Dominant u14s in Cup Round Win

The last round of cup games took the Selby boys to Yarnbury for their first game of 2023 and the first outing on artificial grass.

Straight from the first whistle it was clear Selby were up for the game and after dominating territory were camped out on the Yarnbury line, on 5 minutes Ryan picked up the ball from the ruck and barged over under the posts, giving out a great roar, and Selby had the lead with Sam A adding the conversion (0-7).

The game was a little more even for the next 10 minutes with both sides trading possession albeit all in the Yarnbury half and the pressure began to tell as the home team were pushed back onto their own try line and Tom H punished some Yarnbury panic and dived onto a loose ball to touch down on 19 minutes for a second Selby try (0-12).

Almost straight form the kick off Alex H found himself with space and after a couple of side steps and a mazey run was over under the posts for Selby’s third try converted by Sam A and after 21 minutes the score was 0-19. There was no more scoring action but on the stroke of half time Sam A took a knock to his shoulder that led to a reshuffle in the Selby back line for the second half.

The second half kicked off and Selby continued where they had left off by dominating territory and after 27 minutes an open play move in the backs saw Zack W join in the line from full back to cross for Selby’s next try (0-24)

Panic on the Yarnbury line 3 minutes later resulted in a loose ball in goal where Charlie A and Zack W reached to touch down but were both beaten by the faster reactions of Michael and his fingertips were first to get downward pressure on the ball down (0-29). A brief passage of Yarnbury possession and phases and territory led to them reducing the deficit with a try on 37 minutes but this was to be their only consolation on the day (5-29).

On 40 minutes, Charlie A made a perfectly timed pass to allow Michael to cut through the defensive line and score his second, and Selby’s 6th try, of the game (5-34). There was still time for Ryan score his second try on 47 minutes by diving through a pile of bodies and dumping the ball down under the posts with Charlie A converting (5-41) and Alex H to complete a man of the match performance crashing over and score his second try and Selby’s eighth with the final play with Charlie A converting again to make the final score 5-48.

The lads had not had a competitive match since November and to play at the intensity they did today was testament to the effort they have been giving in training. The forwards dominated and the backs played with freedom, the hard work of Hugh’s drills with the backs in training shone through.

As a spectator this game was a pleasure to watch as all players saw game time and contributed to the win by doing their jobs, whether it was applying pressure in defence or being available and confusing the defence when Selby were on the attack.

We wait the results of the other games to decide our opponents in the next round but with the attitude and performance shown today Selby will be tough competition for anyone!

Selby Try Scorers:
Ryan (2)
Tom H
Alex H (2)
Zack W
Michael (2)

Conversions
Sam A (2)
Charlie A (2)