After England beating Wales at Twickenham in the Six Nations, the U12 match against the visitors from Monmouth School had the potential to be a game full passion on both sides. However, unlike the international sides these two teams were determined to run the ball as much as possible, which provided for a very entertaining game.
The conditions were ideal for rugby and the Monmouth team was soon eager to show how good its back line was. Although the KEQMS boys were competitive in the battle of the forwards, the Monmouth team was very adept at moving the ball away from trouble very quickly and then producing quality passing out to the wing and outrunning our defence.
This slick handling by the Monmouth backs was made to look all the better when in comparison to the KEQMS passing, which was a lot slower and inaccurate at times, so when the breaks were made the Monmouth defence had time to regroup.
Despite the final score of 35-0, the KEQMS boys will have learnt a lot from this game. Their defence was outstanding at times and they never gave up working hard. In simple terms, the difference in the sides was the quality of the Monmouth rucking, as they always went over the ball, as well as the speed of the passing along the backs. Simple skills were executed very well. After the match, the Monmouth coach, Welsh rugby legend John Bevan, was fulsome in his praise for the way in which the KEQMS boys had stuck to the task. There is no doubt that this team has a lot of potential, and if the players keep working on their basic skills their next 'international' match might produce a quite different result.
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