As there was no U11s tournament in Al Ain, we entered an U11s team into the U12s competition.
We selected a very mobile side, but at the same time had to consider that we would be coming up against players a year older and therefore bigger.
The coaches were confident in the ability of the side and this was reflected in the first half of the opening game against Hurricanes 1, playing good expansive rugby to take a 14-5 lead into the half time break.
Obviously concerned by our quick, elusive play, Hurricanes made several changes at half time and decided to keep the ball in close and eventually the size and power of the older boys prevailed and Hurricanes won the match 5 tries to 3, despite our dogged and committed defence.
An unfortunate result as Quins were playing the more crowd pleasing rugby, but encouraging none the less, that the lads were not phased by playing up a year and showed real commitment even when going behind in the latter stages of the game.
Next up was the U12s Quins B team.
Once we absorbed some early pressure, we were able to break out for a well worked try involving the whole team. The ball was won by a solid scrum and passed along the line for a score in the corner. We were 2 tries to nil up at half time enforcing the U12s to make changes, but despite sustained periods of pressure, we also created good phases of play and won 3 tries to 2.
An entertaining game between two Quins sides with some nail biting moments for the U11s coaches towards the end of the game, but determined tackling in defence and the ability to turn defence into quick attacking moves saw the lads through to a well deserved and confidence building win.
Unfortunately, our last game of the day was against the eventual U12s tournament winners, Exiles 1. Maybe the lunchtime burgers took their toll, but our loss was primarily down to our opponents being a very well drilled squad, exhibiting accurate basic skills, a good understanding of the game and teamwork.
The Exiles team won clean forward ball which presented their backs with opportunities to score as we were forced to commit more to the breakdowns to stop their forwards momentum.
The Exiles played as a well tuned unit, the additional year of size, maturity and experience prevailing and we hope that our players have learnt from that expereience.
Having congratulated Exiles on their style of play, the U11s must also be congratulated for their part in the game. After all, we were the only team to score a try against the Exiles 1 team.
The lads continued to compete throughout the game and never let their heads go down and certainly let Exiles know they had been in a game.
A battle weary bunch, who had certainly made a very good account of themselves, left Al Ain ready to return on Saturday to do it all again.
Day 2
The players (and parents) emerged for the second day of the tournament buoyed by the success of the previous day. First up were Doha who were a fast, mobile team. The fact that they were all bigger than us meant that we had little clean ball from the set pieces and had to live off scraps. Once again you could not criticize our players’ commitment, especially in the tackle, nor our running skills with the ball in hand. Eventually, we lost to a single, breakaway try whilst failing to convert a couple of chances ourselves. Again, playing out of our age group, this was a more than commendable result, but more importantly, performance.
The outstanding results of the previous day meant that we ended up in the Plate Competition rather than the Bowl. Our semi-final was against our arch nemesis’s, Dubai III. At the end of two hard, long days, we lost to, what we have to accept is, a very good squad of players. For the third time in as many matches against them, we failed the cross their line. Generally, Dubai executed the core rugby skills of securing, protecting and retaining the ball and straightening the line in attack better than us. In addition, they had a better kicking game and working knowledge of how to exploit the blind side. Regarding speed and commitment, there was nothing to choose between the teams. Nor in commitment, either. Eventually they ran out deserved winners, three scores to nil.
Just a few reflections of a general nature. First, whether it was a combination of playing in an over age group, the intensity of a tournament or the fact that it is a year on, it was noticeable that the games were much more physical than last year’s. Several of our players took hard knocks but never became disheartened. This is all the more commendable bearing in mind that it was a two day tournament and rugby is not much fun when you don’t have very much clean ball. As a team, we played competitive but clean rugby and were always gracious and sporting in defeat (and victory). The players behavior was a credit to the club and their parents. Finally, the players’ intensity was such that it was easy to lose sight of the fact that we were playing outside our age group; that is just how high expectations are!
The squad of U11 Titans was
Alex Little
Chris Lincoln
Trent Freeman
Kaleb McDonnald-Rose
Will Hersey
David Richards
Jack Vevers
Chae-Leon Heindricks
Taylor Sullivan
Joel Pearson
Great performance, guys. Be proud of yourselves, the coaches are.
Rob Conchie and Mark Vevers
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