Cobham Under 15A Tour to South Africa
Summary
As Roy noted in his summing up of the tour, we came to SA to further our education and in terms of the rugby teams we played against we certainly received a few lessons, some the hard way.
To put the tour in context we played against some of the best rugby schools in SA. Waterkloof are currently the best U15 side in SA. Monument were runners up to them in their Province, Paarl Gimnasium are a traditional rugby stronghold as are Wynberg. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
We came on tour with an unbeaten record stretching back some 60 games but from the two games we lost, a lot was learnt about the Cobham team and our strengths and weaknesses. This will stand us in good stead for the season ahead as already the coaching team is fine tuning where we need to develop and improve. In the final training session before departing Dean Richards had said that we would need to adapt to how the SA sides played against us and in the close games our decision making could have been better.
In general the forwards played magnificently throughout the tour. The big packs we came across were held or beaten and our defensive rucking proved effective and was noted by the schools' coaches. Our back play was effective in the opening game and at times against Wynberg and Monument but was stifled by Paarl and Waterkloof.
Finally the team spirit was excellent on tour. The final game against Monument was very tough against an older physical team but the tackling never dropped and the leadership shown by Stout held the side together in a memorable victory.
We now look forward to the season ahead and thank all our SA hosts for providing us with a great rugby experience and for being such welcoming hosts.
Match 1
Cobham 52 pts Swaartland School 5 pts
The tour kicked off in style with Cobham playing some good rugby. The forwards won lots of ball including clean line-out possession and the backs were well led by Markham who had a good all round game.
From the first move of the match Cobham could have scored but the final pass went astray however soon after the forwards drove to the line and Cragg made the final surge. Then Williams took the ball with little space on the outside, kicked through and had the strength to dive for the score. Soon after a high kick landed for Cragg to claim his second try.
After a half time score of 31-0 some reserves came on but Cobham maintained the tempo to score a further 4 tries.
A good start……
Match 2
Cobham 14 pts Wynberg High School 13 pts
On a wonderful sunny afternoon on the main pitch at Wynberg with a backdrop of stunning scenery. Cobham held on to win this game.
In the first half Cobham absorbed a lot of pressure with the Wynberg kicking game being very good and keeping us pinned in the 22. However the line-out worked well with the catch and drive enabling the line to be cleared.
After Wynberg had taken the lead with a penalty midway through the half Cobham struck with a good backs move allowing Sharp to scoot over. Soon after another move saw Conor Jones create the overlap for Sharp to repeat. Markham converting both tries.
Then just before half-time a poor clearance kick was met by the Wynberg wing who ran through several tackles to score.
In the second half Cobham initially had good territory and possession but took a couple of poor options which could have led to tries. Then the last ten minutes Cobham were left to defend deep in their 22m. On one occasion the Wynberg winger ran through beating our winger and full back before being flattened by Flynn 5m short in a try saving tackle. The Cobham defence held with turnovers being made at the rucks but a lack of composure meant that we could not clear our lines. Finally Wynberg nipped through to score in the corner, but after the conversion was retaken it went wide to enable Cobham to seal the victory.
Match 3
Cobham 7 pts Paarl Gimnasium 20 pts
A disappointing end to an unbeaten record stretching back 3 years and about 60 games. Paarl Gim played well but Cobham played poorly and allowed pressure to be applied too often in their own half.
The forwards were magnificent winning a lot of ball at defensive rucks and tackling very well. The midfield also defended bravely. But too often defensive kicks did not make touch which meant that Cobham had to scrabble in defence. Paarl scored 2 early penalties and eventually went over for a try after a series of attacks. However soon after Cobham made a visit to the Paarl 22 and Harty took the ball out wide and beat 4 players to score a stunning try under the posts.
Game on we thought but the second half proved disappointing. There was a chance to cut the deficit to 3 points but this was not taken and with time running out Paarl were able to score another try following an interception.
Match 4
Cobham 7 pts Waterkloof High School 48 pts
Brilliant attacking play, good decision making, skilful backs with loads of pace and good offloads—what a side Waterkloof are. The best in SA we were told and they certainly turned on the style in their game against us. A good bunch of players and supporters as well it has to be said.
The Cobham defensive alignment in the backs sometimes let us down, but the pace at which the attacks were made and the speed with which the ball moved to the outside meant that defending was difficult. In addition the back 3 defenders had to work consistently hard to combat both the pace and the occasional bouncing kick through.
A rugby education this certainly was and even though the score reflects the game there were times when Cobham played well. In the first half the score remained 7-0 for a long period and only in the last 5 minutes of the half did we cave in a bit. Until then the forwards had competed well against a big pack, winning line-out ball and being solid in the scrum as well as winning a fair share of the ruck ball. In addition the backs created a couple of half chances.
Just after half time Cobham again played well and following a break from Harty and a run from Clifford, Koep kicked ahead to score in the corner, Markham converting brilliantly. But in the rest of the second half Waterkloof scored 4 tries and got the better of us at one scrum. The Cobham side may have been frustrated but kept going to the end being beaten by a side with better overall rugby skills throughout the side allied to a determined competitiveness.
Match 5
Cobham 19 pts Monument High School 12 pts
The final tour game could have been a mismatch. Monument (Monas) wanted to play their U16 team against us, but in the end relented and started with their U15 side (that had lost to Waterkloof in the provincial final the previous week). Cobham were fired up and playing a more structured game-plan with Harty in the centre and Stout making inroads through the middle. Chances were created and after good work by Sharp on the wing his inside ball found Markham for the first try.
Soon after a flowing Cobham move allowed McCallum to free Gazzard and break for the second score. At this point Monas brough in some older reinforcements to increase the weight in the forwards..
However after Monas had scored a simple try following a missed tackle, Cobham played some of their best rugby of the tour to create a couple of overlaps before Stout took the ball wide out on the left and barged over for a try that was well converted by Markham.
Half time at 19-7 and Monument brought on all the rest of their U16 players. The second half started with Thurstan suffering a dislocated shoulder and therefore we moved to uncontested scrums. This baffled Monas for a time until they realised that they could bring on more back row players to aid their pace around the park.
The larger Monas pack took a grip and a series of drives and offloads eventually resulted in a try for Monas that went unconverted.
The final 10 minutes of the game were very tense. Needing a converted try to draw level Monas threw everything into their attack including a very physical approach to the rucks (Matt had his teeth brace forcibly removed!) but the Cobham tackling held firm and the forwards managed to win a couple of turnovers to allow us to slow the game down. With the last play of the game Monas broke down the left flank with the full back beating one tackle but running into the brick wall tackle of Stout. A dust cloud developed around the tackle, the whistle blew and Cobham had won a remarkable game. A stirring end to a great tour..
