Competition and grading games

1st XV vs Marlborough BC won 19-10

2nd XV vs St. Thomas's College 2nd XV lost 19-46

The team came up against what is going to be a strong opponent this season in the St Thomas's 2nd XV. The team struggled to string phases together that would build pressure. Too often there were handling errors in the face of determined rush defence which wiped out our ability to play the style of game we wanted to play. At the break it was a close game, 7-14, and the team were in it right up to the last quarter where St Thomas' ran in a couple of late tries. Two key moments that swung momentum was an intercept try at the beginning of the game and then again at the beginning of the second period.Though the scoreline does flatter St Thomas', there is little doubt that we were second best today in regards to accuracy and desire to win. With Round One next week there is plenty the team has to build on. There is no doubt that it will be a tough competition this year with a number of strong opponents, but there is also no doubt the team has the potential to win the competition. 

3rd XV vs Christ's College 3rd XV won 81-0

In the last Friday of the holidays the 3rds had a hard fought warm-up game vs college which we lost. In the grading game yesterday at South Hagley the result was entirely different - which indicates how well our boys have responded to the coaching over the last 2 weeks. In the first minute of the game Noah Allison ghosted down the short side for an excellent long range try, and shortly after that Jake Seed found himself in space and used his speed to score under the posts. From then on it was one way traffic. With our forwards dominating the gain line and winning a number of ruck turnovers, and the backs passing quickly and accurately the tries kept coming. When college were in possession they were met with some big tackles. One memorable try came from a defensive scrum on our 5m line. From wing Julius Mumuta hit the ball up hard in close, and the ball was passed quickly to wing Kazuki Yoshida who used his pace and swerve to score a length of the field try. The final score was 81 nil to St Bedes which was a huge turnaround from the warm up game. Harder games await the team but this was a very satisfying result. Tries: Rheubyn Hunter 3, Julius Mumuta 2, Benson Geary 2, Noah Allison, Jake Seed, Kazuki Yoshida, Alex Milnes, Sol Spanton, Hugo Tresfield. Conversions: Tom Robertson 2, Kyle Peterson 1, Caleb Stevens 4. 

4th XV vs St. Thomas's College 4th XV lost 12-50

Although the score line reads as a heavy defeat this was a much improved performance from the Fourths. One of the aims this week was to score a try and we managed to score a couple of really good ones to Caleb Hammond and Andrew Burns. The defence was gritty for most of the game and STC were made to work really hard for their tries. The lineout functioned well and we managed to string together a number of phases due to better commitment at the ruck. The backs moved the ball well and looked to put people into space. Hamish Rooney was a strong presence up front and Jack Hendren and Luke McBrydie were strong in the loose and carried with purpose. Hunter Hughes continued to impress with his physicality and determination. In the backs Taylor Fahey showed some nice touches and Andrew Burns looked dangerous every time he touched the ball. Harry Gorman was all energy on the wing and Finn O’Donnell continued with his fine form from the back. We will now look to build on this performance as we lead into the competition itself.

U75kgs Red vs CBHS U75kgs lost 26-27

The U75kg Red Team lost their second game of the season 27-26 to CBHS in a game they should never really have lost.

The first half was a scrappy affair with numerous mistakes. St Bede’s dominated much of the possession and territory. The team had numerous chances, but sloppy mistakes and poor discipline led to them being squandered. Harvey Scott finally broke through the line and dotted down to take a 5-0 lead. Unfortunately a lapse in concentration in defence shortly after the restart led to CBHS levelling the score with their only real chance of the half.

The second half was similar to the first with many mistakes and both sides exchanged two tries a piece, with Josh Fraher scoring a double and Max Hammett adding the extras. With St Bede’s leading 19-15 the team had good field position and were camped on the CBHS 5 metre line. Unfortunately some poor decision making and discipline leads to Boys’ High working their way up the pitch to score and take a 20-19 lead. The team looked too hit back but some poor defence lead to a Boys’ High player running in a try virtually unopposed from 40 meters. With the team 19-27 down they upped their intensity finally showing some intent and scored a well worked try by Dan Bailey which was converted. Unfortunately we had left it too late and this was the final act of the game.

The side will be better for this narrow loss and hopefully it removes any sense of complacency before future games. There was some really good rugby played by the team but ill discipline and errors at crucial moments meant they lost a game they should have won comfortably.

U75kgs Black: the bye

U15 Black vs Shirley BHS U15 "A"  lost 0-97

The boys showed courage today! Taking on a well-drilled Shirley Boys' A team with only 17 players. There were definite improvements on last week with a lot more first-up tackles made and it was pleasing to see a positive attitude right to the end.

Stand out defensive games from Danny Boyce, Noah Whitfield, Mac Templeton and Flynn Lawton.

Thanks to Jake O’Sullivan for playing for us today.

U15 Red vs St. Andrew's College U15 won 35-7

U15 White vs Christchurch BHS U15 "Black" drew 24-24

A tough battle today against a good CBHS team that end in draw. We had control of the game for long periods and only let CBHS off the hook through a few small mistakes at critical times. As coaches we are not worried about the mistakes because the players were willing to give it a go and put their hand up to help the team and take some ownership of their position. Not a day to be a back in the trying conditions but they held their line and worked hard all day on defence. It was a day for the forwards to roll their sleeves up and do the hard work and they did! with Kaleb Wieblitz putting in a massive shift playing the whole game and getting player of the day. Not bad for a front-row forward.

U15 Blue vs Christ's College U15 65s Won by default

U14 Davidson vs CBHS U14 "Blue" won 29-5

Davidson took on Christchurch boys high under 14 blue and come out on top 29-5 in the half. We then proceeded to play Linwood in the next half going down 15-5. The boys improved a lot over the week and combinations are really starting to gel amongst the team. Our defence improved significantly and the boys rolled up the sleeves when needed. There is a lot of potential for this team and we are looking forward to the season ahead.

U14 Dunne vs St. Thomas's College U14 "Red" lost 19-37

Second match of the season for U14 Dunne was played in damp conditions at Nunweek park against St Thomas U14 red. Dunne had warmed up well by coaches Kahu and Blake and received the kick off and built into good structure ending in a try scored by Will O"Donnell in the sixth minute. Dunne then built pressure through good team work to score again through Ethan O'Donovan in the eighth minute converted by Kaden Roberts. St Thomas then found their big forward runners and containing them became a feature. Dunne's half back Joel Clarke was having a great game organising the defence and attack structure until just before half time where during a tough tackle he sustained a broken wrist. The first half finished 10 -12 to Dunne.Second half opened with a quick try to St Thomas. Dunne replied when Lui Vaipulu picked up the ball in broken play and showed some wheels to score and converted.The remainder of the second half was a good physical game with St Thomas's finding their big lads to go forward. Final score 37 - 19 to St Thomas. Well done to U14 Dunne Bedean of the week Kaden Roberts.

U14 Freeman vs Christ's College U14 "B" won 17-7

U55kgs vs StAC U55kgs lost 7-60

Tough loss for the lads today, going down 10 tries to one, while the score may look one-sided, our Bede's men do not give up. St Andrew's deserved their win, they had very good ball carriers, and their backs made valuable use of the off load to score some good tries as the game wore on. Bede's performed well at the breakdown and pressured the opposition into penalty after penalty after penalty, but were unable to make the most of it through our own unforced errors. The referee made mention of halfback Gus Ferguson courageous determination to take ball into contact when needed. Line outs were also looked solid. Chin up lads - Plenty to work on and with two trainings next week, we can work on the small aspects that can make the difference in the game.
Player of the day - No 8 Max Boyle - carried hard all day and scored the only try and converted ! Tackler of the day - Lock Hugo Fleck - chopped down a lot of direct runners today, including their "massive" 8