The Mini Rugby Season
Coaches & Managers
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Head Coach
Toby Bull
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Team Manager
Carolyn Champion
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Results and Coaches comments from Tai Po
Standout players on the day are highlighted
HKU1
v VF1 - 0-0
v FK1 - 3-0
v DBP1 - 6-0
They played well against VF, and spent almost the whole game in VF's half. Valley did play a pretty good game and closed us down, so fair play to them......we will just have to step it up next time! This was the 1s first game of the day, whilst VF had already warmed up with a bruising 0-0 draw against FC . The pitch was ridiculously narrow, so scoring a try was always going to be hard work. Overall, fairly scrappy games not helped by the weather. We were solid but not as fluid and precise as normal. No tries scored against was a pleasing statistic, although we still have work to do on our defensive line positioning. Jack V had another outstanding tournament, with great body position and rucking. Lots of others were solid and carried the ball well.AJ scored his usual handful of tries, offloadling more, which was encouraging. It was noticed that the games are getting that much more physical, with some very hard (yet fair) tackles coming thick and fast in this first tier of games. Sandy Bay, FC and VF are leading the way at U10s and producing some intense rugby games.
HKU2
v FC2 - 4-2
v FC3 - 7-1
v Kukris - 10-0
Great scorelines (21 for, 3 against)! They all played well, particularly their teamwork and camaraderie - a great bunch of kids who played with a smile on their faces and were a pleasure to watch. Oli got to play 2nd five, Ted on the wing, Rory worked very hard, Andrew K played very well with great straight running, Freddie C, as usual, a star, Jake F and Luke superb at running straight. Angus performed well on his return to the 2s, scoring a good winger’s try in the corner after the ball had been passed down the line. Ben Swan was player of the day by far with great work at SH. Thanks also to Freddie B, Gus and Jack V for helping out when we were short as well.
HKU3
v MKY - 4-1
v SSP - 3-1
v VF4 - 1-0
This tournament was indeed a great way to while away the better part of what would otherwise have been a very dull rainy day.
The kids performed very well indeed and resisted nicely to growing pressure as the games progressively became more challenging and more intense, with the last one won by a last minute try which was the crowning achievement of (finally!) some good work from the forwards. An area to improve is with the forwards, where HKU3 needs most work – the kids being too often late in the rucks.
Standout performer was Guy who really set the standard for tackling (another area to develop for the rest of the team). Another great performance was from Cooper, who did a fine job as a hooker and for being sometimes the only forward with his head in the rucks - which didn't deter him. Henri for his runs and some great rips. Matt also did a good job, with fine positioning all along and indeed some nice tackles.
HKU4
v VF6 4-1
v TWR 8-0
v DBP4 9-0
Third tournament in a row undefeated for the HKU3/4 squad - again, with a fantastic scoreline (21 for and only 1 against). Bravo!
For HKU4, an absolutely fantastic performance by the forwards in particular, who finally learnt to hit the mauls first and fast. A series of wonderful pushover tries resulted for Jonathan, Harrison, Bass and also Kai. A wonderful team effort, which turned a grey rainy day into a delight. "I have never been so proud of the team" (said Coach Kieren). Standout performances were Jude, Jonathan and Bass, who just keep improving by leaps and bounds, and led from the front. We'll never lose if the forwards keep performing like that.
A wonderful day for parents and coaches despite the rain!
Well done all (Coaches & players). Training as usual on Sunday 22nd January.
Kung Hei Fat Choi
Toby B
Head Coach U10s
A squad, 1s: with my Freddie out of action, the squad system was going to get tested from the first. The rotation of positions for the front row worked, showing the strength and flexibility and depth of our two main teams. They won all their matches with a good opener to get them kick-started against FC who still produce a good rucking game. We held out well, took our chance when it came and kept the pressure on. The VF game saw a 2-0 win, again with a good amount of pressure and a dominance that meant they were always playing in their own half. Good rucks and our backs kept their form. When playing against a weak FK side, many changes were enforced on us to make a game of it, yet we still romped home - only caution being that we lost our shape in the backs when coasting as everyone wanted to get the ball and got drawn in at the rucks/breakdown. No real cause for concern. The 2s also went undefeated on the day, winning all but their last match (a draw). The forwards needed a bit of an injection after their first game, but the squad system allowed some movement and they were bolstered in their later matches. The backs were phenomenal all day. Some standout moments from Freddie C (who was rewarded with a game in the 1s), but he was not alone - Andrew K with strong runs and tackles and Luke on the wing were also superb, as were the rest! Support play was excellent, with Rory scoring a blinder after tracking a break (can't remember by whom). He ran on the shoulder and received a beautiful offload after 'X' got tackled and just ran in for his try, although he still had a bit to do himself. Great rugby!!!
B squad, 3s: two great matches up front (4-0) and then a blip against a good Pirates side, who were a higher graded team. They came back well in their last match and there were some excellent performances from both the backs and forwards (Dan, Jack K in the forwards and Guy, Angus in the backs). Players were really starting to get to know each other and a strong team performance on the day was seen. Well done! The 4s were up against some first team graded teams (mostly the local teams) but stuck to their task well, coming away undefeated (1 win, 3 draws). This team, like the 3s, is coming together well and has some real strength in the back line (our new players Brendan and Matt putting in gutsy performances, with tremendous tackling) and ably led by Eamonn at SH, who is really in a purple patch and enjoying his rugby, with some great runs and good offloads. I am much encouraged by this team, who are also exhibiting a real esprit de corps.
Overall, much better at the break down and we have shown across all four teams that when the ball is released to our backs we are scoring good tries. The support play was much improved and some of the lines or backs were running were outstanding (I remember AJ taking the difficult route for one of is tries). A fine day all round and well done to you all.
On a discipline note, the DEA festival saw some niggly incidents which a couple of our players reacted to. This was put to the children on the Sunday training afterwards and the codes of discipline reiterated. Yesterday, one incident was brought to my attention which I believe has been dealt with. However, please reiterate the discipline codes to all our players, especially about reacting to something that was said/done to them and not to retaliate in any shape or form. Play hard and let the rugby do the talking. That is what we are doing right now, with our U10s setting the standard for all the others. We are not a 'dirty' side and we win because of the rugby we play, as stated: HARD but FAIR. Let's keep it that way. We are the best U10s club side in HK, with a great set of children and coaches. Parents realise this and I am constantly getting compliments for our style of rugby. Thank you.
Coach Toby
The Squad system will be on show for the first time. I have discussed with Coaches Mark and Ben and the 1s and 2s will be moving around players, whilst Kieren and James prefer at this stage to keep the bulk of players the same within their teams in order to build up players' familiarity. Due to numbers, there will be a need of super subs - so PLEASE make sure the boys from the nearest streamed teams are watching our players, so when the need arises, they are ready.
I have to allocate players to a team, but as stated, coaches can move players across - so long as all children get the bulk of the four games to be played (which as we're tight on numbers shouldn't be a problem).
Coaches Mark & Ben and Coaches James & Kieren to obviously keep close liaison (especially as the 4s only have 10 players at present).
Teams 1 and (2)
James (Darcy)
Freddie B (William)
Eddie (Oliver)
Gus (Rory)
Jack (Ted)
Max (Ben S)
Fin (Luke)
AJ (Freddie C)
Hector (Jake F)
Sean (Andrew K)
Jake G (Charlie)
Team 3
Cooper B
Dan
Arya
Andrew A
Jack K
Tom
Cooper S
Henri
Angus
Guy
Matt
Team 4
Joanathan
Jude
Kipp
Ben T
Kai
Eamonn
Harrison
Bass
Brendan
Kieran
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DEA Tigerfest WORDS FROM HEAD COACH TOBY!!
What a good start to our competitive season: Played 9, Won 7, Drew 1, Lost 1 (& that was in the last seconds of the game) - so well done to you all.
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I was especially pleased as this is the first time the children were left to their own to make decisions (plus a bit of bellowing from the touchlines) but there was much to be encouraged by. The ball was getting moved around a lot.
FC in our 1s match gave us a bit of a scare by going 1-0 up early on. A bit of complacency after winning our first game so easily against DEA was probably the root cause, but we were just too slow in getting to the breakdown and they exploited this well, getting fast ball out to their backs - for those who went on tour, it was a bit like the Thai team we played, where they were so quick to the ball the ruck hardly ever got formed. Anyway, the boys stepped up a gear & in the end ran in a number of tries to make the game safe - but we have some lessons to learn. FYI, that same FC1 team played VF1 and it was a draw (1-1, I believe).
The twos looked very strong - the addition of Jake F and Freddie C strengthening our back line. Saw some excellent performances all round and were unlucky not to get a clean sweep of wins.
The threes had a great day, they have really transformed themselves and kept to their task. They looked a different team! The forwards and backs worked well together and some very strong performances were seen - well done to Cooper S especially, playing in his first tournament. We also welcomed two Saturday players (Kipp & Jonathan) who slotted in very well. That team was enjoying playing together and, more importantly, they got that winning feeling. Fantastic!
We're looking good for our own tournament on the 27th. See you then!
Toby B
Head Coach U10s
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The goal moving forward is to have a consistent standard of refereeing across Hong Kong Mini Rugby!
The laws of rugby exist to allow the game to flow and function properly. However, this can lead to concerns over the
interpretation of these laws. The iRB is currently concentrating on five key areas that they want referees to focus on
to improve the quality of the game. These five key areas are as follows:
1 - Illegal obstruction at the maul.
2 - Offside from kicks.
3 - Slowing down the scrum call.
4 - Offside at the fringes.
5 - Tackler rolling away.
For more information on IRB laws visit www.irblaws.com
Training session registration – because of the restriction in the allocation of HK Sevens tickets last year, we are now moving to a different method of allocation. This season, the ticket allocation will be based on two factors – player attendance of training sessions and festivals, and parent support to the club (e.g. coaching, clubhouse coordinator). Please look for me at training to sign your player in. After a few training sessions I will become more familiar with the kids but please do not assume that I've ticked your child off!! Please see photo above.
Some changes in the game for U10's:
Play with a size 4 ball
Play without the coach on the pitch
Kick penalties for touch
Contest in the line-out (receiver can run or pass to SH)
10 players on the pitch
Warm-Up/Cool Down
Coach Toby would like to stress the importance of proper warming up and cooling down in recognition of our children getting stronger and to aid proper muscle development. We expect all of the participating children to have stretched before the 0930 hrs start. There will always be some coaches down pitchside 10-15 mins before the scheduled start and it is during this time that players can do their static stretch warm-ups. At the start of training (0930 hrs), the focus on the warm-ups will be more dynamic, getting them ready to slot more easily into the drills. At the end of training we will conduct some static stretches to cool down.
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