Saturday, 7 October was a big lesson for the 1st XV in professionalism, athleticism and mental approach to rugby in their match against Felsted School. After a fantastic start to the game, turning over Felsted ball and working through great phase play, Eltham lost possession with the try line begging. Felsted worked their way down the pitch to score. It remained 7-0 for the majority of the first half with fantastic enthusiasm from the Eltham defence. Three tries in quick succession from Felsted, and one immediately after half time meant Eltham lost 72-0. This was one of Eltham’s biggest ever defeats. The team will be regrouping this week to see what could be improved on going forward.
The 2nd XV travelled to Felsted School expecting a tough match and they weren’t disappointed. Eltham started well with the pack winning plenty of ball and Davis Francis and Ollie Berg carrying the ball aggressively and making lots of territory. Individual breaks by Toby Baldwin and James Ocana created chances to score but Eltham failed to capitalise on these opportunities. They eventually took the lead with a try by Louis Sayer who was playing out of position on the wing. The score of only 5 – 0 at half time encouraged the opposition who started, gained some promising field positions but Eltham defended strongly to keep them out. Eltham gradually wore down the opposition with Finn Formica carrying the attack to Felsted and Connor Malone winning several penalties or steals at the breakdown. Two quick tries by Finn Formica and George Salter, the latter also playing out of position on the wing, killed the game and Eltham were worthy winners by 15-0.
The Under 16A team came off second best against a well drilled Felsted team who made good use of a wide pitch and strong wind. However, the final score (47-5) certainly does not represent the game as a contest. At times Eltham were more than a match for the home side, and actually dominated periods of the game. Only the odd mistake, and fierce defence, stopped Eltham from scoring some deserved tries. Unfortunately, Felsted were more ruthless and made the most of the opportunities that came their way. Commitment, teamwork and enthusiasm could not be faulted with James Biss, Frankie Nella, Conrad Scrivener, Ashley Sewell and George Ennis to the fore. The boys can now rest up and prepare for the game against Colfe’s School after half term.
The Under 15A team played a highly competitive encounter against Felsted on Saturday. The defence of both sides dominated the game and it was only Felsted’s powerful forwards who swung the game their way. Felsted took the chances they created to score three tries whilst Eltham were unable to convert their chances into points. Namir Khalil, Anjola Ogundeji and Harvey Jagger were our stand-out players on the day. Final score 0 – 19.
The Under 15B team battled to a hard fought 22-5 victory over a strong Felsted side. Tries from Damir Kayani, Uzo Ibenye, Marcus Amon and Francesco Roccato sealed an excellent performance where the forwards dominated and the backs were afforded the time and space to run at the defence.
The Under 14A team played superbly in a touch encounter with Felsted. The boys were on point from the off and scored within 2 minutes. The side tucked and mauled brilliantly all day and got a worthy win of 45-0 and try’s shared around by all.
The Under 14B team tackled and rucked well against some big runners amongst the opposition, hard running from Benjy Davis, James Baillie and Ben Lewis gave us a convincing win 36-5.
The U13A team had a tight first half against City of London Freemen’s School, with a score of 15-10 at half time. Then they ran away with the game in the second half with some excellent defence turning into a number of tries being scored. Tobi Clemont and Uriel Jinadu deserve a mention for their exhilarating running and scoring some fantastic tries. Final score 35-10.
The Under 13B team played a depleted City of London Freeman’s School who had three of ‘our own’ play for them so that the numbers were even and a competitive match could begin. Even with parity of numbers those on the ever-changing Eltham team played with great energy, fluency and commitment racking up ten tries to nil. Amongst the scorers was a rejuvenated rampaging Isaiah Ozigbo-Esere, an elusive Ethan Fiore and spritely Dimitri Blonz before he left the field with a damaged foot. Ruben Chandler scored a brace of tries and was a constant threat at inside centre while debutant Daniel Ashley-Cheek scored a try after a fine run. Thomas Hoque had a storming game at prop while James Millar and Luca Gennari were effective in the loose. A fabulous game but there will be tougher matches ahead.
The Under 12A team lost 25-20 away to CLFS on Saturday morning in a very close game with one try between the two teams.
The Under 12B team travelled to City of London Freemen’s School on Saturday morning and following a really encouraging training session in Games on Friday they put in a fantastic performance to secure a 40-5 win. The team started quickly and CLFS were immediately under pressure as Eltham were aggressive at the breakdown and produced some superb handling. Thomas Sabattier opened the scoring following a great run and Oliver Harris quickly added a second. Continued pressure led to two more tries for Thomas as he completed his hat-trick before half-time. Ethan Chaplin also crashed over before the break as Eltham led 25-0. A slow start to the second half allowed CLFS back into the game and they pulled a try back as Eltham rotated the squad and players tried new positions. However, one of Eltham’s most impressive performers, Will Stone, was able to drive through to score our sixth try and Dylan Hexter and Dylan Dreyer completed the scoring late on to secure the win.
