London Scottish under 14s secured a fantastic 42-0 victory at the weekend against Barnet, reports Nick Whitear.
As the new arrivals to division 4, we were anticipating a serious challenge from our first league match of the season.
Some unfortunate absences due to injury and school commitments necessitated last minute position changes and a heightened wariness of the opposition.
The strong possession and recycling of Barnet from the kick-off suggested we were right to be concerned. The first ten minutes were a serious tussle that took the game either side of the halfway line. However, as the ball was played nicely wide by the Scottish line, full back Richard Anderson took full advantage to escape down the wing and secure the first points which were successfully boosted at the conversion by fly-half Huw Thomson.
Barnet came back strongly at the re-start and camped on the Scottish 22 forcing a redoubtable defensive effort by our boys. Repeated onslaughts led to some errors but despite the conceded penalties Scottish managed to force play back towards the centre of the pitch. It was during this recovery that Thomson chipped nicely forward for Tristan Odetie-Cabrera to collect at full pace and deliver the ball safely between the posts.
The game closed at half time with a Scottish score of 14 to nil.
The partnership of Thomson and Odetie-Cabrera continued to be fruitful in the second half with two tries in quick succession that were both converted to maximum points.
With the comfort of a bonus point and a four try margin, our team relaxed and brought out some of the flair that had won them promotion. Our new team members found this an encouraging atmosphere in which to display their skills and help maintain the upper hand.
Battling number 8 Joachim Ridley-Barker had given a sterling performance all through the match thwarting opposition attacks and driving our game forward. He was rewarded for his efforts with a try that successfully converted took the score to 35 to nil.
Barnet fought strongly to the end and a number of Scottish players came close to securing a try only to be thwarted by some brave tackling. However, the last points of the game were for the Scottish account bringing the result to 42 points to nil.
Scorers: Anderson, Odetie-Cabrera, Ridley-Barker, Thomson
Man of the Match: Joachim Ridley-Barker
Squad: Anderson, Bothamley, Conder, Downing, Duggan, Edgar, El-Essawy, Fraser, Hamer, Harding, Lado McAvoy-Murray, Odetie-Cabrera, Oliver, Parfitt, Ridley-Barker, Steafel, Thomson, Whitear, Wilson, Winter, Zander-Holder
