Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96U16 team report The 16s may well judge the season as a failure because of their loss in the final of the Coventry Schools’ Cup. However, a 1 point loss to our local rivals isn’t the only thing they should take from the season. For several of them, it was their second game of the season at the Butts and to have so many U16s in the 1st XV squad for the Bablake game shows how hard they worked over the season. Sam Steptoe-Warren and Josh Bailey both worked hard at their set piece and grew in confidence with ball in hand; Josh’s Maori sidestep bought great results against smaller backs. Jordan Gumbura didn’t particularly enjoy having to play hooker but was Dylan Hartley-esque not only in his hooking but also in his ability to wind up opposition players. James Goodwin and Tom Lees won great lineout ball but also used their fitness to hit countless breakdowns. One of the finds of the season was Miles Golby whose move from the backs into the 2nd row suited his physical approach and desire to tackle. It was also good to see Matthew Ratcliff’s commitment and desire to be involved. The pre-Christmas ‘friendly’ at Bablake was hugely significant as the boys achieved a 90 point turn round from the previous season. A forward pack on the charge and bullying the Bablake eight was great to see, and gave the backs some brilliant ball to work with. Michael James’ ability to turn over ball from 7 was highlighted in this game. Our real strength was in our half backs where Sam Miles and Tom Stocks were both outstanding throughout the season. Their game control and tactical awareness improved significantly and both tackled like extra flankers. Both thoroughly deserved their 1st XV appearances. Our centre partnership of Josh Davenport and Haroon Rashid were both defensively strong and complemented each other perfectly with Josh’s handling and Haroon’s power. Coundon Court couldn’t cope with the running lines of Jamie Nicolson from full back or the trickery of Felix Marufu and Lewis Mohindra on the wings. Pav Suprai’s return to rugby was great, and his game developed throughout the season. Tom Cockerill as captain led by example in everything he did throughout the season. His performance in the Cup Final was superb, and he deserved to be lifting the trophy. However he and the rest of the team will learn from their defeat and be better players for it. As Michael Jordan said, “I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games…I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” Well done to everyone involved with the team this year. 2015 to 2016 | 83