Eccles RFC

  

  

Thank you to Referee James Hooker (a returning #HomeGrown former Eccles junior and colt) and the players, parents, coaches of Manchester Rugby Club who travelled to Eccles on a bitterly cold Sunday morning to get a game on with the Eccles U16s. Your commitment, enthusiasm and efforts were appreciated. 

Following an early inspection of the pitches under the tunnel it was decided to move the game to the first team pitch, which offered a better playing surface (and no doubt the convenient comfort of hot food and drinks was apprecaited by the spectators). The teams began their warm up and it was noted that the pitch still had areas of firm frostiness. The desire to achieve something productive and responsible from the gathering of players was felt to be in the right spirit of rugby. Following a delayed kick off and a meeting between the Referee, Captains and coaches it was agreed, with player safety in mind, to abandon the idea of a full-contact contest in favour of a training game, playing touch rugby rules with uncontested scrums and line outs. 

Eccles began confidently, with quick passing, intelligent kicking and good running rugby leading to tries by Matt H, Sam D and Scott O. Evan was unlucky not to score in the corner when his otherwise excellent footwork was judged to have touched the touchline. The Eccles defence worked hard in the first 20-min period to deny a competitive Manchester team but this industry was undone when they allowed their unanswered scores to go to their heads. Mo G scored a fine trademark line-breaking try after the break but Eccles had already lost their shape, positional discipline and focus. Their complacency and casualness was punished by Manchester, who responded immediately with a well constructed try and were unfortunate not to score twice more when their sustained attacking was halted by some determined defending, forcing handling errors close to the goal line. Highlighting a 20-5 ‘scoreline’ would serve only to flatter Eccles as Manchester were the better team in the later stages. With the snowfall getting heavier the referee brought the game to a close with 40 minutes played. The training exercise made the most of the conditions and judging by the noise in the clubhouse after the game (and the queue for second helpings at the kitchen) it would appear the players enjoyed the experience.

Report - CG

  

Awaiting match report 

  

With Storm Arwen wreaking havoc across the country, the match was touch and go and only confirmed just 30mins before kick-off due to the ground being 'harder than the car park'. With the U12's playing on the pitch before us, they helped soften it up (a little bit). Following a great team performance against a strong Burnley team the week before, we were looking to build on that performance against Trafford - always with a big squad and technically very good.

The match got underway, but we were soon on the back foot with Trafford displaying great handling skills and having two wingers who were rapid. We soon went down three - nil but some direct instructions from Coach Stevenson and great support from the Eccles parents, saw us begin to claw our way back.

We'd tried passing the ball across the field, but Trafford's defending was excellent and they were very good at ripping the ball from us and taking possession. Our rucking over too, which was powerful but slow, also gave Trafford opportunities which they exploited every time.

Our new players in the centre, Owen, Keane and Eddie, kept the intensity levels up with some brilliant tackling and powerful runs but we still couldn't get through.

Up steps Harrison, back after injury and still on fire from last weekend's match. Having that little extra speed than our centres, he was able to barrel his way through, so much so, he actually went over the line without putting the ball down - thankfully, Paul the Trafford Referee recognised his efforts and awarded the try. Some brotherly feedback for Harrison from Alex, suggested he be 'less Forrest Gump' next time.

Inspired by Harrison's efforts, Josh collected the loose ball deep in our own half from a Trafford kick. Initially looking like he was going to walk into the opposition's tackles, Josh threw a few shimmies and switched the after burners on, running 3/4's of the pitch, cutting through the middle of opposition to put the ball down for a try - captured on video by a parent, it was amazing to watch, we want more of this Josh!!

Thankfully there was and Josh managed a similar try in the second half, again slicing through the opposition using pure speed to score our third try. Harrison also repeated his unstoppable run to get a second try and our fourth in total. By this time the weather had closed in and the snow was coming down thick and fast with a nice wind as a bonus. With the weather (and our discipline) beginning to fade, the coaches agreed to play just 40mins instead of 60 and the game finished a respectable 7-4 to Trafford. Speaking with the Trafford coach and referee Paul, after the game, he conceded that Eccles looked like they would have equalled or overhauled Trafford in the last 20mins and that his team had played the best rugby he'd ever seen from them, partly due to knowing how good a game they get from Eccles - which is nice feedback to have.

Player of the match was a tough decision this week with some notable performances again from Owen, Keane and Eddie. The amazing tries from Josh and Harrison (who also did a try-saving tackle) also close contenders. However it was (Little) Ethan who got MOTM today with his determination and hard work - it's impressive to see just how much ground Ethan makes on his runs, charging through the centre but without losing possession when tackled, he's made great progress since joining the team, well done Ethan.

Some other points from the game which we discussed with Trafford's coach was Eccle's team discipline. It was great to see our players fired up and hungry for the win and we're aware that there was some 'verbal judo' between the players but ultimately, Trafford won the duel by keeping their heads and technique within the law, which is something we must learn to do too. We must also learn not to 'stir the pot' or pass comment to the referee, especially if you're not even one of the players involved in the incident in the first place! (There were a few guilty of this today). Any gripes go through our team Captain who will speak with the Referee.

That said, it is really uplifting to see our players have fire, determination and the desire to win and willingness to be physical, so keep it up and take on board the feedback from the coaches and referees, which was overall very positive.

Next week we play at home, our 'nemesis' - Leigh. Always a tough, hard fought game with passionate support from Leigh's parents. Our resident team referee, Kris, will be kept busy! (I'm praying he's available). A final thanks to Neil and Sallyann for the great match photos and videos from today which the club will put to good use on its social media feeds which all help to promote the club and our team in particular, please make sure you're following the instagram, facebook and twitter accounts.

C'mon Eccles U13!!!

  

Winter had certainly hit come Sunday morning as the Eccles u12s faced off against TMV away. The air was crisp, the boys were cold and the ground was frozen........solid.  There were conversations about maybe playing touch rugby to avoid hitting the hard ground, rumours even about calling the game off but the hosting team managed to accommodate us right next to the pig farm where the ground was soft enough to play contact rugby. Plus the smell helped wake every one up! 

We started off strong although TMV were very on it and kept us working. The U12s were brilliant in defence with a solid line that didn't waver throughout the whole game. Due to the frozen ground the pitch was smaller than usual which helped TMV with their defence, but to our boys credit it forced them play the ball across field, using quick hands and feet to break through to.

Big tackles from Fin and Edward showed the opposition that we were there to play a game of rugby.  Harry turned it on with a few big runs, almost as big as the smile on his face, he was properly enjoying himself.  Top effort from Jamie B, Jamie F and Owen who each nearly got a couple of tries but we're just stopped short.

Billy was effective in the ruck, holding back 2 TMV players on his own until Owen managed to get the ball out. He came off at the end absolutely buzzing and suggested the coaches give the whole team Coaches Player as he felt everyone put a shift in.

The game was pretty physical and a few knocks were taken, Bryn had a bust lip, Jamie F injured his arm fighting off 3 players and Fin had to sit the last 10 mins out due to a banged head on the ground.  We have 12 lads registered and having all the lads turning out each week really does have an impact on the games we're playing at the moment. Our 3 replacements were needed and everyone got game time.  

A few defeats recently after a winning streak hasn't dampend any spirits and like coach Chris says, you learn more from a loss than a win. It was a close game and TMV took the win, just.

Well done to Edward for Coaches' Player and Owen for Player's Player. And a big thanks to all the parents for turning out on such a cold Sunday morning.

U10s

Eccles v Trafford MV 

We played a 9 v 9 game with TMV using subs . We managed to get a lot of attacking play in and hold them off with our defence. Another excellent performance with all the players being a credit to themselves , their parents and the club!

Final score was 17-17 tries, so the u10s continue their unbeaten run of games! Parents are off to buy bobble hats, hand warmers and some thermal underwear for the coming weeks.

 

Next week, we have training on Friday evening 6pm till 7pm and Sunday 11 am till 12 noon - both sessions on the Astro fingers crossed - during these session we will begin to build towards the new rules brought in after Covid rules begin to wear off and start training on the concepts of rucking and mauling.

Thank you to everyone who came to support the u10s. We appreciate it!  

Report - Team Manager Leeann

  

The mighty Eccles U9’s travelled to Trafford MV on Sunday morning in sub-zero temperatures but put on a red hot display on the field, running in several tries across all 3 games. Despite the conditions the U9’s decided the best way to warm up was a pre-match Can-Can!!! Some excellent passing, defence and teamwork saw them compete really well with strong opposition. All games were high scoring encounters with Eccles edging out their opponents at the end. There were also some ingenious defrosting techniques on the way home !