SWF                             19
Woodford                   15

The lads played against a strong Woodford side and prevailed despite a strong fight back from Woodford in the second half.

The lads started strongly putting Woodford under pressure straightaway with strong backs play which saw chances for Murphy and Gilbert going begging before the pressure told and with fullback Robinson coming into the line on a backs move off a strong scrum he had Rawinsky outside but didnt need him as he straightened and went over for the first try of the game which was converted by Kilbey to leave us 7-0 up after about 20 mins.The commitment shown by both sides to ruck and tackle meant the scoreline did not change before half time and the main talking point was whether Gilbert would re-appear for the second half having taken a nasty bang on the face just before half time. He did not come back on and Rawinsky moved to centre and Newman and Clarke came on for the second half.

Woodford scored 3 points from a penalty on the Woodham 22 but the lads were unfazed and after a good feed from a ruck by Kilbey to Big Will on the blind side the ball went to TJ who fed it to the very impressive Norkett who went over for a converted try to leave us up 14-3. Woodford like the good side they are then had us under the coah for about 15 minutes and despite fantastic defensive play they went over for a try to leave the score at 14-8 with about 15 minutes to go.

Woodham then had their own spell of pressure in the Woodford 22 and duly restored their supremacy when Kilbey latched onto a blocked kick and scored a well deserved try. Woodford then came back to score a try with the last play of the match to leave the final scoreline at 19-15.

A great game of rugby played in a great spirit and in front of a good crowd, thanks to our ref Tim Cramphorn for making it all possible.

NEXT SUNDAY AT 12.30 WE TAKE ON BEACONSFIELD IN THE NATIONAL COLTS CUP AT SALTCOATS – ALL SUPPORT WELCOME.

Squad – Robbo, James, Ben, Matt, Ross, Lewis, Curtis, Jordan, Nick, Jack, Adam, Sammy, Stevie, Brad, Tom, Mike, Jack N, TJ, Big Will (Capt), 

RUGBY COLTS OPEN THEIR SEASON AT LAST

Braintree      10

SWF              22

At last the lads got onto the rugby field after 3 cancellations in a row and the wait was worth it as they played at Braintree, a friendly game which they had control of from start to finish.

With Big will taking on the captains role this season, and Patch, Zane and Lewis King chasing other dreams the boys welcomed back Ben Newman and welcomed new squad member Matt Bunn.

We started strongly and in a rare moment we were given a penalty which Nick knocked over, but Braintree came back a few minutes later to level matters with their own penalty. We were not to be level for long as the ball came off the back of a scrum and as the ball went through the hands scrum half Nick on the loop broke through the Braintree defence at pace to score the first of out three tries, her also slotted the conversion. We then really turned the screws with our forwards particularly Sammy, Brad, Mike and Chris causing mayhem going forward and it was no surprise when number 8 Chris powered over for a good try at the end of a sustained period of pressure. The score at half time was 15-3 to SWF.

We begun the second half as we finished the first with 10 minutes of sustained forward pressure and with a bit more composure could have really seen Braintree off, but our break came when after some good phases of play Jordan went over in the corner and to his great surprise converted to leave us up 22-3. The ref then began to ping the boys for every minor transgression at the breakdown real and imagined and the boys had to dig deep to keep their cool and their defence during this period was awesome as the Braintree attacks came in waves through the penalty count and they did cross once to give the scoreline respectability 22-10

A good season opener, and with 5 home games now on the trot if you are in Saltcoats on a Sunday around noon come along and lend your support.

SQUAD – Brad, Adam,Sammy,Jack,Tom,Mike,Will,Jack N,Chris,Big Will (capt),Nick,Jordan,Curtis san,Lewis,Connor,Ben,James,Robbo,Matt

As under 17's Season 2009/10

11/05/2009

On behalf of the coaches may we congratulate the under 17s on a fantastic season which finished at the Eton Manor 7s tournament on May the 10th - see below. The season has been one of great development of the whole team and but for the enforced break during the bad winter it might have produced even more, as it was the statistics make for good reading.

Games played        -          22

Won                        -          15

Lost                        -            7

Points for               -         505

Points against       -          188

Tournaments played      -      2

Portugal International Youth festival      -     3rd Place

Played                             -        6

Won                                 -       5

Lost                                 -       1

Points for                        -    159

Points against                -      63

Eton Manor 7s            -       Runners up

Played                     -          4

Won                        -           3

Lost                         -          1

Points for                -         71

Points against        -          66 

10/05/2009

Eton Manor 7s

SWF Rugby under 17s shine in Portugal Youth international tournament

21 of the boys plus 25 coaches, groupies, hangers on and assorted concerned parents took off from Luton Airport on the 3rd of April to represent SWF in the inaugural International Youth Tournament in Lisbon. The tournament ran for 2 days and SWF performed superbly to take 3rd place in the under 18s tournament finishing behind a mighty Welsh side Crawshays (winners) and Bath youth rugby (runners-up). Their games went as follows

Day one  -  Pool stage

SWF 29    -     Belenenses (Portugal) 0

After a nervous first 10 minutes the boys got into their groove and ran in 5 tries with 2 conversions to nothing, although the Portuguese side were competitive they could not handle the boys play in the loose.

SWF 50    -    Benfica 0

This time there was no nerves and the boys play was just way too strong in all departments with the forwards dominant and the backs flying, the tries came quick and fast.

SWF 19   - Queen Elizabeth Grammar Carmarthen 0

As expected a tougher proposition from this welsh grammar school who tried to turn the boys away from their style of rugby and make the match a fight, this failed as the boys discipline was solid and 2 players in particular put in mighty games, Tom Perry and Chris Bewick were awesome. The boys took their 3 tries well and Nick slotted 2 conversions to leave us with a 100% record from day one. Back to the hotel for dinner and the mandatory sing - song.

Day two   -   Quarter finals

SWF 27   -    Liceo Frances Madrid 0

Day two started as day one finished with SWF imposing themselves on bullish opponents who wer easily the best continental opposition we faced, but the boys dealt with them in their normal way getting into their stride and never looking back.

Semi Final

SWF 0    -   Crawshays Welsh 58

This was an exceptionally gifted and extremely big Welsh side made up of academy players from all over Wales who had narrowly missed out on selection to Wales under 18 squad and as they were a proper colts side it was always going to be our toughest game. To the huge credit of the boys they never stopped trying and never let their heads drop, but the gulf was just too wide.

3rd place play off

SWF 34   -   Stockport Grammar 5

So the last game came and the sides were fairly well matched in the first half with SWF going in 10-5 up at halftime, and in the second half SWF cut loose and basically tore through Stockport at will, the final play of this game been a superb try made by Lewis King who took an inside pass from Jordan in his own 22 with despairing tackles frlying here and there he made it to the Stocport 5 metre line were he was finally took down but offloaded to the very impressive Chris who scored the try and finished the tournament in proper style and left the big contingent of SWF people with a smile on their faces.

Well done to all the lads who played rugby of the highest quality and but for the intervention of Crawshays would have made the final, also to the boys and supporters who won the after tournament fun stakes dressed in full Morris dancer costumes and made some strong friends for themselves and SWF

WE ARE THE PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Upminster 5

SWF         48

The lads completely dominated this game putting their recent poor run of form to an end with some excellent performances right through the team. All eight tries were ran in by the backs with Lewis King picking up a hat trick, but the pick of the tries went to scrum half Nick who took a fine off load from Aaron to score.

Squad - Lewis G, Sam, Zane, Adam, Jack W, Brad, Will, Dan, Michael, Jack N, Patch, Chris, Jason, Steve, Nick, Jordan, Ross, Curtis, Aaron, Lewis K, James, Robbo.

22/3/09

Chingford 0

SWF         44

The lads continued today with an even better performance than last week as they built some momentum for their participation in an end of season tournament in Portugal in 2 weeks time

Bradley, Chris, Tom, James and Aaron all had outstanding games as all of the team upped theor performance a few notches from last week. The tries came from Tom (2), James (2), Lewis G, Aaron, Jordan, and Chris. There was much to admire from most players and the pick of the tries came from James M who chased down an expertly executed cross field kick from Jordan, this highlighted a surging in confidence from the whole team.

Chelmsford - 0

SWF            - 38

SWF under 17s travelled to local rivals Chelmsford hoping to secure bragging rights in the various schools and colleges over the next few weeks around the area. It was also an important game in the league which if we won would see us top the table at the end of 2008.

The lads got down to business straightaway with the first scrummage signalling the way things were going to go for the next 70 minutes as SWF pushed Chelmsford back easily and this gave us the psychological edge for the whole game. All the forwards were excelling and the first couple of chances went begging as the final pass seemed to come up short. Ther was no panic, and the first score duly arrived with a great crash ball break by Patch who was stopped only by a desperate tackle from the last Chelmsford defender, but Patch looked up and popped the ball to inside centre Ross who went over for the first try, converted by Nick, score 7-0. The forwards were now dominating all the set plays and the whole pack were running amok in the loose and the next try saw Tom Perry crossing the line after 3 good phases of play. The boys then fell into the trap of trying to overcomplicate things and Chelmsford had their best spell of the game, but never really threatening the SWF line, half time 12-0 to SWF. Having a full squad meant we threw on 6 fresh pairs of legs and the freshest turned out to be Lewis Kings who stole the second-half scoring honours with a hat-trick of tries. His first from the kick being his best when after Lewis Gilbert had freed the ball from the Chelmsford catchers hands the ball went straight out to Lewis K who outsprinted the defence to score under the posts, converted by Nick as were Kings other 2 efforts. The forwards were still making hay and Stephen Shaw on at half time as well, made the important touch down from a forwards maul to score another great forwards try. This left the final score line 38-0 to SWF, and whilst a lot of teams would have simply fell away under such pressure credit must go to the Chelmsford boys who kept at the job till the very end.

A fine finish to an outstanding first half of the season and at this stage of the season all competitions are there to be taken if the lads continue to believe in themselves.

On behalf of all the boys and coaches we would like to wish all our supporters/parents/grandparents etc a very happy Christmas and we hopefully will see you down at Saltcoats next Sunday for the friendly against Bishops Stortford and a drop of Jim Norketts famous mulled wine.

Report by Liam

SWF Rugby Club under 17s triumph in Essex Cup at Brentwood 

Brentwood    13

SWF              17

A gloomy overcast morning greeted us when we arrived at Brentwood, but conditions overhead were okay and the boys were well revved up to silence any doubters amongst our opponents that our recent victories against Brentwood were no flukes.

Both teams tried to play flowing rugby but so often the conditions interfered producing knock-ons, penalties etc. From a passage of Brentwood forwards pressure SWF infringed at the ruck to give Brentwood a penalty which was converted to leave the ahead at 3-0 early on. SWF had their penalty opportunities Nick missed by the narrowest of margins. SWF now got on top and with Big Will and Patch winning almost all lineout ball they really turned the screw and from a catch and drive the magnificent Lewis G went over in the corner to leave us ahead 5-3. Our forwards were causing the massive Brentwood pack all sorts of problems at the rucks and from a defensive kick Lewis K collected the ball just inside the Brentwood half and outpaced the Brentwood defence to score, leaving us 10-3 ahead. Brentwood quickly scored a penalty to reduce the lead to 10-6. Disaster struck just before half time when a good Brentwood move brought them a try which they converted to leave the scoreline 13-10 to Brentwood at half time. The boys showing awesome belief did not panic and they started the second half in determined fashion with Chris Bewick playing outstandingly at blindside flanker snuffing out the now predicable pick and go from Brentwood and stopping them in their tracks. Jordan at flyhalf now began to push Brentwood around the pitch with excellent tactical kicking and it was from a 5 metre line out that Big Will and Chris set up the maul which saw Zane fall over the try line and score the all important try. Nick our kicker who had experienced a barren day despite his best efforts had no problem stepping up and nailing the conversion to give us the all important conversion to leave us ahead 17-13. The forwards and backs combined in a superb defensive display and snuffed out any Brentwood response. An absolutely magnificent performance in the second half produced the right result and the lads are now building a real momentum in their season.

SWF UNDER 17s win a nail biter in arctic conditions

SWF                13

Woodford         8

It was snowy and cold when the boys warmed up for a league encounter against the all conquering Woodfrod side, and a lot of parents on the touchline were singing the praises of cricket as they wrapped up as warm as possible.

The boys started well enough but Woodford slowly but surely built a strong platform using the wind to push us back and play the game in our half. Indeed it was Woodford who took the lead with a well taken penalty and a good try to leave them ahead 8-0. Despite this there was no panic from SWF who missed 3 penalty opportunities, but the boys seemed to know that more opportunities would come their way in the second half. In fact the SWF defence held up well to limit Woodford to their 8-0 lead at half time. Straight from the kick off for the second half Woodham put Woodford under pressure with Robbo breaking the line to feed Lewis K on the wing and but for a last ditch tackle we would have registered our first points. Our forwards were beginning to use their power and fitness to good effect and from a series of pick and drives Lewis Gilbert scored a try to bring us back into the game. Shortly after this came the decisive moment when the SWF pack mauled the ball from their own 22 to Woodfords 22 and after a series of phases the ball went brilliantly from Sam to James to Curtis to Connor who went over in the corner to put us ahead 10-8. We continued to really put Woodford under pressure and when they infringed at a ruck under the posts Nick calmly took the chance to put us up 13-8. It was now left to every man to defend as if their life depended on it and they did defend resolutely to hold on for a memorable win and to keep their unbeaten run in the league going. Man of the match could not be agreed on so it went to the whole squad who played brilliantly from 1 to 22.

Squad - Sam, Zane (Capt), Lewis G, Tom, Dan, Jack N, Chris, Patch, Nick, Jordan, James, Lewis K, Ross, Curtis, Robbo, Aaron, Connor, Brad, Adam, Jack W, Steve.

Thurrock     0

SWF           34

This being Remembrance Sunday the pitches at Thurrock fell silent at 11am for two minutes which was beautifully observed by all.

The game kicked off with SWF playing into a fairly strong wind and they needed to keep the ball in hand and rely on their skills and speed, a tactic that paid off handsomely early on when Thurrock conceded a penalty which Nick slotted over to give us the early advantage. The whole team was looking good and up for it and when the ball found its way to Lewis K on the wing he showed his speed and determination when rounding the last two Thurrock defenders to cross for the try which was converted to leave us ahead 10-0. Their followed a 15 minute period where both sides having got good possession fumbled, or knocked on to lose momentum. This was mainly due to the breezy, cold conditions. This scoreless period was broken by the boys just before half time when again through good phases from the forwards and intelligent direct back play the ball went to Lewis K who given space jinked his way past the thurrock defence to score. Half time score 15-0. The coaches decided not o change anything at half time and the second half began with the advice to calm down and play the game in the Thurrock half. After about 10 minutes of camping in Thurrocks half the boys once again found Lewis K in the space he craves and he did not disappoint scoring his 3rd try under the posts which was converted to leave us 22-0 ahead and pulling away. At this point Thurrock had their best spell and their full back almost made it through the boys defence only for the ref to pull it back for a forward pass. The boys got the message and from some good forward play Big Will King gathered the full pack into a maul on the Thurrock 22 and the boys marched over the tryline with captain Zane touching down for a superb forwards try. The coaches brought on all subs at this point and there was no let up for Thurrock with 6 pairs of fresh legs to contend with. Big Will who hopefully will be trialling for the London Divisional over the next few weeks obviously wanted to leave us in good shape and he got the ball just inside the Thurrock half and went through about 3 despairing tackles and just when it looked like he was finished he offloaded to Ross who went over unde the posts, Nick converted to leave the final score at 34-0.

In the conditions a great result and a good performance was what the coaches wanted and got in full measure, well done to all 22 lads.

A special thank you to Paul Clayton who jumped in at the 11th hour to referee this game.

SWF              -     43

Rochford      -       0

The lads continued their great form with a more than convincing win over Rochford last Sunday. From the first whistle, both the backs and the forwards piled on the pressure mercilessly and choked every Rochford offensive.

Complete control from the forwards provided the opportunities for the backs to flourish, and they did not disappoint with a fantastic through the hands try finished by James Murphy on the wing who sped past the last defender into the corner making the score 5-0. The full unit play by the boys continued with power in the forwards and precision in the backs causing the Rochford defence to crack for a second time when a 'gentle' box kick was turned in to a try for Lewis Gilbert, who showed some nice football skills with a fly hack and chase. Nick converted to make the score 12-0About 10 minutes later Nick scored one himself leaving the score 17-0. The last try before half time brought a first try for new recruit Ross Rawinski after some good phases of powerful forward play which Nick converted to leave the score at 24-0 at half time.

Woodham started the second half in the same mood, with the forwards continuing to dominate in lineouts and scrums and the backs fluency and flair threatening the Rochford defence on several occasions. It ws from strong counter rucking that Dan Mascall scored a forwards try which Nick converted to leave the 31-0. After more relentless Woodham attacks the ball went through the hands to Dan Mascall who had a big overlap to score, yet again converted by Nick, score 38-0. Woodham finished very strongly as they had started and captain Zane Chiswell scored the seventh try to leave the final score at 43-0. Fair play to Rochford who never let their head drop and made SWF work hard for every score. A confident performance by the boys and convincing victory was good preperation for next weeks tough league encounter at Thurrock. Outstanding.

Squad - James R, James M, Aaron, Connor, Ross, Curtis, Jordan, Nick, Patch, Jack N, Jason, Steven, Dan, Jack W, Chris, Adam, Lewis, Sam, Brad, Zane (capt).

SWF             10

Brentwood    5

A beautiful autumn day saw a real cliffhanger of a game between SWF and Brentwood as both sides went looking for their first league points of the season. SWF came into the game with 2 influential players sidelined, Big Will who was off captaining the Essex under 18s and Graham who has torn ligaments and unfortunately could be sidelined for some months.

The game started with the massive Brentwood pack putting pressure on SWF and they kept the boys pinned back for most of the first quarter. Some stout defence managed to keep them out but the pressure told and Brentwood scored the first try of the game to lead 5-0 The boys began to claw their way back in to the game and by half time they had managed to secure some possession of their own and began to move the Brentwood pack around. They re-grouped at half time and came out determined to make a game of it and some brilliant pressure from our defence line on the Brentwood 10 metre line lead to a penalty. The right decision was made and Nick stepped up to attempt the kick. He hit a beauty and SWF were suddenly just 2 points adrift. The boys now had their tales up but from the resulting kick off prop Lewis Gilbert was on the end of a disgusting hit from a Brentwood player which saw the offender being sent off and the ambulance being sent for. It looked very serious for a while but thankfully Lewis recovered and managed to make it into the clubhouse for the after match meal - no change there. After switching pitches the match restarted and the Brentwood 14 really went for the winning score, but again outstanding defence from SWF boys everywhere held Brentwood up twice and when the boys broke out the ball finally went into the hands of Lewis King who took off from his own 10 metre line and skipped past 3 despairing tackles but the full back looked to have Lewis but with great strangth and balance Lewis rode the tackle to cross for a try.This was well converted again by Nick, finally SWF ahead 10-5. A comment from a Brentwood supprter summed it up ' I could see this happening because we are never able to put your boys away when we should', couldn’t have said it better myself. A great win and a good start to our league campaign.

Thanks to referee Tim Cramphorn, and to a big support who made the sidelines come alive for the players. Man of the match - Sammy Sharp more than once put in the big hits when necessary.

Squad - Zane (Capt), Lewis G, Sam, Brad, Adam, Stephen, Tom, Dan, Jack, Chris, Patch, Nick, Jordan, Curtis, Lewis K, Connor, James M, James R, Aaron

04/10

Thumping win for under 17s at Sudbury

Sudbury          0

SWF                34

The boys made the trip to Sudbury in atrocious weather conditiond determined to carry on their good form from last week, as the league campaign approaches starting next week against Brentwood. Sudbury usually provide stiff opposition and can be relied on to be a tough test at home. The game started cagily enough with the massive Sudbury pack trying to punch through our defences around the fringe but with little success, indeed it was SWF who were dominating matters at the breakdown with the back row unit of Patch, Jack and Chris constantly nicking the ball from ruck and maul. From a series of phases when our forwards constantly made ground, the ball came out to the backs and found its way to full back Lewis who dummied the pass to the wing which sent the Sudbury full back into a spin and Lewis just straightened up and coasted over for the first try. SWF really got on top after this and from a kick and chase from James on the wing when he forced the error in defence the first man to the breakdown was prop Lewis Gilbert who kicked on and dived over the line for a great try. Robbo converted to leave us up 12-0. The boys really had their tales up and Sudbury could not live with their all round game play and the interplay between forwards and backs and it was from a defensive break that the ball found its way to Lewis King on the wing who again used his searing pace to race in from half way. It was then the turnof the forwards driven on by Patch and Thomas Perry and joined by the whole pack who mauled from outside the 22 to the try line. When the maul went down Dan Mascall was the quickest to respond and he touched down for a great 8 man try. Half time 22-0 to SWF.

The second half started and continued with SWF defending resolutely when necessary and attacking with variety and style. From a Sudbury defensive kick winger Aaron picked up the ball and seeing Lewis in full flight put the ball into his gut and Lewis out stripped 4 despairing Sudbury defenders to score his best try of the day from his own 22, conversion by Jordan. It was no surprise when Lewis popped into the line again to score the last try with both teams tiring and to seal the victory. SWF played as a real team and although Lewis King took the plaudits this was a victory for the whole squad who defended savagely in their own 22 and converted most of their own opportunities when they arose in Sudbury's 22.

Man of the match - Patch

Next week we are at home to Brentwood in the league at 11am - all support welcome

A great start to the new season for SWF Rugby club under 17s

SWF             13

Chingford     5

 The lads returned for their last full season of youth rugby with their sights set on their most successful campaign so far. Their first opponents were last seasons under 16 Essex cup winners Chingford who would guarantee us a competitive game.

The three new signings for SWF Nick at scrum half and Chris and Jason in the back row were keen to get going as were the rest of the lads who have worked very hard through the summer in training and it was no surprise that SWF started the brighter and had numerous opportunities early on notably with James and Graham going very close. Nick put us ahead with penalty from just outside the 22 to leave us 3-0 up and our pressure grew and finally brought its reward when after several phases of forward play Curtis took a crash ball to within a couple of yards of the Chingford try line which was quickly released by Nick to winger James who could not be denied a good try by a despairing tackle from the last Chingford defender. There then ensued a period of stalemate as the strong Chingford forwards put up resistance to the potential onslaught that seemed to be coming from SWF. Half time SWF 8 Chingford 0. The second half saw Chingford really test the SWF defence and they got their reward with a well worked try from their right winger. They narrowly missed their conversion so SWF stayed ahead 8-5. SWF with the benefits of that long hard summer began to up their game again and their forwards really began to turn the screw especially at scrums when they destroyed the Chingford scrum and it was again several phases of forward play down the left that sucked in the Chingford defence and it was a simple backs move that saw Graham go over for a much deserved try to secure the win 13-5. Great start to the season and much respect to the whole squad for a well deserved win, well done to the debutants who did us proud and to James Murphy who picked up the man of the match award. Next week is Westcliff away, another 'friendly' before we get our league campaign under way

Ipswich          0

SWF              39

The boys took the long journey to Ipswich with a much depleted squad due to school holidays but again took the opportunity to show their strength in depth, and with the aid of two guests from our under 15s really turned in a superb performance to continue their upward development which has seen them unbeaten since the 6th of January.

With guest Stuart Whatling starting in his new position on the wing the boys started well enough but were finding a lot of their possession being stifled by the big Ipswich pack and it was only when the ball begin to fizz around the hands that they really threatened to score and thus it was no surprise when Stuart finished of a series of phases to put us ahead with a good try in the corner. The boys realised that they had better chances of winning once they kept the ball alive and they attacked Ipswich in waves, one of which lead to the second try from the captain Graham which was converted by Robbo to leave us 12-0 up at the break. Subs Brad, Adam, Zane were joined by our second guest Josh Lesczcuk at the start of the second half and SWF really put Ipswich to the sword with five unanswered tries from Robbo, Lewis G, Patch, Curtis and Jack N, with 2 conversions from Robbo to seal an emphatic 39-0 victory. Unfortunately just before the end Graham sustained a fractured wrist and his competition with Connor for the 'A&E most visited' award is really hotting up, tough luck Graham and we wish you a speedy recovery. Earlier in the season we visited Ipswich and came away with a scrappy win 10-5 so this result and the manner it was achieved in shows real progress, well done everyone and a special thank you to Stuart and Josh for their contribution.

Man of the match - Scrum Half Jon Bradley, all day kept the ball moving

SWF                     25

Chelmsford          17

The boys played against local rivals Chelmsford on Sunday and it was an unusual game as a lot of our lads were playing against friends and schoolmates. But once they took to the pitch all friendships were put on hold as both sides got stuck in from the off. The boys started well and good breaks from Aaron and James produced early opportunities not taken. It was a defensive error from Chelmsford due to pressure from our back row which led to Aaron intercepting a pass and crosing for the first try of the game. Chelmsford came back strong and scored their first try under our posts to leave them ahead. Woodham came back and their pressure produced a penalty which Jordan narrowly failed to convert but further pressure brought more chances and off a 5 metre scrum Patch fed scrum half Jon who crossed and Aaron converted to put us ahead 12-7 at half time. We made a lot of changes at half time and while the subs were settling in Chelmsford scored a good try in the corner to leave matters even at 12-12. But agin the boys upped their game and showing much more composure than of late they probed the Chelmsford try line and Jack Norkett crossed to restore our lead, but not for long as Chelms ford came back within minutes to level the game at 17-17. In previous months the boys may have panicked but not today and when they won a penalty under the Chelmsford posts Jordan converted to leave the score 20-17, and a few minutes later following some quick thinking from Ben who fed Dan Mascall on the wing who went around his winger and scored what was the winning try, the final scoreline being 25-17.

A good performance in what was a difficult game saw the boys play with new found composure and this enabled them always to keep Chelmsford at bay due to their ability to score their points when the opportunities came their way.

Chingford     5

SWF              5

A blustery Sunday morning greeted us at Chingford as the boys lined up for their penultimate league game of the season. With Chingford just below us in the league this was a game the boys could not afford to lose. We started very brightly and proceeded to dominate matters for the next 70 minutes but paticularly in the first half where Chingford found it hard to get out of their half. Try scoring opportunities fell to Jack Norkett, Lewis Gilbert, James Murphy and a glorious backs move just failed to finish off with Graham in the corner. The score remained at 0-0 at half time and it was against the run of play when the Chingford full back powered through our defence to put Chingford ahead early in the second half. The boys who were now playing against a strong breeze did not let their heads gp down and further chances fell to Graham and Big Will but again the final pass let us down. It took a brilliant piece of great running from Lewis King to tie the game at 5-5, and so it finished all square. A good performance abd a great result away from home vould have been so much better if the boys showed some composure in the opposition 22. Great performances all round the pitch with Dan and Lewis King and Robbo outstanding in the backs and the whole pack playing good rugby but man of the match award went to Sammy Sharp who was not found wanting in a brutal front row contest.

Next game is away to Brentwood next Sunday

Report by

SWF              5

Braintree      5

The lads really showed up well in their latest league encounter against a very strong Braintree outfit, in a physically intense game at Saltcoats today.

The boys took to the field without their talismanic forward Big Will King who next week plays a trial game which could see him selected for the England under 16s training camp in February and we all wish him well in his endeavour. Braintree won the toss and decided to play the first half with the strong wind at their backs, but the SWF lads were first to dominate for the opening ten minutes but could not convert the odd chance that came their way, and Braintree gradually found their way into the game. However the boys did not panic and very nearly opened the scoring when Lewis King went around his opposite number but got tackled into touch about 10 metres short of the try line, but it was to prove a short reprieve for Braintree as wave after wave of forward drives brought Jack Norkett a well deserved try which was unconverted. At this point the boys had other opportunities to score but the scoreline stayed the same until just before half time when some slick backs handling led to the Braintree winger going over in the corner, leaving the match tied at halftime 5-5.

The second half turned into a battle of attrition but SWF were putting real pressure on the Braintree defence with great chances for Jordan and Thomas Perry narrowly missed. The match got a bit ugly with the odd bout of handbags but SWF stood up to everything that was thrown at them and eventually the match settled down again with Braintree finishing the game strongly but still finding it hard to break out of their own half. So honours even and probably a fair result although if the boys get a bit more clinical when on top they will win games like this. The whole front row Bradley, Sammy and Lewis G were awesome today as were the whole team but man of the match was Jack Norkett who epiomised the spirit of the whole team with an immense display of back row forwards play.

Next week its Upminster at home

Rochford Hundred   0

SWF                          24

The boys finally got back in the winning way with a hard fought win over a determined Rochford side at Rochford today.

We had almost a full squad to pick from for a change and it was a chance to look at the whole squad and their development.

The first half saw Rochford defending well not to let the boys score too easily but due to some last minute handling errors the boys contributed to their own blank on the score line.

They were playing great rugby through contact and offloading and sooner or later it had to bear fruit, when new flanker Zane picked up the ball in broken play in midfield there was not a lot on until full back Lewis arrived at real pace on his shoulder and took a lovely pass to break through and one on one with the full back went around him to score. Lewis, Aaron, James M and Jack N all had their opportunities to score but narrowly failed.

A whole raft of changes came at half time and our strength in depth showed as we hit Rochfords 22 in waves and scored 3 unanswered tries from Dan, Graham, and Jack N all scored from good play. Dan who is now looking the genuine article at outside centre broke up a Rochford attack and kicked on picking the ball up on halfway and racing under the posts for a great individual try.

Graham scored his try off a set piece 5 metre scrum coming off his wing to take the ball off our number 8 Patch and broke through the massed ranks of Rochford defenders to score. Jack N scored his try from a pick up and drive over from 5 metres out to seal the win. Robbo was successful with 2 conversions.

A very polished performance but still lacking that finishing touch when the try line is beckoning, but all round praise from Rochford supporters and the referee for our continuity play with our forwards/backs linking up really well to support and enable offloading of top quality in the contact area. Keep it up.

Man of the match - Forwards Brad Hall   -  Backs Dan Mascall

Unfortunately the whole thing was soured by the totally inadequate performance of the choir who had Liam crying into his coffee with an inept and lacking performance of 'The Wild Rover' in the Rochford clubhouse post game we hope we treat our home supporters to a better rendition next week.

SWF        8

This was the first game of 2008 and we visited the same ground where we had finished 2007 so abjectly against Barking going out of the Essex cup by a score line 38-5 and the boys finished the year with their worst performance, so they had a point to prove and prove it they did, and unfortunately this score line was extremely hard on the boys as they completely dominated this game from start to finish.
In terms of territory and possession this game should have been wrapped up by half time in our favour.

All the boys were magnificent with Lewis Gilbert, Jack Norkett and Patch leading a ferocious forwards effort and a new look backline with Graham and Lewis King on the wings, Dan at centre and the outstanding Robbo at full back.

The first 25 minutes of this game were spent with SWF setting up camp in the Barking 22 but coming away with nothing to show for it other than some decent chances for Lewis King, Graham, Lewis Gilbert and Jack Norkett.

What happens next, a couple of missed tackles - Barking ahead 5-0, Ho hum. But the boys went straight back at them got and converted a penalty thanks to Jordan 5-3. Cruelly just before half time Barking sneaked another try to leave them ahead at half time 12-3, but this is what we wanted to see from the boys, rugby with a smile on its face and so out they came for the second half where they tried vainly to get down Barking blindside with Graham on one to many occasions and Barking broke the siege to score and lead 19-3.

The smile went off the boys now and they set about Barking with renewed purpose and got their reward after a sublime break by Lewis G who fed the ball to Jack N 3 metres out and he duly fell over the line with great style to leave the score 19-8.

The boys were on fire and they really had Barking worried but their effort was taking its toll and Barking to their great credit sneaked another try at the death to leave the score line 24-8. what can one say SWF roughly 8-9 scoring chances 1 try  Barking 5 real attempts 4 tries, but what a performance and when our backline really begins to fire look out.

Well done boys a great response to the end of 2007 debacle keep it up.
 

South Woodham scrape home against Ipswich

SWF                 10

Ipswich              5

The boys took the long trip to Ipswich and it turned into the morning after the night before as they played an error strewn game and could not repeat the fireworks displays of recent weeks.

The boys went on their long awaited tour to Jersey and as the theme for the tour was the '52 amigos' the clubhouse was a colourful sight on Friday the 19th. The flight went well and the bandidos brought smiles to many faces along the way. Saturday came around and the lads set out for Jerseys rugby club for their first game on tour.

SWF         33

Jersey      17

The lads took to the pitch pumped up and quickly showed their prowess when taking the lead through rumbling forward play saw Jack Satwick score the try that started SWFs dominance, which despite some pretty poor refereeing and some over the top play by Jersey, never let up, further tries from Graham, Curtis (2) and Jack Norkett, four of the tries being converted by either Curtis or Jordan. The scoring was only part of the story however as the boys stood up really strongly in what was a fairly hostile environment and met fire with fire with everyone hitting Jersey with everything they had and the forwards constantly driving Jersey away from ruck and maul. Quite a few injuries at the end of this game but the boys were unbowed and were very disappointed that the Jersey lads did not join them back in the clubhouse for lunch but left us to our own devices, which after the effort we made to get there was pretty sad, but no fear we had a ball.

We now waited for the next big game and after the loss of England to South Africa the next days game against Guernsey could not come quick enough.

SWF             38

Guernsey     14

Due to the previous days war of attrition Stephen Northey, and Lewis Kings playing on this tour was over but as we had 28 boys on tour there was no problem with numbers, this was a much better game and the boys were held by Guernsey in the first half at 14 each with big Will and Bradley scoring the tries, Bradleys being a gem as he sprinted in from half way to score.

The second half however was a different story and the boys played  fantastic stylish rugby to record a 100% record on the tour to leave the coaches and the big band of supporters ecstatic. Tries by Graham, Curtis, Jack Norkett and Connor completed the win, Connors try being probably the pick of the whole weekend as the ball went through the hands of the backline after some powerful forward play and found Connor who skipped around three defenders to finish the tour of on a very high note.

We returned to the UK on Monday the 22nd slightly the worse for wear but all agreeing that a great weekend was had by all but that the rugby played by the boys on this one had elevated it to our best tour yet. the boys were simply brilliant and can hold their heads up high.

Thank you to all the people who made this happen from fund raisers, sponsors,  coaching staff, and to the parents who came on tour, but a particular mention goes to our tour organiser Andy King who once again put it altogether superbly.

The boys went to Brentwood to participate in the annual under 16s 'Golden Boot' tournament and left with a growing reputation as a real force at this age group. In what was a very tough pool we were drawn against Hertford, Braintree, and Upminster. First up was the unknown quantity from hertford whose backs started the tournament on fire and they rattled up an impressive 10-0 win against the boys who had not yet woken up. Next up for the lads was Braintree a team that always seemed to edge it, but not today with Graham and Curtis inspirational in the centre SWF recorded a 12-7 win with Graham and the rejuvenated Patch scoring the tries and Curtis converting one. Lastly came Upminster and despite a battling second half from Upminster SWF held on for 5-0 win

As we finished second in the group we then went into the plate semi-final where we faced old rivals Burnham. They of course fought us all the way but a Graham Barclay solo effort and conversion from Curtis plus a penalty ensured a 10-7 win, Jamie Bache scoring the Burnham try. So to the final of the plate and a clash with the pre tournament favourites Medway who looked a huge side but were put under so much pressure from the start it was hard to tell why SWF were not the favourites, although their defence of their line was immense. Jack Norkett, Graham and Aaron all had real opportunities to score but Medway held firm and with last play of the game their winger got the luckiest of bounces to score the winning try. Very hard on the boys as they had put everything into this game and according to most of the Medway supporters should have won the game hands down. Well done everyone for a great day of rugby and thanks to all the parents and fans who stayed the course. The boys are away to Jersey next week on tour. I wonder what we can possibly do on Saturday night I suppose we may as well just watch the telly - COME ON ENGLAND  

SWF Under 16s win a nail biter against Brentwood

SWF             8

Brentwood    7

In the opening game of the league season SWF entertained a strong Brentwood side who they had never beaten so although the result was very pleasing the performance was immense by every one of the SWF boys.

The lads started the game and settled very well with most of the first 10 minutes or so spent in the Brentwood half and although the Brentwood team had the advantage of a larger pack the SWF forwards were tenacious at the breakdown using the ball very well and disrupting the Brentwood supply. It was from one such breakdown that SWF took the lead when the ball was made available quickly and went out to the backs where Graham fed Big Will who went over for the try.

Brentwood then upped their game and scored a good try through Jake Eagleton which was converted to leave them ahead 7-5. The boys did not panic however and a penalty resulted in Curtis scoring to leave us ahead 8-7 with about 5 minutes to go to half time. The match then turned into a war of attrition as both sides looked to score what would have been the clincher. The SWF defence of their try line in the last 5 minutes was awesome with everyone looking for people to tackle and no one taking a backward step. The final whistle finally went and was greeted by loud cries of relief from both players and supporters alike and a big scalp was added to the boys collection.

TEAM - Lewis G, Zane, Brad, Thomas, Harry B, Patch, Jack N, Big Will, Robbo, Jordan, Curtis, Graham (Capt), Aaron, Connor, Lewis K. Replacements

Jon, James, Nick, Adam, Stephen S, Stephen N, Jack S.