SATURDAY 6 NOVEMBER 2021
1XV
Liverpool Collegiate 22-17 Eccles
Eccles travelled down the M62 to play Liverpool Collegiate on Saturday, with a match day squad featuring lots of changes from their previous outing. Consistency in selection is proving impossible with the club’s injury list a growing concern and the homegrown youth preferring a variety of different activities on a Saturday afternoon than a diet wholly made up of rugby.
Despite the wet weather conditions, the game started with Eccles playing some lovely expansive rugby, scoring early in the corner through Damola. This was Damola’s second outing in the blue and white hoops this season and his destructive, powerful running has been sorely missed by his team mates.
Unfortunately, 10 minutes into the game the collective effort of the Eccles men did not reflect the early personal efforts of Damola, with the breakdown becoming a very lonely place for any Eccles ball carrier which Collegiate exploited, turning the ball over frequently.
Collegiate wasted no time turning this possession into good territory and in turn points, albeit helped by some extremely lacking defensive efforts from the visitors. The first half closed with the home side leading and Eccles without their Captain James Wright who suffered a knee injury. HT 12-5
Some strong words at half time did not get the desired reaction. Early in the second half accumulated errors saw Eccles reduced to 14 when Damola was shown a yellow for not retreating 10m from a penalty awarded to Collegiate.
With 25 minutes to go Eccles tried to lift themselves, spreading the ball from side to side seeing some great yards being made down the flanks from Gavin Akers-Johnson and Tim Balogun. Unfortunately Eccles lacked the required accuracy once inside the opposition 22 and on multiple occasions were unable to reap the reward of this positive play. Tries from Javi and Ryley were not enough to avoid defeat.
The game concluded 22-17 to Collegiate and yet again the Eccles Men go home, second best, having been out worked by their opponents.
Report Sam Simpson.
2XV
Eccles 0-19 Aldwinians
The game got underway at Gorton Street in drizzle. For the first 10 minutes it was an even contest, played in midfield with the visitors enjoying better possession. The wet conditions contributed to the fluidity of the rugby and knock ons and scrums soon became the main feature of the match. The high number of restarts suited the heavier Aldwinians' pack who dominated Eccles in the early exchanges. Although there were no clear scoring opportunities the pressure was building on the hosts who became pinned inside their own 22, unable to escape. With quarter of an hour played, an Aldwinians' kick to the in-goal resulted in a scrum for the visitors on the 5m, from which the deadlock was broken with a try to side of the posts scored by the number 10 who slipped through the gap in the Eccles defense. 0-7.
For the next 10 minutes, Eccles continued to create many of their own problems and were still to mount a sustained attack when the visitors used their effective deep kicking to increase the pressure and score a second try on 20 mins. 0-12.
For the remainder of the first half, Eccles were careless with the little possession they had and struggled with the dominant visitor's set piece. A scrum penalty awarded on the halfway led to an Aldwinians' line out in the corner and some determined Eccles defending inside the 22 resulted in another scrum penalty in front of the sticks. With enormous graft, Eccles turned over possession and battled their way out back up to the halfway line, only to loose the ball again. This passage of play typified the game. Eccles inability to hold onto posession was punished at 35 minutes by the visitors who capitalised on errors to claim their third try in the corner. 0-19. Eccles responded well from the restart and ended the half attacking the visitors goal line. A penalty inside the 22 gave them a good opportunity to get back into the game but alas the twos went into the break with little to show for their toil. The halftime scoreline was a fair reflection of the match which had been played, to that point, almost entirely inside Eccles territory. HT 0-19.
In the second half, Eccles played with improved tempo and enjoyed longer periods of possession. However, knock-ons for both teams persisted. The twos were now more than holding their own in the scrums, which was good as there was a lot of them (more than 13 scrums in the second period alone). However, Eccles were unable to turn this into any meaningful scoring opportunities. The rain subsided for the last third of the game but it was heavy going for the players who were tiring. At 55 mins Pete Lillie was awarded a yellow card for not retreating at a penalty, at 65 minutes Nathan Newlove suffered a knee injury in a tackle as he attempted to break out and was carried from the field. At 70 minutes Aldwinians had a man sent to the bin for a swinging arm on the halfway line but Eccles were unable to take advantage and despite the effort expended the scoreline remained unchanged. A pointless second half in fairly miserable weather. Let's hope the 2s can get back on track next week. FT 0-19.
Report CG.
SUNDAY 7 NOVEMBER 2021
LADIES
Eccles 10-19 Bishop Auckland
Awaiting report
U18 SENIOR COLTS
Eccles v Altrincham Kersal
Awaiting report
SUNDAY 7 NOVEMBER 2021
U16s
Eccles 34-7 Sale
Eccles welcomed visitors Sale to Gorton Street for what was expected to be a stern test on a blustery Sunday morning and it was Sale who started the game. The kick off was taken well by Cael who set in motion the next drive for Harry G to take the ball forwards and Eccles got straight into their work by shipping the ball wide to Finn who was unlucky to be forced into touch but this first play laid down the gauntlet and showed the crowd what to expect straight away.
Sale had the ball at the scrum but Max showed he wasn’t taking a backward step by marshalling the Eccles scrum expertly and although the ball eventually came out for Sale the home side's defence gave Sale no room to operate and a crushing tackle by Lucas dislodged the ball .More strong play by the forward pack set the platform for the backs to show their class when Jack Coz made a great break and when he flicked the ball out he found Jack L in support to crash over under the posts to leave himself an easy conversion to make it 7-0 after only a few minutes.
Sale restarted the game which was taken by Jack L but the visitor’s defence was a little over eager resulting in a penalty to Eccles for a high tackle which allowed the home side the line out on Sale’s 40 metre line and more slick handling from Joe D allowed Leighton to free Matt G who broke the defence. Although his pass didn’t find a teammate, Sale gave away their first possession from the resulting scrum, kicking deep to Sam D who pouched it expertly in testing conditions and Eccles attacked again only to be pulled back for a forward pass.
Both teams swapped possession but Eccles were revelling in their defensive work and forced Sale into touch in a rare attack from the away side whilst Leighton was a constant thorn in the visitors defence with his punishing running. Sale had a line out following a penalty for not releasing but Jake ripped the ball from his opposite number to set up another attack for Eccles which almost resulted in another try and only delayed the next score as Ollie stole the ball in contact, which let Matt H to hammer through the Sale line and some excellent support from Cael to set the next phase up; Joe D again provided the perfect pass to Matt G who fixed his man and then supplied Finn on the wing with a great angle to glide in unopposed for the try out wide, although the wind proved too strong and the conversion was missed leaving the score 12-0.
The restart was secured again and more powerful midfield running from the Eccles forwards was taking its toll on the visitor's defence which was struggling to cope with the relentless pressure whilst Joe D nullified a cheeky blind side play by smashing Sale’s second row to keep them at bay. Leighton saw open space from the resulting play and kicked through and only a cruel bounce stopping Matt G from gathering the ball and romping home in acres of space.
Sale enjoyed some possession and made a break down the touchline but Matt G covered across well to force Sale into touch but was adjudged to have made a high tackle and received a yellow card although this seemed to galvanise the Eccles side who went on to score their third try when Sam D lept to stop the penalty from finding touch with Eccles then moving the ball through hands to find themselves on the visitor's 20 metre line and when Eccles took a quick tap following a penalty against Sale , Sam D touched down out wide with more good play from Jack C and Matt H making it 17-0 at the break.
Eccles restarted the game and showed no signs of slowing down as they continued to crash into tackles immediately turning the ball over and another try seemed on the cards when Lucas made a great break through the middle who again found Jack L in support but the final pass went astray to let Sale off but more pressure forced Sale to kick the ball dead. Eccles were dominating and more powerful running from Abraham and Josh kept driving the home side forwards and the next score seemed inevitable and came when more strong running from Jack C then Jack L with the latter only stopped on the try line gave Matt H the opportunity to pick the ball from the ruck and dive over although the wind again played havoc with the conversion which was pushed wide 22-0.
Finn took the kick off and almost broke the line instantly to keep the momentum going whilst Matt G made up for his 10-minute 'rest' by making another break which was only stopped when Sale conceded a penalty. Harry P who was introduced at half time was providing a real spark and found a gap midfield and fed Leighton who again left the defence in his wake and when Jack C was on the receiving end of a high tackle some quick thinking by Jack L meant a tap was taken almost scored himself but Josh supported expertly and crashed over next to the sticks giving a straightforward kick to make the score 29-0.
Sale tried a quick restart but Jack C wasn’t to be caught out and returned the ball with interest into the Sale half with the visitors happy to kick deep when the ball came loose but Luke gathered the ball well and side stepped the first defender to set the next phase up for Eccles which came to nothing. Some kick tennis took place with Sale seemingly reluctant to try and pierce the blue and white wall they had come up against all morning. Eccles were forced to kick dead and when the referee gave Sale a penalty on the Eccles 10 metre mark Sale took advantage by touching down from the scrum to give the visitors their only score of the game 29-7.
Eccles responded and finished strongly though and forced the knock on from the restart with Ollie pressuring the Sale line and in the process suffering a nasty leg injury bringing an early end to what been a great perfromance from him. Eccles gave the game the conclusion it deserved when Leighton went over in the corner following some more pressure to end the match 34-7.
An all-round excellent performance from every player was only marred by the injury to Ollie (torn front and back gastrocnemius, now joining Johnny on the crutches) and confidence should be sky high going into the next game at home to Heaton Moor on Sunday 14th in the Lancashire Challenge Cup.
Report Andy Curran
HIGHLIGHTS
Eccles v Sale
Eccles Try (Jack L); Conv (Jack L) 7-0
Eccles Try (Finn); No conv 12-0
Eccles Try (Sam D); no conv 17-0
HT 17-0
Eccles Try (Matt H); no conv 22-0
Eccles Try (Josh); Conv (Jack L) 29-0
Sale Try; Conv 29-7
Eccles Try (Leighton) no conv 34-7
FT 34-7
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U14s
Eccles v Sale
Awating Report
U13s
Eccles v Orrell and Ellesmere Port
With no match at half-term, our last game had been the triumphant display against Southport two weeks earlier. With Ellesmere Port (EP) being added as a last-minute round robin with Orrell (ORL), we were on a tough fixture (they're all tough aren't they?!).
Thankfully our numbers have swelled recently with an influx of new players from the Rugby League off season and some completely new to the game - this is partly due to the hard work of our new Community Rugby Coach (thanks James). The League lads bring a wealth of experience, energy, resilience and firepower with them, and they benefit them from the extra game time and new skills.
The pitch at Orrell had suffered with the recent weather and whilst it wasn't a quagmire, it had a thin skin of grass which gave little grip into the mud beneath it - this was going to be fun. After watching the first game of ORL v EP, we were chomping at the bit and got underway against EP. Despite them having two particular large players in the centre, new members Keane and Eddie were undeterred and led the way with some crunching tackles. EP were disciplined and tactically aware and used their big lads to good effect, particularly off the scrum when our big players were engaged, leaving EP free to barrel through the gaps. EP managed to get two tries using this approach. Despite this, Eccles responded using our width and our two Gazelles, Andrej and Josh scored two fantastic tries using their speed. The game finished Ellesmere Port 2-2 Eccles, which we felt was a fair reflection and credit to Eccles for some excellent defending near our own try line and for not being phased by EP's big units.
The second game against ORL was a different matter altogether. Whilst having a few players of imposing size (which seems to be the first thing Eccles U13s currently base their assessments on), having watched them in their game against EP, the Eccles coaches were confident our speed and fluid play would help us overcome. However our U13's had different ideas and got drawn into what was a messy, chaotic 20 minutes of rugby. Mauls seemed to dominate the play and the ball didn't reach the wings as planned which was to ORL's advantage as they repeatedly pushed us back to our own half and scored several tries in this manner. Whilst we were able to respond with tries of our own, ORL took a comprehensive victory.
Man of the Match went to Keane for his consistently effective tackling and defensive play - a fantastic debut performance. Also worth a mention were our other debutants Aidan, Eddie and Luke who all got involved as evidenced by the colour of their muddied shirts after the game, well done!
Big home game next week against Bolton in the Lancs Cup. We last played Bolton during the brief lockdown easing in May 2021 and it was an eye opener with Bolton having a large squad. C'mon Eccles!
Report Dan Appleby
U12s
Eccles 16-11 Sale
It was another great game from both sides today as the U12's faced off against Sale. From the off the game was very physical and fast paced. Sale had a couple of much larger boys, one of who managed to break clear away a few times to get tries but only to be kept close by our boys who were working as a full team of rugby players today. The defensive line was much improved on last week and tackles from Edward, Owen and Jamie B kept Sale on the back foot. There really wasn't much we did wrong this week, the boys really got stuck in and proved that they do indeed listen on on Wednesday night at training.
One of the most impressive tries started in our own half, Billy starting with a very strong run through Sales defence. They got the better of him just over the half way line, with Bill taking heed of the mid week training he fought them off and dropped to the floor to present the ball to the supporting Jamie B and Harrison who were quick to ruck over.
George who returns in an Eccles shirt today got the ball out to Fin who finished the rest of the field only to pass out wide to Bryn who got the try. Absolutely brilliant rugby.
George was on form getting his own name on the score sheet. Captain Fin proved he is a real force to be reckoned with as he just kept scoring and scoring. Not only can he find his way through a full side, he is one of the top tacklers, he also supports his side perfectly, can find them when they support him but also carries himself very well on the field. The first 3 quarters were just what the coaches wanted to see and we really didn't have much to say at the breaks other than to keep it up. The last 10 minutes saw them drop off slightly but to be fair they had put in a proper shift up to this point. They kept the pressure on which forced Sale into making many mistakes and to get a bit heavy handed.
Fin was awarded man of the match for his all out efforts and Jamie B was awarded Players Player for his pure tackle abilities. The final score was 16 - 11 to Eccles.
Well done boys - keep it up.
Report Paul Ogden.
U11s
Eccles v Sale
We welcomed more players to our ever growing rugby family this week, Musa and Kai who both booted up and put on the blue and white hoops of Eccles rugby for the first time. The boys were dwarfed in size by many of the visiting team, but were giants when it came to determination, grit and team work.
The game started with the usual speed and enthusiasm the team always start with and it paid off with a couple of well worked tries, the physical advantage of Sale would soon start to have an effect with players breaking our line with relative ease. The second quarter would see sail RFU have something of a purple patch scoring 4 tries and really bringing the physical advantage home.
The third quarter started and so did the hunting-in-packs team work of the Eccles boys, making some incredibly brave and effective tackles, working in twos and threes to halt the attacking line of Sale. This period of the game and the tireless efforts and courage of Eccles would prove crucial, scoring four tries and taking the wind out the of the opposition's sails.
The final quarter would see more hard work, great rugby and a never give up mentality, in both defence and attack, from Eccles earning the team a hard fought and well earned win. MoM went to Kai who broke the Sale defensive line many times showing his desire to carry the ball and welcome some contact.
Report by -
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U10s
Eccles v Sale
The Eccles RFC Under Tens welcomed Sale FC to Gorton Street on Sunday morning. Sale travelled with 19 players and we had 13 as our two female players were involved with the inner warrior. It was decided to play two matches at the same site both six on six. It meant that all the players got maximum game time and no one was stood around in the cold too much.
Both games were very entertaining with very good tackling on either side although Eccles shaded it and dominated with the sheer physicality and technique in tackling. Our defence was outstanding. In one game Sale were within a yard of the Eccles try line 4 times and were only able to score one try out of the four attempts.
There were some excellent tries good passing and superb teamwork and it was impossible to give one player man of the match so man of the match was awarded to all for an outstanding performance.
I know that some of the players were hesitant playing Sale, thinking that they would dominate us, and it is a testament to how far we have come this season with a mixture of old and new players working well as a team, supporting one another.
Out of the four games we drew one and won three.
Many thanks for Sale for travelling to Gorton Street and for our parents as ever bringing the players down and supporting us from the touch lines.
Next week it is a home game versus Burnley and Coach John will be assisted by a mystery coach ( TBC ) as it is Coach Dan’s 21st birthday weekend and he will probably be feeling the worse for wear!
Report Leeann Aspinall
