(Youth reports will appear here as team manager's send them in - please check back!)

Colts - Eastern Counties Cup

Shelford 33 West Norfolk 22

Shelford 36 Diss 3

Diss took the early advantage as Shelford firstly knocked on the kick-off, and were then found off-side at the ensuing ruck to find themselves 3-0 down from a well struck Diss Penalty. Shelford’s response though was immediate as slick hands in the backs created space for winger Lewis Green to pin his ears back and race into the corner, 5-3 to Shelford. An unfortunate knee injury to Lewis saw his fine game come to an end prematurely. Both defences looked extremely solid and well organised as the respective sides tried to gain the upper hand. Shelford’s lineout functioned well with Sam Perry ruling the air on our own ball, as well as stealing a few of the oppositions too. The game struggled to come to life in the first period, but a James Clare break from midfield saw him step inside the Diss defence and score under the posts, converted by Lewis Cracknell for a 12-3 half-time lead. The game was a much more open affair in the second period as both sides tried to play a more expansive game. Shelford initially played for territory first with Cracknell kicking well in behind the Diss defence. Some quality ruck ball started to emerge from our hard-working forwards, and a well worked Shelford try saw Nick Webb joining the line well from full back to extend our lead to 17-3. Diss were unlucky not to score from a fluid backs move of their own, but the final pass was unfortunately knocked forward. Shelford’s confidence grew and the forwards started to give some great off-loads out of tackle. Superb support play by Iowan Thomas-Mathieson saw him take a number of these off-loads, and was extremely unfortunate not to have a try to his name after he was deemed to have knocked-on in the act of scoring. Quick ball away from the rucks saw us take advantage of a few gaps now starting to appear in a resolute Diss defence, starting with James Clare cutting a fine line to score under the posts yet again, converted by George Teeboon, 24-3. Shelford then went through a number of phases before the backs went round a stretched Diss defence late on through a fine finish by Harri Beasley, converted well from the touchline by Cracknell, 31-3. Ben Anderson put the gloss on a superb display at outside centre after the ball went through a number of phases, as he completed the scoring at 36-3, with the game being a lot closer than the score line would suggest. 

Under 15's

Diss 13 Shelford 12

Shelford U15s slumped to a second successive defeat as they travelled to Diss on Sunday 8th November. Costly penalties disrupted Shelford's start to the game as their centres struggled to come to terms with the local interpretation of the off-side Laws and Diss took an early 3-0 lead from a penalty directly in front of the posts. However, the number of basic handling errors that Shelford allowed to undermine their game, with high kicks and and passes continually being spilled, handed the advantage to their opponents. A very disappointing first half saw Diss add a converted try and another penalty to their tally taking a half-time lead of 13-0. The second half saw some improvement from Shelford with the late introduction of Callum Miller adding bite to the Shelford attack. Good hands in the backs were rewarded with a try from Will Jones, and then Miller finished off a driving break by Hector Finch with a try under the posts converted by James Gibson. But, again Shelford were victims of their own shortcomings - the continuing failure to secure the ball in rucks and mauls, and the number of times that possession was given away when going into contact, meant that they were unable to gain control of a game that was theirs for the taking. Shelford's attempted comeback, therefore, proved to be a case of "too little too late" and a frustrating morning finished Diss 13 - Shelford 12.

Under 14’s

Shelford 22 Diss 14

Diss had shown their intentions for this fixture by ...err.... not showing up. While our boys went through the usual desultory warm-up (who's funnier - Michael McIntyre or the Mighty Boosh, have you seen the love bite on Ollie Walkers neck - bet he did it himself with the hoover etc) our opponents were conspicuous by their absence. Then we heard the distant thunder of boots on the paddock as 20 blue shirted titans pounded across the turf, straight into a huddle, the intensity of which curdled the milk in the parents' pre match cuppa. When they thundered through the middle of our pre-match game of Maori touch on their warm-up lap we knew the type of challenge it would be. They had brought their top team, intent on besmirching the pristine Shelford home record. There was no choice but to meet the challenge head on. Their strength was in their big pack with a very powerful scrum. Of course this would be the weekend we were missing three props, but our front row held up well. Callum Pratt met fire with fire, Tom Picton-Turberville played with his usual excellence out of position at loose head and Ryan Brown at hooker in about his third match won all his own ball and threw in well to the line out. Backed up by an agile second row and a speedy back row we were going to make the big Diss boys do some running. Shelford ended the first half 10-0 up having scored two contrasting tries. After a period of prolonged pressure by Shelford the Diss fly half tried to clear his lines. Sadly for him he miscued the ball horribly straight to his opposite number Sam Jones who was stood about 3 yards away. Sam plucked the ball out of the air and plunged over the line - a try out of nothing. The second try was one of those sublime moments for a coach when a practiced move actually comes off in a match. As usual inside centre James Knoop was a marked man so his brilliantly timed decoy run took out two defenders. The miss pass from fly half Sam was beautifully placed in front of outside centre Toby Hackett who skilfully drew the sole defender to put winger Matt McCann in the corner. Simple game, rugby. Diss didn't have a sniff in the first half and Shelford kept the pressure on after the break. Another flowing passing move put winger George Smith over the whitewash in the far corner. We were cruising but not for the first time this meant we lost concentration in defence which let the powerful Diss inside centre in for a try. Sam Jones made the game safe with a jinking run for his second try, with Knoop adding the extra points. We should have added to the margin with Knoop and James Tilbury narrowly failing to score with the line at their mercy. However the last word went to Diss's impressive centre, who scored his second try with another direct run. Final score 22-14 to Shelford.

Under 12’s

Game 1: Shelford 21 - 19 Welwyn

Scorers:  Ewan Cooper, Ollie Barnes, Ben Shannon, 1 try each; Michael Pepper 3 conversions

Game 2: Shelford 43 - 19 Welwyn

Scorers:  Declan Morris , George Franklin, Ben Shannon, 2 tries each; Henry Moore 1 try. Ollie Barnes and Michael Pepper 2 conversions each.

Shelford 28 – 7 Welwyn

Shelford U11’s got back to playing rugby this morning with much better forward work and with the backs working the ball well. Early pressure was rewarded when Tom Cropper made a darting run to score his first try and Tom Whitehead made the conversion. More pressure from Shelford led to the second try when the forwards carried the ball for Stan Clarke to score and Freddie Robarts made the conversion. Good tackling from Shelford kept Welwyn back and from a turnover we pressed forward again. The ball came out to the backs and Tom Cropper found the space to score in the corner. Shelford went in 19 -0 at half time. Welwyn pressed hard in the second half and Finn Karsten cleared a long ball which the backs ran onto and Ryan Deamer picked up the loose ball and scored our 4^th try. Ryan also made the conversion. Welwyn pressure was finally rewarded with a try toward the end.

Shelford 24 – 7 Welwyn

The second game followed the pattern of the first game with Shelford taking advantage of their pressure. Ollie Parkes was first to score by diving over in the corner after lots of pressure. The second try came when Finn Karsten broke through the Welwyn defence to score and then calmly converted. Finn scored again a couple of minutes later after picking up a loose ball after putting Welwyn under pressure and Kieran Hatter made the conversion. Our last try of the morning came from Louis Neal making his debut for the club, Louis ran nearly the length of the pitch to score in the corner, an excellent start and hope this is first of many. Overall Man of the Match went to Conner Wells for his fearless display and countless tackles.    

Under 10’s

Shelford Tigers 10 Welwyn A 25

Tries - 2 Jamie Coates

What a great game for the boys - tough rugby with plenty of running, tackling, rucking and driving with the ball in hand. The first half was memorable with Shelford conceding two early breakaway tries that put us under pressure. Yet it was Welwyn who looked in trouble with Henry, Joe and Josh shoving them off the ball on their own put in and competing well in the line outs. The boys fought their way back into the game with some solid running with the ball in hand by Tom, Harry, Will, Luke and Sam  as they did their best to keep the ball in play and away from Welwyn. Jamie  Coates had an excellent half opening up the left side to score an intelligent try. We were only 1 try down at half time having been camped on their line for a good few minutes towards the end of the half. The second half brought some fresh players onto the pitch but also a renewed effort by Welwyn. Their team work and togetherness seemed to act like an extra man on the pitch; whatever we did they ripped the ball free or drove through the rucks on our ball, this sapped energy and courageous tackling especially by Harry; Tom and Joe was not enough on the day, a further three tries were conceded -  once again most of them being breakaway runs from the ruck, Towards the end our boys countered with an excellent try once again scored by Jamie Coates and some driving runs by Nick through the solid wall of Welwyn defence. A special mention for our new boy Sam Hurd who faced up to some tough defence today - well done. A very brave display by our Tigers against a team that has played together for four years - next time !

Shelford Sharks 15 Welwyn mixed squad 15 

Tries - Daniel Hoole 1; Harvey Redfern 1; Tom French 1

Wow, what a display of team work, having waited 1/2 an hour for their chance the Sharks were outstanding. Daniel Hoole gave a captains performance leading from the front in every phase of play, both tackling and driving with Harvey in hot pursuit and eventually scoring a try, with most of the Welwyn team hanging off his shoulders. Young Alistair Graham ran his heart out and had a number of useful throws in the line out. Much of the team was made up of new players to the squad and they played like veterans -  Findlay Thompson tackled and dodged with considerable skill. Max Benton held the middle of the line with Josh Whitmore with great effect, tackling and driving the ball forward. Julian Renwick and Aiden Thomas played with great intelligence exploiting lose ball, tackling and ripping the ball from the Welwyn forwards. Mathew Watson and Oscar continue to develop and had a tough time trying to counter some solid running from Welwyn. Harvey threatened the try line in both halves of the game and was eventually rewarded for his efforts with a try in the corner. Tom French came on as a substitute and soon showed his skills by scoring a solo try in the second half. Well done to the Sharks they deserved a victory but a draw was fine - an excellent team effort by all the boys. 

Under 8’s

Shelford 35 Welwyn 25

Shelford 35 Welwyn 20

Shelford 30 Welwyn 35

A great turn out for Shelford with circa 30 players bringing their boots down on Sunday. Across the 3 games against a very competitive Welwyn team we came away with the honours. We scored some good tries but had mixed success in tagging. A real positive was that we were able to have plenty of time coaching the children who all listen well and improved as the sessions went on. The under 8’s are beginning to develop their rugby skills and become a very strong squad

Under 7’s

Shelford Dinosaurs 25 Welwyn 15

Shelford Sharks 20 Welwyn 20

Shelford Wasps 10 Welwyn 20

In this three match series the honours were shared between Shelford and Welwyn.In the first match, a strong Shelford side continued their good form with a convincing 25-15 victory over the visitors, with two tries from George Shannon and one each from Harry Punshon, Joe Davies and Joshua Speechley.In the second match an excellent performance from a less experienced Shelford side resulted in a commendable 20-20 draw, with two tries from William Gelling and one each from Hugh Tomkys and Joshua Barrett.In the final match the least experienced Shelford side struggled but put together some good pieces of play in a 20-10 defeat, with tries from Keane Wyman and Sam Evans.Today’s players of the day were William Gelling, for scoring his first and second tries of the season in the Shark’s drawn match, and Keane Wyman, who received the ball on his own try line and proceeded to work his way through the entire Welwyn team to score a spectacular individual try at the other end.