Yesterday, Burnham-on-Crouch Rugby Club hosted Woodford on behalf of the newly established Under 14s ‘Woodburns’ team which, for the first time, combined players from South Woodham Ferrers, Burnham and Witham Rugby Clubs.

Only one training session under their belts, a quick warm-up session and a few advisory words from the ref for the players and parents before kick-off. Woodford RFC took 7 minutes to score their first try which was quickly followed by two more as Woodburns attempted to settle into their boots. Joe (Burnham) quickly hit back making the score 5-15. Josh (Woodham) added another running the length of the pitch to make it 10-15. Woodford scored another 2 tries, capitalising on Woodburns’ handling errors before Joe (Burnham) weaved his round to score his second making the half time score 15-25.
After half-time, Woodford continued to punish Woodburns’ handling errors by scoring 2 further tries making the score 15-35. After 10 more minutes of even play, Aidan (Burnham) made his way over the try line to score. Josh (Woodham) added another after another speedy run of the pitch, quickly followed by another making the score 30-35 with 2 minutes to go. Unfortunately, there was just not enough time to score again before the final whistle.
For their first game together, the whole team played incredibly well: communicating, passing, rucking and creating a strong and successful scrum. If this is a sign of things to come, they will be a force to be reckoned with. The spirit of rugby was well and truly alive today. Both teams showed the ethos of rugby the whole way through: sportsmanship, respect, teamwork, discipline and enjoyment were there for all to see.

Notable mentions on the field today for:
James (Woodham) for his crunching tackles
Dan (Woodham) for his scrum half skills
Josh (Woodham) for his speed
Cameron, Joe, Daniel and Ryan (Witham) for getting involved in the game
Joe (Burnham) for his high work rate
Player of the match was Cookie for his work in the successful scrum.