Exeter Saracens U13s 19

Okehampton U13s 38

OKEHAMPTON produced a good start, scoring early on with a try by Tom S, who ran in between the posts; Jim converted.

The Oke side scrummed well throughout the match and won important ball, meaning they had possession for a good deal of this first half. Dai Chi played well in centre, both defensively and in attack, took the ball and weaved past several defenders to score the visitors' second try. This was followed by a clear run from Noah down the centre of the pitch, who was supported by Tom S, to score between the posts; again converted by Jim.

Okehampton kept up the pressure but Saracens were not to be overrun. There was a period of a counter attack but the home side was kept out by good tackling and determined defence, including an interception by Daniel.

George D went off with an injury so Oke played out the remainder of the first half with 14 players. However, a good kick from Nathan for Oke was chased down and led to another DaiChi try.

The second half saw Oke being spoken to by the referee for dissent, leading to a penalty against them but this did not materialise into any advantage for Saracens. The backs passed the ball out well and Jim showed a fine turn of speed to score and then convert.

Saracens attacked again and although Oke put up a good defence, they could not hold the home side back and they scored their first try.

Another followed soon after.

Oke came back with a second try from Jim, who also made the conversion.

Tavistock U12s 28

Okehampton U12s 14

AS usual the local derby game bought out the best in both teams.

It took a full five minutes of full on tackling, hard rucking and inch by inch battles for territory before Tavistock's Ben McKenzie popped the ball to Jaxom Cann at the front of the lineout, and received it back before racing off down the pitch; a quick ball went through hands to the other wing where Henry Varndell-Dawes pounced to score.

Tavistock pressurised a confident and well drilled Okehampton side with Edwards Tait leading the charge at centre, backed up by the hard working engine room of James Roisseter and Matt Davey.

Tavistock's persistence paid off with a second try for Henry Varndell-Dawes and a powerful run from fly half Harry Edwards on to a ball from a five metre scrum to make it 21-0 to Tavistock at half time.

Strong scrimmaging from the pack and some swift ball from scrum half Tom Persse gave Tavistock the possession required.

Okehampton came out fighting in the second half and did not let Tavistock dominate possessioin. Some missed tackles and  some intense pressure led to a pack push over the try line  for Okehampton.

This was quickly followed by a couple of loose kicks giving the Okehampton full back the chance to score a second.

The game was now fully on but Tavistock rallied, dug their heels in, gritted their teeth and sealed the game with some great support work from Ollie Sampson following Henry Varndell-Dawes down the pitch and offloading to Noah Berridge to sidestep over the line.

These were two team performances for all the coaches to be proud of in possibly one of the most committed games of junior rugby this season.

n OKEHAMPTON U9s played in the Devonport Services U9s' rugby festival.

Eight groups of three teams played in the round robin section of the competition with the winners, runners-up and last place teams in each group going forward to the cup, plate and bowl knock-out competitions. The Oke team was captained by Ben with 23 teams taking part from all over Devon.

In their first match Oke beat Sidmouth by 5-1 tries and in the second Salcombe 7-3 to qualify to play for the cup.

In the quarter final Okehampton overcame Cullompton 6-1. The semi final was against Ivybridge in which Okehampton lost by 3-2 tries to in an intensely played match.

All the Oke team played exceptionally well today and gave 100%.

Strong teamwork and all round superb play made it an enjoyable day resulting in proud parents and coaches.

Well done to the Oke players Lachs, Adam, Alex, Toby, Josh, Saul, William, Dan, Callum, Ben and Shortie.

The game came to an end following a final third try from Saracens.

n ALSO playing in the same festival were Tavistock U9s.

Tavistock U9s 30

Withycombe U9s 10

TAVISTOCK went behind from the first attack but gathered themselves and soon recovered. Max opened the scoring and, after Withycombe regained the lead, Matthew D equalised and was then released by Dylan's pass to score his second. It was fast and furious and the half ended with Luke T making a try-saving tackle as the whistle blew.

Once in front the Tavistock boys did not look back. Their tackling stepped up a gear with Henry, Luke and Dylan doing sterling work in defence. Matthew D completed his hat-trick while Luke T rounded off a convincing win with a brace of tries.

Devonport Services U9s 30

Tavistock U9s 5

TAVISTOCK conceded four tries in the first half as their defensive frailties were exposed by a well-drilled and efficient Devonport team. The Tavistock boys pulled themselves together after half time with Seb scoring their only try.

Tavistock U9s 30

Exeter Chiefs U9s 10

IN the quarter finals of the plate competition Matthew D got the match off to the best possible start for Tavistock by scoring from the kick-off.

The Tavistock boys stepped up in defence with Luke T, Dylan, Max and all the team producing the goods, shutting out Exeter completely in the first half.

A lovely series of passes from Tavistock saw them split the Exeter defence and Matthew D ran through for another try. Tavistock snuffed out another Exeter attack on their try line and Matthew B picked up the ball, breaking through several tackles to run the whole length of the pitch to make the half-time score 15-0 to Tavistock.

The second half was a more even affair, as Exeter finally found a way through the Tavistock defence scoring twice. Ryan scored two more for Tavistock clinch a place in the semi-final.

Tavistock U9s 20

Kingsbridge U9s 30

KINGSBRIDGE began the game well scoring three quick tries as Tavistock could not cope with the physical play from their opponents.

However, a lovely pass from Seb released Luke T to pull one back for Tavistock just before half time. Matthew D scored in the corner to reduce the deficit to a single score but Tavistock could not keep Kingsbridge out and they scored twice in the second half.

Tavistock once again raised their game, Matthew D scoring a carbon copy of his first try and the boys' tackling improved as they took the game to Kingsbridge desperately seeking a way to win.

All the Tavistock players will look back with pride at their achievements in the competition.

n TAVISTOCK U8s hosted Exeter Chiefs for their final home game of the season on a bright spring day at Sandy Park. Two games were played against a fast, strong passing Exeter side.

In the first game, Tavistock started slowly in the first half of game one and Exeter took full advantage running in six tries, however, tries by Sam Perkins, Rafferty and Sam Palmer kept Tavistock in the hunt.

In the second half, Tavistock improved with their tagging. William White and Rafferty and scored two tries; however, it was not enough to stop Exeter winning the game 11-5.

The second game saw Tavistock come out of the starting blocks and with two quick tries by Archie and Joshua, Exeter found themselves on the ropes. Exeter managed to pull back a couple of tries, however, with a brace for Amilee and another try for Joshua, Tavistock were 5-2 up at half time.

The second half was close with good passing and tagging by both sides. Sam Boyle extended Tavistock's lead, however, Exeter came back. Further tries though by Finn and Archie ensured a Tavistock victory after a late comeback by Exeter with the final score 8-6 to Tavistock.

Seven medals were awarded after the game to Tavistock players. Most improved players were Joshua, Archie, William Garside, Rafferty and Sam Boyle. Player of the match awards went to Finn for his team play and strong work in the first game and to Amilee for her awareness of the game and strong play.

Coach Dan and his assistants Simon and John, take Tavistock to the U8s festival at Ivybridge on April 27.