Both sides were short of but Rugby who were particularly hard hit, could only field 10 players to Daventry's 13 and displayed impressive strength in depth and team spirit to come out on top in a hard fought and very competitive fixture.  Rugby supported each other well throughout and their sheer determination, superior organization and communication prevented any Daventry score whilst still allowing 6 tries of their own.  O'Brien was everywhere and his tackle count was great Masters was impressive at break downs whilst Parsons and Holmes communicated well in attack to start the moves that gave Phillips room to link with the elusive duo of Loydall and Bannister.  Andersen-Doig used his power to drive Daventry back in open play whilst Hawkins and Wyan worked hard in support all over the field.  In truth everyone played a huge game and it was very difficult to choose a single man of the match, after much discussion Birdie announced Andersen-Doig to be the forwards man of the match for his very determined display and Holmes to be the backs man of the match after putting in one of his best ever games playing out of position at scrum half.  Rugby’s points came from Anderson-Doig and Bannister (1 try each), Phillips and Parsons (2 tries each) whilst Parsons kicked 4 conversions and a penalty.

9^th Nov 08

Rugby Lions U8s v Long Buckby U8s 

A cold morning saw both teams observing the minutes silence for remembrance day, a big thank you to both teams for this.

The game plan was to run straight lines, support play and defend as a unit and keep the defensive line. The first game saw the young Lions’ playing their natural attacking game with a little defending, but still winning 5 – 4.

After a team talk and a few changes the second game saw a much improved performance with some excellent running lines and support play. The defence was much improved with the lads running out 6 – 4 winners.

The final game was much the same again with the young Lion’s winning 6 -4. The improvement in the squad is gaining momentum and the results show this, the player of the day was the birthday boy George Barber, the most improved player of the day was Jonathan Dallimore.

Rugby Lions U10s v Long Buckby U10s 

Game 1 – Lions Win 8 – 0

Lions signalled their intent when straight from the kick-off Carwardine surged ahead and ran almost half the length of the pitch before he was pushed in to touch, just before the line.

Lions maintained the pressure and Aitkinson scored the opener when he outpaced the visitors defence.

Excellent scrummaging from Jupp, Carwardine and Aske-Haley frustrated Long Buckby as Lions scrimmage took most of the ball. Lions used this abundance of possession to pass the ball between them.

Lorimer, Williamson and Tildesley excelled with their tackling and distribution of the ball. This kept Long Buckby marooned in their own half. After constant pressure Pocknell stole the ball at a line out and powered over for a try.

Long Buckby had some possession but were regularly tackled and stripped of the ball by determined Lions players. Tildesley set up Scott and Pocknell set up Tildesley for tries both leading from a change in possession of the ball.

Aske-Haley then used his power and determination to break through the opponents line to plunder a hat-trick of tries.

Right at the end Carwardine scored the final try with a Cipriani dive to celebrate.

Game 2 - Drew 0 -0

In this second thrilling game both sides showed their commitment and determination as neither side gave an inch to the other.

Cave put in some crunching tackles to thwart Long Buckby until he was injured in a tackle and had to leave the game.

Bailie, Wright and Deery made strong runs to attempt to pierce the Long Buckby defence, but bad luck prevented the last pass from going to hand.

Lee, Warwick and Clayton showed good aggression as they scrummaged and rucked hard to gain possession for the Lions.

A rejuvenated Jupp made a short appearance as substitute to tackle, ruck and subdue the opposition.

Neither side could puncture the others defence as all the players competed right to the final whistle. Long Buckby came closest to a try but Lions defence held the player up to preserve the stale mate.

These games showed that the Lions style of open running rugby is high risk and high reward. It certainly makes thrilling Rugby.

Rugby Lions U11s

Game 1: Lions 5 points v Long Buckby 15 points

An impeccably observed Remembrance Day silence was followed by two excellent games of rugby.

The first half was very tight with Buckby having slightly the better of the attacking play and the Lions showing some really determined tackling and great defence work. Ross Smilie who started at scrum half led the way with a number of fantastic tackles with Ed Hands and Lewis Bloxham providing a solid defensive partnership in the centres. A single try in the 1^st half gave Buckby a slender lead. The second half started with Rugby losing concentration and conceding 2 quick tries. The lads then got going and pressed the visitors back into their own half with Rory Wagstaff scoring in the corner. Despite then playing some great rugby the Lions couldn’t pull back the advantage. Debutant Oliver Howes who had an excellent first game for the club and stand in hooker Liam Wardle both went close to scoring but were held up short of the line.

Game 2: Lions 15 points v Long Buckby 15 points

The second game of the morning was the highlight of the season so far in terms of skill and technique on show. Buckby took an early lead only to pinned back by the Lions who had now begun to move the ball quickly through the hands. With some great switch moves and long passes Tom Doherty and Rory Campbell combined well in the middle of the park. Rory Wagstaff scored two more tries, one from a well executed penalty move. Buckby pulled one back before Lions scored again with Jake Bramley powering over the line supported by Oliver O’Conner. Liam Deery, Harry Turnock-Rogers and Tom Smith all worked hard to deny Buckby the ball in the second half. In an exciting finish James Stewart pulled off a tremendous tackle to keep the Lions in the opposition half. Rugby thought they had secured the victory when in the last minute a breakaway try was conceded and the game ended all square. A fair result overall and a tremendous match.

Rugby Lions U14s 48 points v Long Buckby U14s 18 points

Much improved Buckby took advantage of the downfield wind and slope to give Rugby a fright by taking an early 8 point lead with a penalty and unconverted try until Rugby, missing several influential players but particularly Alex Andersen-Doig with his brittle collar bone, were stung into action. Rugby’s forwards worked their way into the game and the backs responded with some irresistible handling to score great running tries through Zac Baldwin and Jackson Hughes (twice), Rich Bannister and Daniel Martin converted one each.  Rugby bought on a raft of replacements at half time and the match re-started just the same as the first half when Buckby scored with their first attack however Rugby’s superior pace told as they continued to run at Buckby with every opportunity and eventually further tries came from Jackson Hughes, Jonny Ure (twice), Tom Swindell and Zac Baldwin.  Alex Kukielko shocked everybody with 2 conversions and Daniel Martin was voted man of the match for his awesome display and faultless ‘rat’ conversion.

Rugby Lions U15s 47 points v Long Buckby U15s 19 points

The U15s took the victory form this game but were not playing at their best.  A stylish opening which took play through several phases saw the backs commit the defence and good passing set winger Williams over for the first of his two tries.  Strong rucking and good offloading in the tackle allowed the Lions to set up a lot of quick ball and the backs used it to their advantage as Findlay broke the defence to sprint on and score.  Long Buckby hit back from a quick tapped penalty which caught the Lions flat footed.  Matthews then used his strength and speed to brush off tackles and score to extend the lead to 19-5 at half time.  The Lions appeared to be quicker to the ball at the start of the second half and a powerful breakthrough by Wagstaff saw him just beat the cover defence to score. Matthews and Williams both then used their pace to break the Long Buckby defence as they missed tackles and both registered their second tries, with Clarke adding the conversions.  A strong run by Scott brought the last try, converted by Roberts, however the Lions benefited from missed tackles and the quality of their play was poor.  Against the odds, Long Buckby then rallied and outplayed the Lions to register 14 unanswered points. The Lions team play was poor and the teamwork tended to fall apart, however the resurgence was too late and the Lions came away with the win 47 – 19.