Folkestone U10’s at East Kent tournament at Deal Betteshanger RFC

Folkestone U10’s at East Kent tournament at Deal Betteshanger RFC
19th October Report by Jon Morton
Folkestone Under 10’s arrived at Deal full of confidence following their appearance in the final at Canterbury two weeks ago, but also in the knowledge that the East Kent Tournament was a tougher affair.
Their first group game was against local rivals Ashford. Folkestone proved to be the more dominant side, and were going forward in both attack and defence. Ashford did not enter the ‘Stones half on a single occasion, but did do well to prevent Folkestone scoring more tries, as the ‘Stones ran out 4-0 winners in their opening game.

Next up were Sheppey, who proved a tougher opposition than expected. Their defence proved solid and Folkestone were insistent on running straight in to their big players, rather than passing the ball down the line to score in the spaces on the wings. Folkestone again held their own in defence, and won this game 3-0.

Folkestone faced the tournament favourites Canterbury in their 3rd game. The ‘Stones had lost in the final 2 weeks ago to this side, and were hungry to avenge this defeat. With neither team having yet conceded a try this promised to be a close encounter and drew a large crowd to reflect how well both teams had been playing. ‘Stones started the stronger of the two teams, and a well worked move saw the ball flow through the hands as they scored in the corner early on. Canterbury are not easily beaten, and did manage to score one of their own despite the ferocious Stones defence. This game ended 1-a-piece, which was a fair result on reflection, as the game could have gone either way. It was sad to see former Folkestone favourite Korben, who made the switch to Canterbury a couple of years ago, leave the competition early in the day with an injury and was unable to compete against his former club. We wish him a speedy recovery.

The final group game was against a big powerful Thanet side. Solid defence only allowed Thanet to cross the line once, but the speed and agility of the green and whites saw them run in 5 tries as they dominated the ruck area and moved the ball wide quickly. A good win, which saw Folkestone into the final for the second tournament running. Won 5-1.

The final was to be played against tournament hosts Deal and Betteshanger Lions. Deal Bettes are known for being a strong, aggressive side, and this is how they played. Folkestone were up to the task and went ahead early on as the speedsters ran in two tries. Deal Bettes came back with one of their own, and the Folkestone side looked optimistic as the ref called last play. Deal had other ideas as they kept the ball alive and moved from one side of the pitch to the other, and then switched the pay to score in the corner as the final whistle blew. The tired ‘Stones side were then faced with the daunting task of golden try. Play switched hands a number of times, as both teams played attacking rugby, and defended equally well. In the end, Folkestone ran out of legs and Deal Bettes scored in the corner to win the game. A tough end to the day, but a day the youngsters can be proud of as they played their best rugby to date. Final Lost 2-3.
I have been careful not to mention individual names, as this was a team performance, and they all played out of their skin. Maddox and Luke put in big hit after big hit, while Lucio, George and Lewis drove the opposition back with their powerful runs. Thomas found he was unstoppable when he ran straight, and Woody was unstoppable running in any direction he fancied. Bradley was back to his old self chopping the opposition down at the ankles. Jim and Oscar were great additions to the team from the last tournament, and proved they are up to the job. And I was very impressed with the amount of yards Connor made in his defence, driving the opposition backwards and getting up quickly to make the next tackle.