Fylde U'19s win Halbro Plate; U'17s lose to Manchester in Vase Final    

Fylde U'19s beat Rochdale by 22-13 in a hard fought game to win the Halbro Plate at Sandbach RFC on Sunday. This is the second piece of silverware for the Club today following the U'14s victory in the Lancashire Cup Final at Sefton. Well done lads! 

An early Sunday morning coach trip was the order of the day as Fylde U19's travelled to a very organised Sandbach club for the Plate Final. Once again, due to a colour clash, the canary yellow change strip was on display against our Rochdale opponents.

An early exchange of penalties, converted by David Reed, set the tone to a game that was to be dominated by defence. The deadlock was broken by Gavin Kelly who, after good work by the forwards, scored a typical winger's try in the corner. Reed added the two points. Just before half time a speculative Fylde kick led to Kelly's second. The Rochdale winger had an 'Underwood against the Welsh' moment and the sometimes Wanderer's wing touched down. Fylde turned around 15-3 up and listened as coaches Lewis and Wilks told them that greater effort was needed if they wanted some silverware.

Rochdale had obviously been listening to our team talk as they came out with a point to prove. Fylde repelled attack upon attack but leaked two unconverted tries. The score was 15-13 with little time on the clock and Fylde were looking rattled. On a rare visit to the Rochdale half, Fylde set up a ruck and prop Kieran Brookes burst through some tired attempts at tackling to score under the posts. Reed, who had a very good game at fly half, again converted to make the final score 22-13.

It had been a very close game between two very well matched teams. The Fylde lads had to dig very deep to win this one and just about deserved their victory against gritty and skilled opponents. It would be churlish to single out individuals for praise - it was a squad effort and not one player lacked commitment and a willingness to put their body on the line.

The celebrations commenced without delay. Coach Farrow has recently been under the knife to have a piece of Focke-Wulf engine removed from his back. The boys obviously took this into consideration as they threw him around the coach like a rag doll! What goes on tour.....etc but it is to be hoped that the residents with a view overlooking the Woodlands recover quickly from the sights they may have witnessed on the main pitch!

Thanks again to Dave, Adam and Chris for all of their hard work. Some of this team have been together for twelve years and as university beckons for several players, it was a fitting end to their junior career. The good news is that the bulk of this side will be back in Fylde colours, colts and senior, come September.

Report by John Brookes

Photos courtesy of Chris Farrow.

Unfortunately, despite an heroic effort, Fylde U'17s lost their Halbro Vase Final by 13-33 to a good Manchester side. Coach Oli Brennand reports that it was a much closer game than the score suggests. Many congratulations to all the squad and coaches for a great achievement in reaching the Final! And thanks to the parents who loyally supported the team.

27th April 2008