despite a wonderful team effort.

Results - A competition

Abingdon 34 – 0 Oxford Harlequins (Harry 2, Alex 2, Sasha, Will)

Abingdon 27 – 0 Witney (Alex 3, Will, Penalty try)

Abingdon 5 – 25 Wallingford (Sasha)

Abingdon 27 – 0 Henley (Adam GY, Will, Chris, Max)

Abingdon 5 – 21 Banbury (Sasha)

 Results - B Competition

Abingdon 15 – 5 Oxford Harlequins (Joe 2, Luca)

Abingdon 5 – 28 Chinnor

Abingdon 0 – 34 Wallingford

Abingdon 19 – 5 Banbury (Ollie, Luca, Joe)

Abingdon 7 – 21 Witney (Luca)

 Apologies for not having the try scorer vs Chinnor)

 So a fantastic set of results, especially given the small size of the squads. Everyone can be very proud of their efforts on a long day in the sun at Banbury.

Wallingford has long been the Abingdon’s bogey team – at least at U13 level; the 58-0 defeat in the first round of the Cup this year still hurts. And after two lacklustre performances in recent weeks, today’s game was viewed with some trepidation by some of the Abingdon boys, especially those who only flew back from school ski trips last night. But with a cup semi-final next week, Wallingford chose to rest their county players and replace them with squad members. Pragmatic perhaps, but a mis-calculation that only served to fire Abingdon up for the game.

Abingdon kicked off the first of three periods, and immediately had Wallingford on the back foot. From a knock on in the Wallingford 22, good hands from the back of the scrum put Alex Royle over for an early try wide on the left. Shortly afterwards, some strong running from the forwards released the backs, the ball moving swiftly through the backs to Adam Grimsdale-Yates on the left wing. Adam couldn’t quite make the line, but Alex looped around to score in the corner. 10–0 up so early in the game, Abingdon were in complete control, and this was confirmed when Alex intercepted a looping Wallingford pass on the half way line and trotted under the posts, then converted for 17–0. What ball Wallingford were winning was being turned over to Abingdon through some strong tacking, and aggression. After Sasha Swannell won the ball in the Wallingford half, the ball moved quickly out to Adam Simcox at outside centre, who ran to the right then cut in left to wrong-foot the defence and score. The Abingdon boys had scented blood now and both forwards and backs were harrying the Wallingford boys at every turn, and when Adam won the ball, Will Pickford chose a good running line and went over on the right. Alex converted to give Abingdon a 27-0 lead at the end of the first period - and not a Wallingford attack to speak of.

Abingdon started the second period very sloppily. From the kick off, they knocked the ball on 4 successive times giving Wallingford an attacking platform they scarcely deserved. But Abingdon’s scrum was strong today, and when the ball came out on the Abingdon side James Ashton picked up and ran 90 yards to score under the Wallingford posts. A good conversion pushed the score to 34-0. Things got even worse for Wallingford when a poor clearing kick was collected by Alex, who again ran in from half way for 39-0, and soon after that Will, again running an excellent line, cut through the Wallingford defence for another try close to the posts, Alex converted for 46-0. The harrying of the first period was continuing in the second and great work by Sasha and Harry Gibson won ball which again flashed through the hands to Alex to score and then convert, 51-0. Rounding off the scoring in the period, Sasha put Alex clear on the right, he cut inside and passed to Will for him to go in under the posts. The conversion made it 58-0 at the end of the second.

In the final period Wallingford did manage to get hold of the ball at times, but not for long. By now Abingdon’s forwards were in complete control, and as Wallingford tired, the backs threatened to score every time they got the ball. James again scored under the posts  after collecting a Wallingford fumble, and Alex scored again after a good run from Aaron, and from a penalty in the Wallingford 22, Sasha put Chris over for a try to make it 75-0. By now the lads were looking for an unprecedented century of points, and two tries came quickly from Sasha running through the Wallingford defenders to make it 87-0 with the conversion. Alex scored again to make it 92-0, then Max and Sasha put James in under the posts; Alex’s conversion made it 99-0. With one minute to go and one point to get, came the move of the match, the ball went through the hands of most of the forwards before flowing out along the line of backs, but Max Sutner couldn’t quite hold the final pass. From the ensuing scrum Wallingford kicked the ball out to end the game at 99-0.

What can one say after a match like that? Yes, Wallingford were not full strength, but beating any Wallingford team will give the Abingdon lads a big psychological boost. Abingdon played a great game. The forwards were dominant and the backs threatening, and as the game wore on they were learning that moving the ball quickly through hands – playing as a team not a collection of individuals – makes for a much better result. It wasn’t a perfect game- still some silly mistakes to work on, but so much better than the recent matches - well done to all the boys. Finally, well done to Alex, who played a dominant game today, which I think was appreciated by team-mates and parents alike.  Well done to Wallingford, who kept playing to the final whistle, but I doubt they will field their reserves again!

Beware what you wish for! After a one-sided demolition of Thatcham, the team were crying out for a competitive match, and boy did they get one today. This was their first game since before Christmas, and the Abingdon boys seemed to still have a hangover from the holidays. From the touchline, the warm-up seemed quite lethargic, which was at odds with the intense training session last Tuesday. Perhaps as the boys head into their teenage years, getting up on a Sunday is becoming a bit more difficult?

Conversely, a fired-up Chipping Norton team took the field with a great sense of purpose. After mis-fielding a good kick-off from Abingdon, they turned over possession from the scrum and charged into Abingdon territory, where they stayed for most of the half. Possession was fairly even, there being a number of turnovers each way, but whilst Chippy were sharp and disciplined, Abingdon play was sloppy; Abingdon had the upper hand at throw-ins and scrums, and therefore won a lot of ball, but they failed to use it.  Runs made by the forwards petered out through a lack of aggression at the breakdown. Time and again the backs ran the ball sideways not forward and ended up losing the ball through a lack of support. As the half wore on, Chippy pushed Abingdon back, and only some good try line scrambling by the forwards kept them out.  Good open-field tackles were made by Max Sutner and Alex Royle, but midfield tackling was unusually poor today – only a forward pass preventing an early score for Chippy. Soon after, from a 5-metre scrum, Chippy moved the ball quickly left and the fullback ran in to score near the touchline. The conversion was missed, but Chippy ended the half easily on top, and perhaps were worth more than the 0-5 score.

After a pick-me-up talk from the coaches at half time, James Ashton came on in the forwards, and made an immediate impression with a powerful early carry, beating several defenders, and taking Abingdon deep into Chipping Norton territory for the first time.  Soon after, some slick hands in midfield put Aaron Swayne away on the right, but he was well tackled. It was amazing how those two positive moves galvanised the Abingdon team. The ball moved faster through the hands, backs were trying planned moves and there was more of a spring in the step of the forwards. Twice more, James ran through defenders, but couldn’t find support and turned over the ball. But finally it came good. Picking the ball up from the back of the scrum, he crashed over on the left for the equalising try. Will missed a difficult conversion, but Abingdon were back in the game, and momentum was with them.  Both teams tired as the half wore on, and for both teams support running became slower and slower. Another break from James took him close to the try line, but with no support the referee penalised him for not releasing the ball. From the penalty, Chippy launched an attack wide on their right, and again it was James with a huge tackle – man and ball into touch – that stopped it. Abingdon took the throw, and moved the ball out to Alex, who finally managed to find space to slice through the middle and score on the left. Will missed the conversion, but it was enough, and Abingdon took the tie 10-5.

Abingdon won a tough game today against a good Chipping Norton team without playing anywhere near their best, and they should be very happy with that. Whilst effort was certainly there, the lads lacked aggression and sharpness, particularly in their tackling and at the breakdown.  They seemed to find the pitch very wide and hard to cover, so perhaps they have lost a little fitness over Christmas. Credit must go James, whose direct confrontational style helped to turn the game around in the second half, and also to all of the players who didn't get on the field today. I know that the coaches appreciated their support. Finally,.it was great to see Lochlan King back after his recent broken collar bone.

It’s really disappointing for the lads to travel to an away fixture only to find that the home team could field only 9 players. And so it was that Abingdon found itself lending the opposition 5 players, playing 13 against 14 and on a shortened pitch to boot.  Disappointing too for the Thatcham lads, who were clearly way out of their depth today, let’s hope they manage to take something positive from the game.

The game was a procession, giving the backs an opportunity to test out some of their moves, and the forwards a chance to run at the opposition with ball in hand.  Scorers were:

Will Pickford (try, 5 conversions)

Calum Belprez (3 tries)

Alex Royle (4 tries)

Chris Turner (3 tries)

Sacha Swannell (1 try)

Joe Elwig (1 try)

Thomas Bassett (1 try)

Players were queuing up to score so possibly one or two chances went awry, but given the circumstances this was a thoroughly clinical performance with no problems in attack or defence. What the team really needs are some challenging matches!

And finally, well done to all the Abingdon players that temporarily transferred to the Thatcham team today and helped make a game of it.

Rain gave way to low sunshine as Abingdon took on Harlequins at Marston Ferry Road. A beautiful day perhaps, but hardly a beautiful pitch, with ruts and molehills causing some concern to the parents before kick off. Fortunately this had no effect on the boys as they racked up another heavy win.

Abingdon chose to play into the wind in the first half, and they quickly dispelled any nerves they may have had after the recent defeat to Wallingford with a clinical backs move, Alex Royle looping around to score a try in the right corner. The wide out conversion attempt from Callum Belprez came mighty close, but still 5-0 and a good start. Even better when almost straight from the kick off Abingdon won a scrum for a knock on, Sasha picked up at the base, and the ball moved out quickly, putting Adam Simcox in at the same corner as Alex moments earlier. Again a difficult conversion was missed, 10-0.

The Abingdon pack was exerting pressure in every phase of play – driving over the ball at rucks and in scrums. At a Harlequins lineout, Callum caught the ball and drove straight through the opposition pack, running from the 10 metre line to score on the left. Will Pickford slotted the conversion to give a 17-0 lead. Straight from the kick off, the ball was well caught, and Will put Alex away, running through some very poor tackling to score from the half-way line. Will’s conversion attempt just missed, but the lead had increased to 22-0. There was no let up from the forwards as they kept Harlequins pinned back in their half. A drive from George Diggle was supported by Sasha, who again got the ball out to Alex, for him to score on the left, giving Abingdon a 27-0 half time lead.

Despite some rolling personnel changes, Abingdon started the second half as they ended the first, putting Harlequins under pressure. Having spurned a couple of overlap chances, Abingdon turned the ball over, and Harlequins managed to kick the ball clear for a little respite. However, they reckoned without Max Sutner. Max has seen very little ball at fullback, and so having collected the kick he launched an arcing run, Serge Blanco - like from right to left, and ploughing through a last ditch tackle, he scored wide on the left. Conversion missed, 32-0.

It was late in the day, but finally Harlequins managed to exert a little pressure. Thomas Bassett was curiously penalised at the scrum, and Harlequins launched a quick blindside move which was held up on the line, for a 5-metre scrum. Eventually the ball was won back by Abingdon at a ruck but kicked out on the full for a Harlequins throw. The throw was caught against the head by Callum, and recycled to Max who ran in for his second try on the right to make it 37-0. By this time, Harlequins were shell shocked, and from the next two kick-offs Will, and then Sasha caught the ball and ran it back from the half way line for tries. Barely a tackle was attempted, and the score raced to 47-0.

In the final few minutes, Harlequins worked to salvage a little bit of pride, and put in a series of powerful scrums, but it was Harry Atcherley-Symes who gave the coup-de-grace, intercepting a pass from the back of the Harlequin scrum and running a try in under the posts. Alex converted to give a final score of 54-0.

This was a very good result for the lads, bouncing back from the Wallingford game of a fortnight ago. The forwards dominated at close quarters, the backs cut through with ease, and frankly they could have scored three or four more tries had final passes been made, or gone to hand. But this is not a result to get carried away with, because with respect to Oxford Harlequins, theirs was not a strong line-up. The fact that many of the backs did not need to make a tackle shows that Abingdon were never threatened. Nevertheless, well played to all!

U13 Cup 1^st Round: Abingdon 0 – 58 Wallingford

A beautiful, bright Remembrance Sunday was ideal for running rugby. Unfortunately most of this came from a powerful Wallingford team that gave the Abingdon boys the sort of beating that Abingdon had recently handed out to other teams.

After an impeccably observed minute's silence, Abingdon made a great kick off, resulting in a line out to Abingdon near the Wallingford 22. Poor handling at the throw presented the ball to Wallingford; they shifted it to their winger who shredded the defence and streaked in for an opening try. This set the pattern for the whole first half. Three further tries gave Wallingford a 24-0 lead at the half. Will Pickford came off at half time, necessitating a re-shuffle in the backs, but the problems kept coming. Six Wallingford tries, all through their backs made the final score 58-0.

This match has given the lads a lot to think about. 90% of the game is mental, and the players seemed to lose their self confidence as early as the first try. Although much of the first half was actually played in the Wallingford half, turnover ball going out to the wing gave Wallingford regular points. The sheer speed of the Wallingford winger clearly made a huge difference to the game with his 5 tries.

Certainly the Wallingford pack was more aggressive and faster to the breakdown, and they played together more effectively than the Abingdon pack which gave them the vast majority of possession. The Abingdon boys were always on the back foot, and when the ball did get out to the backs Wallingford tacklers were always there to close them down quickly. So although there was a lot of hard work from Abingdon, the score against them piled up in a most dispiriting way.

So congratulations to Wallingford on an excellent game of rugby. For the Abingdon lads today was a learning experience. We must now put this result aside and use it to measure the improvement we are going to make over the course of the rest of this season.

Playing during the school holidays is always difficult, and so it was that Abingdon were without three of their squad against a side that on paper offered stern resistance. And with Wooton Bassett moving grounds, it was a nervous time for the coaches before kick off, trying to make sure there were fifteen boys at the right place and the right time!

Never doubt the commitment of the Abingdon lads though, and though notoriously slow starters, Abingdon launched an attack straight from the kick-off, with quick passes putting Alex Royle over for a try on the right within a minute of the start.  From the re-start Abingdon exerted huge pressure on Bassett. The pack carried on where they left off last week, and imposed themselves on their opponents pushing them off in the ruck and turning over ball. From the next ruck, on the right touchline, the backs moved the ball across to the left. Alex and Sasha were held up, but managed to offload the ball to winger Max Elwig who got in at the corner.

Back at the original ruck there was terrible news for Lochlan King, who had fallen awkwardly and broken his collar bone. Bravely, Lochlan managed to walk off, but he will be sorely missed over the next few weeks.

Despite the loss of Lochlan, the Abingdon pack redoubled their efforts, pushing Basset back over their own ball at ruck and scrum. Good drives by Thomas Bassett, Calum Belprez and Sasha Swannell were held up well by the Bassett boys, but when the ball came out to the backs, they seemed to cut through with ease and precision, and good passing put Adam Simcox through to score on the right with Aaron Swayne supporting on the outside. A similar backs move put Adam through shortly after, and he cut in-field and popped the ball up in the tackle for Sasha to score under the posts. Having released the backs several times, Will Pickford backed himself to score the fifth try of the half. His three excellent conversions put the score at 31-0 at half time.

Although Wooton Bassett had one or two attacking moves in the first half, they never really managed to release their backs. So it was a shock in the first minute of the second half when the ball was picked up deep in the Wooton half by one of their wings, who showed tremendous pace to beat most of the Abingdon back division and score a very classy try. The conversion made it 31 – 7. Back came Abingdon with their forward superiority and camped in the Wooton half. In the next five minutes, Abingdon should have scored several tries, but some odd decision making saw the backs give away possession. Sasha then managed to settle the nerves, leading by example, with a run over and through the Bassett team, from his own 22 to the try line. Will kicked another good conversion. Bassett were still working hard, and again with the help of some poor tackling they managed to put one of their forwards over for another converted try.  The poor tackling was not confined to Abingdon though, and Alex answered with two tries, one of which came from a strong run from deep, fending off three attempted tackles to score to the left of the posts. Harry Atcherley-Symes rounded off the scoring with a typically bustling run, in at the corner.

All in all, this was another comprehensive victory for Abingdon. Good sharp play in the backs complemented a committed performance by the forwards. Set pieces were performed well, with scrums and line-outs giving great turn-over ball, so well done to all of the lads. We do have to be aware that if we miss tackles we will suffer, so the coaches will no doubt be plotting to rectify this in the next two weeks.  It’s also fantastic to see the lads trying different moves, but we do have to beware of overconfidence and make sure we secure the game first. Finally, all of our best wishes go to Lochlan for a speedy return.

This was a hard fought encounter between two evenly matched teams. Abingdon were first to score when William Pickford charged down a kick close to the Witney line and was just quick enough to touch down the try before the defence rallied. Witney replied with their own try resulting from determined work by the pack at the breakdown and swift handling by the backs.

Abingdon then took the lead a second time after a quickly taken penalty. Callum Belperez took the ball forward and from the ruck Thomas Bassett continued the forward momentum, setting up a ruck just in front of the Witney line. The ball came back on the Abingdon side and Sasha Swannell was able to score. Again Witney responded quickly and the score was level at half time at 10 all. Neither team was able to convert the tries.

Fortunes fluctuated between the teams in the second half. Abingdon again scored from a penalty, with Harry Atcherley-Symes passing to Will who then kicked over the Witney players. The ball was collected by the Witney fullback who was then tackled by Will who was able to gather the ball and score.  Abingdon then scored a fourth try after a flowing move involving most of the team with Adam Simcox scoring close to the corner. Will kicked the conversion.

Witney responded with a marvellous try scored after an interception in their own 22. One of their players ran most of the length of the pitch and scored between the posts. They slotted the conversion and this set up a pulsating last 5 minutes. Witney pressurised the Abingdon line repeatedly, performing particularly well in the rucks. Abingdon were able to hold out and the final score was 22 to Abingdon 17 to Witney.  It was an excellent game played by two committed teams.

Abingdon’s first game of the season was held at Oxford Rugby Club on their main pitch under floodlights. The game consisted of 4 fifteen minute quarters played on a full sized pitch. The small stand at Oxford was packed with parents who supported both teams loudly and cheerfully.

Abingdon started brightly with a flowing move arising from the forwards winning good ball from the back of scrum. The ball moved to the blind side with Harry Atcherley-Symes passing to Alex Royale who scored in the right hand corner. Will missed the difficult conversion.   Shortly after the ball moved swiftly through the backs and Will Pickford took the ball at pace on the loop and scored close to the posts, with Abingdon support players following him all the way. Will then scored the conversion, putting Abingdon 12 points ahead.

Shortly after the restart the forwards won the ball and worked it back to Harry Atcherley-Symes  who went on a short break to Abingdon’s right. He saw that cover was weak on the far right and put a grubber kick in behind the remaining defence. Alex and Adam Simcox followed up and Alex was able to gather the ball and go over in the corner. It was a wonderful team try that involved great work from the forwards and a marvellous move from the backs. Will was unable to slot a difficult conversion.  At the end of the first quarter Abingdon were ahead 17 points to nil.

The second quarter started well with Abingdon winning a lot of ball and moving it around the forwards and backs with confidence. Oxford though were tackling hard and getting rapidly to the breakdown.  The fourth try began within Abingdon’s own half with a break by the forwards from the back of the ruck to Abingdon’s left. The ball moved through many hands to Alex Royale who was in the outside centre’s position. He evaded a tackle and raced just over half the length of the pitch supported by Joel Moran and was able to score under the posts. Will added a second conversion.

Shortly after Max Suttner, at full back, caught an Oxford kick cleanly and at pace and evaded a number of tackles. Good work by the forwards at the breakdown brought quick possession which was passed rapidly to the back line. Adam Simcox was able to find some space and sprinted to the line ably supported by a winger and another centre. Will was again able to convert the try.

In the third quarter Oxford turned up the pressure and Abingdon found it difficult to break through. Sasha Swannell picked up the ball from the base of the scrum and was able to evade a number of tackles and go over between the posts. Again the try was converted by Will. Shortly after Oxford drove Abingdon back to their own line and after a forward move, passed the ball out the backs who went over between the posts. The try was converted.

In the final quarter, the teams traded possession, both struggling to make a breakthrough. Eventually after the Abingdon forwards won possession and the backs were able to make a break to Abingdon’s left. After good tackling by Oxford, Abingdon recycled the ball passing through the hands of at least 4 forwards before Callum Belprez picked up the ball from the back of the ensuing ruck and made a storming run for the Oxford line. After shrugging off a couple of tackles he was able to score close to Oxford’s corner, again ably supported by a number of backs and forwards. Will was unable to kick a difficult conversion. Oxford finished off with a great try just before the final whistle. The final score of a most entertaining game was 43 points to 12 in favour of Abingdon.  Thanks to all 23 or so boys who came along and played and all the parents who came along to give excellent support.

Abingdon v Henley 5-5
Abingdon v Oxford 12-5
Abingdon v Wallingford 0-10
Abingdon v Chipping Norton 7-5

All in all a blinding day and the boys worked there socks off in the hot sun so well done and a cracking start to the season.