b'THE ELLESMERIAN 98Rugby - U15Going into the start of the season there were a lot of expectations dueThe match against Calday the following week saw us play more like to last years performances in the Schools Sports Cup. There were someourselves, controlling the breakdown and attacking with width to a 55-10 welcome new additions to the squad and Harry Underhill continued towin. St Anselms were our next task away and a few injuries to players lead as Captain.didnt help our cause. We couldnt get a foothold in the game against a good Anselms team and came up short 34-10. The boys persevered The first four matches we faced against Adams Grammar, Newcastlethroughout the match but Anselms executed better than ourselves and (Cup), King Henrys, and St Josephs Stoke (Cup) were fairly one-sided,applied pressure to us that we struggled to cope with. with a half century being scored against each and few being conceded. Our next match in the cup was against Weaverham away. We started well Our match against Old Swinford Hospital was our next challenge. Wedwith an early lead but this would unfortunately be our peak in the match. lost Harry Underhill to illness and Ellis Ashton and Charlie Cuckson wereThe Weaverham team had the bit between their teeth and out-worked called up to the U16s, so we knew it would be tough. The match wasus to compound us to two successive defeats. It was a hard loss to take, very back and forth with neither team taking a foot hold on the game.as some unforced errors did not help our cause, but unfortunately came With 5 minutes left, Old Swinford missed a conversion to take the lead;out second best. they were left to rue this, as we went down the other end of the pitch and scored a game sealing try to win 34-28. It was a pleasing, hard-foughtThe last match of the season was against Wrekina local rival. victory.Unfortunatley for them they received the frustration of our previous match and werent able to compete with our intensity. Next up was a return fixture against Adams, which took us a while to get into as the previous match against them weighed on our mind, thinkingThe boys were fantastic throughout the whole season and were lead by that it would be a walkover again. It was not the case: Adams played wellexample by Harry Underhill, who helped set the tone for matches and and made us work hard for our win. Sandbach were up next in the Cuprallied everyone around him. Others who shone throughout the season and it was a match that probably aged me with how the match ended.were Ellis Ashton, Charlie Fletcher, Theo MacAndrew, and Dylan Avery. Both teams fronted up and played well; we initially got on the front footThey have all developed throughout the season and I am sure they will leading 12-0, though Sandbach roared back with two triesone of whichcontinue to do so into U16s. they were not able to convertin the dying minutes of the match. If they had been successful, they would have gone through as in drawn matchesMTHthe away team proceeds.'