It's been a busy week with matches against Lord Wandsworth College, Leighton Park School, Reading School and Thorpe House as well as the much anticipated junior house rugby tournament.
1st XV Rugby v Lord Wandsworth College
Following a positive result against Caterham School, Shiplake were keen to maintain their strong form. After a few minutes of well-worked phases of play and 2 tries by O Frisby in the early stages of the game, it seemed as though Shiplake were in line for another victory. However a lack of concentration and a number of unforced errors from both the forwards and the backs, allowed Lord Wandsworth College (LWC) to score three consecutive tries. This set the tone for the rest of the half, with good pressure from Shiplake only to be undone by LWC's strong defence and our inability to retain possession.
With LWC in the lead, Shiplake knew that a strong second half was required. The start of the half saw Shiplake threatening LWC's try line. The whole team showed great desire to level the score. However an interception saw LWC put themselves further ahead. The rest of the half saw both sides running with ball at every opportunity. Tries from J Powell, F Brown, H Allan, A Buchanan and J Angell saw Shiplake within 2 points with 10 minutes left to play. A period of sustained possession and pressure from Shiplake led to LWC conceding several penalties. On the penultimate play of the game and with LWC leading by 2 points, Shiplake were rewarded a penalty just inside the 10 metre line. C Creighton bravely volunteered to take the penalty kick, but unfortunately it drifted ever so slightly wide. The final score LWC 45, Shiplake 43.
The boys were disappointed and knew that the game was there to be won. We’ll continue to work hard in training and prepare for our next game against St George's College, Weybridge.
Reported by Mr S Beckett
1st XI Girls Hockey v Lord Wandsworth College
On Wednesday, the 1st XI hockey girls played an amazing game against Lord Wandsworth College (LWC). The opposition had the first push back but was quickly intercepted by L Pasmore, meaning that Shiplake were attacking straight away and inside the D. LWC were given a 16 at the beginning of the second half, allowing them to get players up the field and past our defenders, scoring the first goal of the match. Shiplake were determined and came back with positive energy, and within the last two minutes of the game Shiplake secured their first goal due to E Thomas' finishing touch. With 50 seconds left on the clock, Shiplake set back up and moved straight into LWC's D. A hit from the left wing allowed P Whitfield to push the ball over the line, leaving the score as 2-1 to Shiplake. Excellent finish and great work from L Worthington who was awarded player of the match by the opposition.
Reported by Miss C Mordue
2nd XV Rugby v Lord Wandsworth College
Having learned some valuable lessons from our match against Caterham School, the 2nd XV set out with a positive mind set against Lord Wandsworth College (LWC) at home on Wednesday. We were determined to get a win under our belts. From the kick off we put pressure on LWC, with high intensity and a great work rate, turning over multiple balls at the rucks. However discipline was lacking from the Shiplake side, conceding multiple penalties but we regrouped and rectified this problem. Some superb lines by E Taylor, H Kunzig, and J Newton led to us having possession of their 10 metre line. A well timed snipe by scrum-half K O’Hare led to him running the ball all the way underneath the posts, then converting the try himself.
We continued to place pressure on LWC and this led to Shiplake scoring multiple tries. After half-time, Shiplake were a little complacent letting through a try. However, we quickly regained focus and a superb run down the right wing from R Abery, supported by M Bunting led to a score. We continued to put pressure on them and kept up our intensity in defence, adamant not to let them score again. This paid dividends as the final score was 62-7 to Shiplake.
Now with a win, the 2nd XV have confidence going into our next game against St. George's, Weybridge as we are now starting to play as a team. Man of the match goes to E Taylor for excellent carries, always getting past the gain line and overwhelming presence in the ruck.
Reported by Mr A Dix
3rd XV Rugby v Reading School
The 3rd XV played well in the first half against a very talented side, with a couple of outstanding players who very much dictated the game. A little bit of energy was lost for the second half which led to Reading dominating. Without doubt the better team won, but the team kept playing until the end and will have learnt from the opposition. Final score 50-0 to Reading School.
Reported by Mr M Griffiths
U16A Rugby v Leighton Park School
The U16A kicked off on the riverside pitches against a Leighton Park team with several familiar faces from the week previous. The game was marked by its physicality and error strewn play as both sides struggled to keep possession. An early Leighton Park opportunity from a Shiplake mistake meant the team were down 5-0 for much of the first half but better support from the forwards and aggressive tackling from the backs lead to a Shiplake try just before half time. The score was 7-5 and Shiplake were in ascendancy.
Sadly the team couldn't capitalise in the second half as fitness suffered and Leighton Park's ball carriers who were previously put down made breaks and scored. In the end, Shiplake did not sort out the errors as quickly as the opposition did, leading to a lopsided final score in a close game, 22-7. It was however the best performance of the season so far and the squad gave everything, especially in the tackle. Further work in support, fitness and defensive communication in the weeks ahead will help. There is much to be optimistic about for the season ahead!
Reported by Mr J Reynolds
U15B Rugby v Lord Wandsworth College
In difficult conditions, Shiplake managed the game superbly - showing great skill and confidence by keeping the ball in hand. Their dominance in possession soon led to the first try of the game, with J Sommerville breaking through the line to score. Some great ball retention, alongside effective offloads, allowed Shiplake to score a second - H Doyle getting on the end of a well timed pass from J Durcan. More tries followed, with the impressive M Patterson exhibiting quick feet and devastating power. Despite leaking a couple of tries in the second half, more Shiplake tries followed, with H Inch demonstrating blistering speed on the wing. Overall, another fantastic performance (and win).
41-12 win for Shiplake College.
Reported by Mr D Miller
U14A Rugby v Lord Wandsworth College
Shiplake was outgunned in every department this afternoon - physically, mentally and organisationally. Congratulations to Lord Wandsworth; a fine display of a running and passing game. Final score 41-17 to Lord Wandsworth College.
Reported by Mr R Curtis
U14B Rugby v Lord Wandsworth College
After a long bus journey, and with very little time to warm up, the game kicked off. We were slow off the mark and conceded a couple of early tries. We slowly woke up and started tackling and rucking well. However we conceded a couple more tries. There was good talking from B Watkins and N Scotchbrook. We used half time to reflect on the first half and we went into the second half with renewed energy and focus. We pushed hard and came so close to scoring on two occasions. More strong runs were made by Lord Wandsworth who had a couple of very pacy wingers. We continued to tackle and ruck hard but the final scored ended up 50-0 to Lord Wandsworth.
Reported by Mr R D Rozario
U14C Rugby v Lord Wandsworth College
M Redding was the only try scorer in which the valiant young men of the U14C team did not quite manage to demonstrate the team cohesiveness of their last two matches. Lord Wandsworth College (alma mater of Johnny Wilkinson) proved very worthy opponents, providing some lessons for our future development as a team: up in defense; getting the ball out wide; and resilience in the face of disappointment. This weekend's exeat will be a welcome time to reflect and recharge before the boys face a home and away double-header over the next two weekends against Merchant Taylors' School. The boys want a victory, and I have no doubt that one will soon be coming. Final score: 39-5 to Lord Wandsworth College.
Reported by Mr G Woolner
U12A Rugby v Thorpe House School
The U12A rugby team put into practice the hard work that has been done on the training pitches and scored a memorable win against Thorpe House School winning 7 tries to 1. The team worked hard on organising the defence and this was led expertly by C Rees who tackled very well with many others contributing. Of course with Shiplake working hard to defend their line, this created the space for some attacking play and the crowds were treated to some fantastic rugby. It was also pleasing to see the try scorers being shared amongst the team with J Priestley, W Blance, E Jones, B Savidge, G Paish and C Rees all crossing the line for a try. Of course there is still much to work on but the team can be pleased with the start they have made to the season.
Reported by Mr N Brown
U12B Rugby v Thorpe House School
The U12B team played their first fixture of the season against Thorpe House School in what was a tremendous game of rugby on a wet and windy Riverside Pitch. The game started with a bang with some powerful running led by F Baikie scoring a brace of tries on his debut. This was backed up by some tremendous tackling by H Carlsson and J Toker with all boys putting into practice what they learnt on the training pitches. Further tries were scored by T Stalder running in a couple of magnificent efforts as well as J Toker and O Griffin getting onto the scorecard. There is certainly much still to work on but the early signs are that this inexperienced team have bucket loads of potential and we look forward to getting stuck into some training. The final score was 6-4 to Shiplake.
Reported by Mr N Brown
Junior House Touch Rugby Results
A fun afternoon on the Riverside Pitches saw our junior rugby players battle it out in the house touch rugby tournament. After a fiercely contested afternoon, it was Lapping who came out on top. Congratulations to them but well done to all participants for their efforts.
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Other results
U15A Rugby won 45-5 v Lord Wandsworth College
