Maidstone vs Ashford Under 13s

It was an extremely wet and windy Sunday at Ashford and several of the pitches looked close to unplayable. However, after some energetic sweeping of the surface water it was decided to proceed with the Under 13s fixture. Conditions underfoot (or underwater in some places) were atrocious and it was a credit to both teams that they were able to play some good rugby despite this. The first half saw Ashford press the Maidstone line hard on several occasions but Maidstone’s defence was solid and both the Forwards and the Backs were tackling and working hard. As it has been all season, the Maidstone scrum was unyielding and though the opportunities were limited Maidstone Backs did manage to break the Ashford lines several times, which was an encouraging sight. The first half ended with Maidstone preventing Ashford from scoring in the corner and there was good defence from several Maidstone players notably Ben Hollingsworth, Jamie Jeffrey and Dan Eastwood. First Half score 0-0.

The 2nd period began with a strong Maidstone surge into the last third of the pitch. Now it was Ashford’s turn to defend, Maidstone were winning ball and taking it through several quick phases. Ashford fought hard and to their credit they were able to stop the Stones as they looked certain to score. Ashford had pushed Maidstone back to beyond the 20mtr line and it was their scrum. The Maidstone Forwards chose this opportunity for a big push and won the scrum against the head, quick ball went to Zach Murphy at centre and he went on a marauding run for the line, he beat several tackles and just when it looked like he’d be held up the support came and drove him over for an excellent try. The conversion was missed. Unfortunately for Maidstone for the next 10-15 minutes it was fairly consistent Ashford pressure and this resulted in two tries out wide, one of which was converted. Maidstone didn’t lie down and actually dominated both possession and territory for the final 10 minutes of the game. Strong runs from Ali Moss, Ed Craddock and Dan Eastwood were only thwarted by the slipperiness of the ball, which at this stage looked (and felt) like a wet bar of chocolate, and the very poor state of the pitch for effective running. There were no further scores and the game finished 12-5 to Ashford.

The Ashford coach made a point of coming over to the Maidstone team and congratulating them on the way they’d played, particularly their commitment to the rucks, which Maidstone dominated throughout the game. This was another strong performance from the under 13s, building on last weeks victory. In better conditions they may well have scored more tries and, in general, the effort and commitment of the whole team could not be faulted.