Lakes College host FE/6^th Form 10 a Side Tournament

As part of the developing relationship between the RFU, Cumbria Rugby Union and Lakes College West Cumbria the latter hosted a 10 a side Tournament for the FE Colleges and School 6^th Forms across Cumbria.

The festival was held on a sunny autumn day in Workington and attracted teams from across the North of Cumbria. The five teams who took part were Netherhall Sports College, St Benedict’s 6^th Form, St Aidan’s 6^th Form, Workington 6^th Form & Lakes College. The slippy underfoot conditions did not detract from all teams as they played open flowing rugby throughout the day.

All teams were very evenly matched as this tournament had a focus on development with the winning being second on the agenda. This tournament provided an opportunity to players who have played none or little Rugby Union to experience the sport. The players many of which are involved in local Rugby League found the general skill transfer easy with only the contact area causing problems.

Early in the tournament Workington 6^th form looked a well drilled outfit and won their games through hard work and perseverance with their game plan. St Benedicts also looked well organised and had a good balance across the team. St Aidan’s had a tough start to the tournament being the last team to get into action and took a couple of games to get into their stride, whilst Netherhall and Lakes College had mixed games as they adjusted to the new format.

The winners of the tournament were to be decided in the penultimate game of the tournament where Workington 6^th Form played St Benedict’s. In a tight game littered with early mistakes St Benedict’s were quickest to settle into their game and built an early lead 5-0. After the break the pressure exerted by the St Benedict’s  team finally broke down a resilient Workington 6^th Form leading to a further 2 unconverted scores. St Benedict’s ran out worthy winners with a 15-0 scoreline

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The presentation was conducted by tournament organiser Liam Nicholls – RDO Cumbria with Matthew Johnson – Lakes College presenting the trophy in the absence of Stephen Gilby who has been driving the partnership.

“The tournament was a great success, and feedback from all participants was very positive. It was great to see 80 players playing rugby who would otherwise not have been. Hopefully this positive experience will lead some of the players to take up the sport” said Liam Nicholls “We have ran a few rugby camps with the college with some good success but are looking to formalise these in the near future so we have a structured half term and summer programme in place for various ages.”

The teams were awarded 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for a loss, in addition to this bonus points were available for 4 tries or more and losing by 7 points or less. This kept the festival interesting and there was always something to play for.