Rockets Sparkle

With 2nd place in the league secured the previous week, the U12s welcomed Peterlee to CLV.

Illness meant a last minute rejig to the team sheet, with again the large squad available allowing the Rockets to call up an extra player to complete the 20 man team sheet. A few players were tried in different positions allowing greater flexibility in the squad going forward.

From the kick off the Rockets were on fire, great defensive line speed and communication put the team on the front foot from the off. Simple pressure forced a mistake and the rockets pounced on a loose ball, Alex Donaghy running clear to score the 1st of his 6 tries on the day!

Cramlington knew Peterlee had some game changers in their side and we had discussed a plan to neutralise them as best we could and in the 4th minute a game defining play cemented the Rockets domminance. The Pumas winger, AJ, received the ball and managed to break a couple of tackles, only to meet Nathan Clemmit at Full Back for the first time, Nathan hit AJ so hard the whole Peterlee team shuddered, the tackle not only saved a try but simply sidelined their best player.

Shortly after the rockets scored a great try as Ewan Goodridge made a surging run through the middle, commiting 2 defenders before producing a long pass to Leon Smith who drew the defender and popped a pass to ALex Donnaghy to score beneath the posts.

The rockets piled on the pressure and scored regularly through the first half scoring 2 further unanswered tries for a 24-0 half time score. Only some indiscipline at marker gifting Peterlee a few free sets of 6 which we continued to defend well.
At half time the Rockets were able to refresh the team and the new players continued to take the game to Peterlee, Leon "snake hips" Smith sidestepped his way through the defence to score his first rockets try.

But the biggest cheer of the day came when after 2 years of trying Oliver Robinson took the ball from a great dummy half pass and unleashed a 25m Rockets Rumble, knocking all comers from his path, to score his first league try for the club. The celebration of which showed how much it meant to him and his team mates.

Peterlee put on a late surge and scored 2 late tries, but it was all too little too late, but not before great covering tackling by Alex Donnaghy knocked the last remaining wind out of the Peterlee players with a hugh hit on AJ down the wing.

Overall a great game by Cramlington, scoreing 8 tries and 6 conversions. There were great performances throughout the team with Alex Donnaghy a massive player on the pitch, Adam Paterson playing in a new position of scrum half playing really well and Nathan Clemmit for his massive hits all being unlucky not to pick up man of the match awards. But for his first try the man of the Match was awarded to Oliver Robinson