27 September 2016
1st XV v St Ambrose 1st XV
WON 52-0
Kirkham Grammar School 1st xv faced a tough fixture verses Queen Ethelburgas College(Leeds Carnegie Academy) and had fight hard to gain a well-deserved victory scoring 7 tries to their opponents 2 .Leading the way was Captain Aaron Reed who was in top form scoring 2 tries. He was well supported by fellow centre Matt Gallagher who also got on the score sheet as did vice-captain Henry Pearson who scored a fine individual effort. The win was a good team performance against good quality opponents and this was reflected by the forwards who drove their opponents over the line twice for tries for Matt Woodward and Teddy Leatherbarrow. Fly half Kieran Wilkinson was very much involved in controlling the Kirkham performance and he converted four tries for a 43-12 victory.
KGS then made 9 changes for their fixture with St Ambrose College but continued in their winning ways with a 52-0 victory with good performances and tries from Nathan Pope, Leon Simpson and Josh Moreau. The team now look forward to hosting Lancaster RGS at their Ribby Road ground next week.
2nd XV v St Ambrose 2nd
WON 40-12
The 2nd XV won this clash against plucky St Ambrose with Kirkham winger Andrew Bullman the difference between the sides, his 5 tries came from powerful surges along his left wing. Kirkham went ahead early in the game as Bulman streaked past defenders to score close to the corner. The home forwards enjoyed plenty of possession in the early stages which allowed fly half Harley Dewhurst to pull the strings in the middle of the field. St Ambrose were certainly in no mood to surrender as they tackled from first whistle to the last, however Kirkham used their possession wisely to release Bulman who made in roads every time he touched the ball. Alfie Topping, who once again continues to perform consistently well, scored the other Kirkham try after neat play from Dewhurst. Ambrose kept coming back at Kirkham and refused to buckle, they had the final word as their forwards re-cycled the ball through pick and drives to advance toward the Kirkham line, eventually scoring the final try of the game.
U16 v St Ambrose
WON 12-10
An injury ravaged U16 played with a lot of spirit against a strong St Ambrose team. Several squad players stepped in to play full games, displaying determination in a dogged team display. Nathan Wood and Will Gregory kicked sensibly, to keep Kirkham playing rugby in the oppositions half. The rugby played by Kirkham was largely simple but effective. St Ambrose countered with some gifted runners causing in roads. However St Ambrose were not able to maintain discipline at any stage of the game, which ultimately may have cost them a more positive result. Kirkham move on to a test against LRGS next week.
U15 v St Ambrose
WON 12-5
The first half was fiercely contested with both sides defending with determination. There were very few scoring chances for both sides, however Elliot Callow crossed the line for Kirkham after the backline took advantage of some turnover ball and quickly moved it wide for Callow to finish in the corner. Ambrose managed to level the score just before half time, with a simple overlap. The second half saw Kirkham now playing uphill and into a strong wind. Ambrose had the majority of the field position but were unable to capitalise. Kiirkham had two chances to score in the second half, the first when they took a quick tap penalty on their own try line and quickly put Archie Cooper into space on the left wing. Unfortunately he was tracked down by the Ambrose full back. The second chance, again from their own line saw skipper Oliver Barnet break down the short side from the scrum and link with Callow. Callow finished off the move beating the full back to score his second try and secure the win. Sam Davies added the extras with his successful conversion.
U14A v St Ambrose
WON 25 v 15
St Ambrose started strongly and Kirkham after defending resolutely on their own try line eventually allowed the opposition over for their first try. However, with quick ruck ball after a break from the backs Matthew Sutcliffe forced his way over the line for an excellent try. Tom Coulston then rounded his opposite number to score another try after Ted Bruce had made a clean break from the kick off. The backs were now moving the ball well and Aaron Pope joined the line to go in at the corner. In the second half a strong St Ambrose pack came back with two tries and it was only due to the excellent defensive work of the whole team but most notably Will Andrews, Sam Higgins, Rhys Dodd and Rory Pendergast that stopped further tries. The momentum then turned back to Kirkham on the back of this strong defence when Alex Carson scored two excellent tries to ensure a well deserved and disciplined victory.
U14B v St Ambrose
WON 41-15
The U14 B's fort hard against a well drilled St Ambrose side. From the outset they were on the back foot, defending wave after wave of clinical play from their opposition backs. After a slow start KGS found their feet and started to put some phase play together themselves. Some patient play led to Chudi Ezeigbo scoring a try, then two more in quick succession. This was a little too late for Kirkham who ended the game as the side on top putting St Ambrose under huge pressure.
U13A v St Ambrose
WON 35-10
In their third fixture of the season, the Kirkham u13s travelled to St Ambrose looking to build on their efforts in training earlier in the week. Kirkham started strongly, with the new front row of Rowlins, Thompson and Livermore creating a strong platform in the scrum from which Crompton and McNamee were able to dictate the play.
The game settled as the half progressed, but Kirkham played the game in their opponents half, which enabled them to break the deadlock after 5 minutes, with a swift run down the left wing. The Kirkham side gathered momentum and after another pleasing set piece, the ball was moved down the back line to Jake Merrick, who hit a hard line through the midfield and touched the ball down to bring KGS 0-10 up. Ambrose responded well and were able to level the score moments later, as they took advantage of a series of infringements which crept them toward the Kirkham line. Parkinson managed to score at the stroke of half time after some useful interplay between backs and forwards.
Buoyed by their improved performance in the first half, Kirkham maintained their efforts and with some intelligent play at fly half, Mcnamee put Kirkham on the front foot. Terrific work at the break down from Merrick, Anderson and Thompson increased the Kirkham possession and led to further scores from Parkinson and a try from a penalty from Medcalfe made Kirkham eventual winners, despite a tenacious fight back from the home side.
An improved performance from the Kirkham outfit, who showed better discipline in their shape and structure than previous weeks, but will recognise that they still have areas to work on before their visit to Lancaster next week.
U12B v St Ambrose
LOST 50-0
This game was a very tough match for the young KGS side. St. Ambrose were a well drilled squad with a few good quality players in key positions. Ambrose got a lot of joy at the breakdown and as such spent large periods of the game with the ball in their possession. Ambrose were very good a shipping the ball out wide quickly to two fast wingers who scored in the corners on five or six occasions. Unfortunately for KGS, Ambrose kept the intensity high for the full duration of the match and never wavered from their high levels of performance. This resulted in a score of KGS 0-50 St. Ambrose at the final whistle. Some positives for KGS were that the players showed good maturity after the match and identified their errors and areas to work on, and accepted the loss as a learning curve.
U12A v Birkdale
WON 60-25
This game was a very good match for a young KGS side and one which they dominated. KGS were winning good ball at the breakdown which allowed them to play some attractive rugby with ball in hand. The first half was very much in the favour of KGS who ran in 6 tries, although Birkdale also managed to play some good quality rugby and get some points on the board. The second half was dominated by KGS who ran in another 7 tries with only two in reply for Birkdale resulting in a final score of KGS 65-25 Birkdale. The three star players for KGS, Charlie Read, George Edwards and Archie Dowds all scored two or three tries a piece in this convincing KGS victory.
Other results:
U12A v St Ambrose LOST 35-20
U12B v Birkdale WON 20-5
U13B v St Ambrose LOST 45-10