A much needed victory for Under 14’s

Cranleigh RFC 14’s vs Richmond 14’s – Sunday, 9th February

Cranleigh RFC 14’s travelled to Richmond for Round 3 of their Waterfall Cup campaign, determined to bounce back from their heavy defeat by Chipstead the previous week. The intensity in the warm-up was a step up, as the team was eager to end their recent losing streak.

Cranleigh kicked off the match, and for the first 10 minutes, neither side could gain the upper hand. Fortunately for Cranleigh, they managed to avoid conceding an early try. However, Richmond’s impressive fly-half soon found space for the winger, who outpaced the defence to score in the corner.

Cranleigh responded well, gaining a foothold in the game with a strong line-out and scrum, coupled with solid defence from both forwards and backs. Their efforts paid off when Stanley scored in the corner, dragging half the Richmond team with him.

Cranleigh’s breakdown work was exceptional, with Arlo and Aden winning numerous turnovers and penalties. From one such penalty, Seb took a quick tap, catching Richmond off guard, and Finn finished powerfully in the corner. The first half concluded with another explosive run from Stanley, who scored under the posts, allowing Johnny an easy conversion.

The second half began as the first ended, with Cranleigh displaying strong, aggressive defence and direct running with the ball. Will and Riley led the charge, with Riley arguably deserving the man of the match title. Richmond continued to press, but Cranleigh’s ability to turn defence into attack resulted in Ben scoring his first try for the team, bulldozing through the Richmond attempted tackles.

Riley added another try in the corner, and Stanley completed his hat trick with a trademark length-of-the-pitch effort.

The best try of the game came at the end (no bias here) when Arlo caught the ball from the kick-off on the edge of his own 22. After evading the first tackler, he found himself with 50+ meters to go. In a footrace with Richmond’s winger, Arlo was tackled just 1 meter short but managed to get to his feet and dive over the line for a try to finish the game.

Final Score 39-5

Tries: Stanley (3), Finn, Ben, Riley, Arlo

Conversions: Johnny (2)

Man of the Match: Stanley

Every player from Cranleigh had their best game of the season, making it a pleasure to watch after a few difficult matches. One request from our fly-half: try to score under the posts to improve his kicking percentages!