Youth Rugby Team Plays English School Team
On Sunday 10th April 2016, the Bermuda U13 National Rugby team took on Yardley Court School U13 at Police Field. Yardley Court School who are based in Kent, England have been coming to Bermuda for the past few years during their Easter break playing Rugby, Cricket and Football whilst on island.
“For the Bermuda team, this was a great opportunity for both U12 and U14 teams to mix together and get some value game time as they prepare for upcoming tours to the UK [April] and Bahamas [May] respectfully,” a spokesperson said.
“The game started better for the visitors capitalizing on Bermuda’s slow start picking two tries in quick succession. However, Bermuda worked their way back into the game with a brilliant solo try try from Khabir Dill who caught the ball of the restart, beat the oncoming defenders and had the pace to go the length of the field to score.
“This was followed by an opportunistic try from Lachlan Stewart who’s intercept try brought the home team back into the game. Half-time 10-10. After the break, Bermuda picked up where they left off with strong runs from George Peets and Moses Simmons.
“This effort was rewarded with a excellent score from George Peets, who was put into space by William Nokes and showed great pace to score in the corner. Yardley responded however, with well with two well executed set-piece moves off their scrum and lineout. The home team held their own in defense but the constant pressure gave way to two more well executed scores by Yardley Court. Final score – 30-20 to Yardley Court.
Gareth Nokes, BRFU Youth Rugby Chairman and U12 Head Coach, said “This was an excellent opportunity for us to play against some quality opposition ahead of our upcoming tour to the UK later this month.
“If we’re honest, at times we looked a little undercooked following the Easter break but I believe this wake up call we needed. We’ve got just over two weeks before taking going to the UK this game helped highlight some of our strengths and weaknesses – so this puts us in good shape moving forward”.
Patrick Calow, BRFU Youth Development Officer and U14 Head Coach added: “We’re thrilled to welcome back Yardley Court back to Bermuda for the 4th straight year. Anytime we get to a chance to play against different opposition on home soil is great for us.
“To mix our U12’s with some of the 13 year olds in the U14 squad was fantastic with most of them playing against each other in the Digicel Middle School league, I think they enjoyed playing together for a change! It’s also really good for them to get to know each other better as we hope they will play rugby together for Bermuda for many years to come.”
Bermuda U13 Squad was: William Nokes, Jay Dunleavy, Gareth Cooper, Lachlan Stewart, Moses Winfield Simmons, Nik Froud, Frank Arnold, Brian Desmond Jnr, Mateo Rylee Moniz-Pascoe, Dylan Craft, Jaedyn Clarke, Jayvyn Iris, George Peets, Devin Augustus, Markus Mussen, Ashton Butterfield, Markel Mussen, Zaire Lodge, Khabir Dill and Ryan Manders.
Fantastic to see so many kids have a blast! Rugby is doing its part for Sports Tourism in Bermuda! Hard to believe that Yardley have been coming four years in a row. The memories and friendships that are being forged will last a life time.
The BRFU is committed to promote World Rugby’s core values of Integrity, Solidarity, Discipline and Respect. As a national sporting body and an apolitical charitable organization, our ethos is that we treat everyone equally and with respect. We want rugby to be a positive influence , facilitating opportunity and growth for all.
“Rugby provides a unifying spirit that leads to life-long friendships, camaraderie, teamwork and loyalty which transcends cultural, geographic, political and religious differences.”
The work that Gareth Nokes and Patrick Calow are doing for the BRFU epitomizes everything that is good about the sport of rugby. Well done to all.
I attended a Beyond Rugby session with my son a while ago and was blown away with what I saw. teaching all sorts of skills =- above rugby skills. Good stuff!