Derby U16s vs Chesterfield
Derby welcomed Chesterfield to the AGP who we have played several times over the years. Derby started very strongly with great support play and had three tries on the scoreboard in 15 minutes all scored by fly-half Wilf Chenery. Derby continued to dominate and the first half ended 34-0 with tries from full-back Max Stevens, centre Sam Dickens and second-row Jake Clarke.
Half time brought changes with the bench let loose for the second half along with two U15s players Ethan Harrison and Bobby Schroder. Ethan and Bobby were part of the U15s group who played alongside the U16s in last year’s friendly against a good Ashby team and they made a big impact in this game too. The tries continued to flow for Derby with second row Lexy Valok-Hanley, scrum-half Henry Straw, prop Matt Tatham and second row Ethan Harrison all scoring tries. Wilf Chenery also scored again but this time he was in the red and white of Chesterfield as an injury replacement. It was a very impressive display from Derby with tries scored from several different positions around the park with a few areas to work on.
Unfortunately, prop Marius Stroi injured his ankle and had to come off while Chesterfield also suffered from injuries to a few of their players.
The game was played in good spirits by both sides with the referee keeping the game flowing throughout. Back in the clubhouse, Chesterfield nominated flanker Arik Maydew as their Derby Player of the Match, while the Derby players nominated flanker Josh Mohr as Forward of the Match and full-back Max Stevens as Back of the Match. Next match is a friendly away in Tupton.
Derby U15s Trained
Derby U14s vs Coalville
Derby travelled to Coalville for their second game of the season.
The boys were up against a Coalville team of very well-drilled big lads who had excellent pace too.
The tone of the game was set following the initial kick-off taken by Derby, with Coalville gathering possession and their number 7 running it more than half the length of the pitch breaking several tackles from Derby.
Derby continued to chase the game hard but struggled to bring down their opposition in the contact meaning we, unfortunately, had very little possession, enabling Coalville to run in several more Tries.
Towards the end of the game, we were finally able to get some possession and use our speed out wide to run in a Try, which was really pleasing, showing real determination to get a score and not give up. We performed well in the scrum against such a big pack and also passed and ran the ball well on the wing once we were able to gather some possession.
Coalville were deserved winners today giving Derby plenty of areas to focus on when we resume training this week.
Derby U13s vs Amber Valley
This week the U13s headed to Amber Valley for the third match of the season. This was a new opposing side for the team and nobody was quite sure what to expect. Amber Valley is a mixed-age team, with a pretty equal split of 13s and 14s. It was prearranged that the game would be purely u13 play but Derby was a little nervous to go up against more experienced lads.
After a warm welcome from the hosts and an intro with the ref, the game was off at a gallop!
Derby made almost instant headway, scoring the first try of the match within three minutes. The first quarter was a “settling in” phase for much of the play, with some great scrummaging from both sides before Derby scored another try with moments to spare.
The second quarter saw Derby maintain the pace and take another two tries. Amber Valley made a great comeback, scoring two of their own just before the second whistle.
The third quarter had Amber Valley making up the difference and taking the match to 20-15. There were some hard tackles made from both sides and many a man put into touch. Throughout the game, the level of sportsmanship was notable from both sides.
By the final phase of play, both teams were expected to be flagging given the enormous amount of effort being put in. However, both Amber Valley and Derby kept the pressure up with Derby scoring another try in the opening minutes of the quarter. There was another fast try from the opposition, before Derby scored a spectacular finishing try just before the final whistle, making the finishing score 30-20
Derby’s counter-rucking got a special mention from the ref, and the coaches are pleased to see the amount of progress made by the team in all areas.
Green laces for TREDS were awarded by Derby to Amber Valley’s number 11 for his support of fellow team members.
Men of the match went to Josh Bennett and Arthur Foulkes.
As Derby head into training next week, the team is on a high and looking forward to the next match of the season.
