Many have been complaining about the scarcity of petrol up and down the land, but there was never any danger of the Enfield Ignatians U11s running on empty – judged on the quality of their displays against Letchworth last Sunday (September 26).

The balmy weather further set the tone, and this combined allied to six weeks of solid preparation on the training grounds, ensured that the squad was at concert pitch for their much awaited, if covid-delayed return, to contact rugby.

Both teams fielded two teams, and so the scene was set for each team to play two fixtures, lasting 30 minutes each, which also entailed swapping pitches.

Strong running and fierce defence was clearly in evidence from both teams at the outset! However, the visitors’ tackling, mauling, rucking was immense – coupled to some free flowing passing through the hands – and this was further distilled by some good continuity, which resulted in some wonderful scores.

Much as we come to expect from their dads on a Saturday afternoon, it was great to see some independent thinking from Caiden Georgiou and Archie Thomas, who facilitated a scissors move in the middle of the park, as they further added to their repertoire of moves.

Romeo Dino, described as a monster by one of the coaches, spent a considerable part of the game pilfering the ball in maul situations: something which is allowed under the current laws. Not only did he secure the ball at every opportunity, but he also followed it up with some fantastic tries and some big hits in defence.

However, the tackle of the day accolade went to Mathew Yates. Not just content to tackle the totemic opposition battering ram, he also drew admiring gasps from parents and coach alike – given the perfection and intensity of his defensive hits.

Adam Kail was another stand-out presence; his commitment to the cause was unsurpassed, as he was here, there and everywhere, and he supplemented this via his prowess in the tackle, as well as exuding immense power when it came to running-in the tries.

Given the input too of Mollie Doran and Rosie John, and both linked up well together and were in feisty mood, the outcome was only going to be positive.

It must be said that every single player did themselves, their parents and coaches extremely proud.

The Letchworth head coach even commented that he could not believe how advanced our players were, which is testament to the commitment they have shown on the training paddock.

These are extremely exciting times for the squad, as they can look forward to their next assignment which happens to be an U11s festival when some silverware will also be on offer.

Enfield Teams:

Caiden Georgiou, Rosie John, Mollie Doran, Leo Schaffer, Archie Thomas, Josh Roper, Matthew Yates

Adam Kail, Ollie Harnett, Oliver Champion, Jack Jenkins, Romeo Dino, Joshua Russell, River Berry

Enfield Ignatians RFC

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