Tiverton U16s 26

Okehampton U16s 12

OKEHAMPTON started the strongest and within the first minute stole the opposition's lineout just in Tiverton's half and set up a driving maul which took them up to the five metre line.

The visitors, however, gave away a free kick which allowed Tiverton to relieve the pressure. It did not take long for the pumped up Oke side to work their way back towards the try line and for the next 10 minute kept Tiverton pegged back on their line.

Tiverton managed to relieve the pressure through a slick handling move out to their winger who was just stopped 10 metres out.

Okehampton forwards were dominant over the opposition, winning scrums consistently against the head and  stealing the opposition's lineout; eventually the pressure paid off and Oke scored under the post to lead at half time.

Tiverton scored out wide after another strong run from their big centre, but Okehampton hit back next with Daniel Thorne darting over from five metres out to score his second try.

With 10 minutes left on the clock Tiverton scored again out wide to level the scores. The young Oke side had given it all and were physically drained and Tiverton sensed this and took full advantage to score two more converted tries. This was a great committed performance by the Oke team who made the coaches proud.

Kingsbridge U14s 19

Okehampton U14s 17

THE visitors started brightly enough against a well-respected, well-organized and physically strong Kingsbridge side.

A kick from Daichi Budman for Oke was blocked, but quickly mopped up by the forwards and from the resulting ruck Tom Stevens was able to make his mark on the game with his signature pick and go, diving over for Okehampton's first score.  A good kick from Jim Finley went tantalizingly wide in the swirling wind.

The first scrum from the restart looked good and there were signs of the determination shown in the first few games of the season.  It was short-lived, however, as in the next few scrums Kingsbridge showed their prowess with some powerful, controlled play that put Okehampton under immense pressure.

Oke's rucking became less and less urgent and they began to lose their scrums.  The boys were on the back foot, and if it hadn't been for some fearless tackling from George Harding and Ethan Baker on the wing Kingsbridge would have found a way through for a score. The game now settled into an intriguing ebb and flow, with moments of concerted effort from the team where they looked to be finding their rhythm, only to let themselves down with some poor handling, loose passing, missed tackles and, more tellingly, no support in the ruck. 

Kingsbridge were quicker to the ball and the inevitable equalising try came from a passage of clean, simple passing from the home team.  The conversion gave Kingsbridge a 7-5 lead.

After the restart Kingsbridge continued to press with some intelligent and accurate kicking, but Oke defended well, which allowed Nathan Tomkins and Tom Stevens to make some penetrating runs to push Kingsbridge back into their own half.

Kingsbridge moved the ball along the backs and when their number 10 spotted a gap in the Oke defensive line he dummied cleverly to cross the line.  The conversion gave Kingsbridge a 14-5 lead.

There were moments of good work for Oke, especially from Ollie Browne, Tom Whitmarsh and Tom Arthurs and despite some flat running, a series of errors and poor decisions, Oke defended their territory and managed to win another lineout to give Tom Stevens the chance to accelerate and power his way to the Kingsbridge line and score.  Another great kick from Jim Finley hit the upright leaving the score at half-time 14-10.

The second half was almost a carbon copy of the first with Oke defending well.  A penalty from a mistake in the scrum was a little too close to Oke's try line and Kingsbridge duly punished Oke with another score to make it 19-10.

Credit to the Oke boys, however, for not letting their heads drop and good work in the ruck allowed Daichi Budman to make a scything run to just inside Kingsbridge's 22.  Oke recycled the ball to drive close to the line and won a penalty for offside.  From the tap Tom Stevens collected at speed to cross their line like a juggernaut for his third score.  Jim Finley duly converted to make the score 19-17.

Unfortunately for Oke the final whistle denied them the opportunity to capitalize on their improving play.

Tavistock U14s 50

Stonehouse U14s 0

TAVISTOCK showed how their win against Okehampton last week has improved their confidence, as they cruised to a comfortable win against a resilient Stonehouse team.

First half tries from Tavistock's Tom McKensie, Connor Baker, Toby Teague, Archie Allen and Zac Gorton put Tavistock in a strong position even though they were playing against the wind. The second half saw Lachlan Fulton, Peter Bull and Jude White also get over the line, showing that all members of the team are able to score points from any position. It was, however, the great spirit and the communication between the players that really saw the team gel together and produce such a good performance.

The depth of the squad meant Jacob Houlberg, Charles Perfect, Lachlan all stepped into the play seamlessly. Luke Lewandowski marshalled the backs with authority to make sure Tavistock did not concede in the dying minutes despite the best efforts of Stonehouse and credit should be given to the Sharks for keeping at Tavistock for the whole game.

Tavistock U14s have now gone three games without conceding a point and hope to continue this run against Bude in two weeks time.

Tavistock U13s 20

Exmouth U13s 28

THIS was a superb display of junior rugby from two evenly matched sides. The difference was that Exmouth scored under the posts and made all conversions, while Tavistock scored wide and did not.

The Tavistock pack carried on where they left off last week with some strong rucking and quick ball but Exmouth struck first after some strong straight running from their second row.

Missed tackles dogged the Tavistock team throughout the game and allowed Exmouth to take control.

James White equalised for Tavistock after some good continuity and round the corner work from the forwards. Harry Richardson made good use of a five metre scrum after being held up over the line and powered through to take Tavistock into a 10-7 lead. Some great cover tackling form Harry Edwards at full back kept Exmouth at bay for a while, but the strength of running of the Exmouth lock created two more converted tries before half time,

The second half saw Tavistock under pressure almost straight from the kick- off with another Exmouth try but they never gave up and pulled two tries back — again from forwards' quick thinking by Tavistock player of the match Harry Richardson with Matt Davey making great use of a knock on advantage.

The centre partnership of Dan Pett  and Jacob Hill created  numerous chances in attack for Tavistock with Charlie Meakin and Owen Staples being unlucky to meet some strong tackles after making breaks.

Okehampton U11s 1 try

Kingsbridge U11s 7 tries

IT was a great start to the game, with Okehampton on top form, passing out, using the line, attacking and moving in the right direction with Marcus scoring within the first five minutes and things were looking good.

Alex played an excellent game, with loan taking the opposition down, Jo kicking and Jacob running the line as Oke were so close to scoring. With an attacking line that prevented Kingsbridge from scoring despite being a mere metre away from the try line Oke really pulled it out of the bag and took control with Ethan tackling again and again.

This game, although a lot slower for Okehampton in the second half, was exciting to watch and see that when working together the team are a force to be reckoned with.

Okehampton U10s 10

Kingsbridge U10s 30

THE match was played in four quarters due to the number of visiting players. Captained by Shortie a competitive visiting Oke team were challenging from the outset with teams of equal ability but with different styles of play.

A quick first try from Kingsbridge woke the visitors up. For Oke Shea was tackling quickly from the scrums. Lachs, Callum and Josh were all working close to the try line for Okes and played the ball away quickly.

Adam prevented a Kingsbridge try by keeping the ball up and not allowing the player downward pressure to score. Some strong defending was seen from the home team throughout.

The next quarter was captained by Will who used his force well to move up the pitch. Dan, Chris and Jacob worked hard in the scrums. Alex is certainly having a great start to the season and really throwing himself into the game; there was also superb tackling from Ben. Two great tries were scored by Saul.

The third quarter saw the Oke side really pulling together and driving relentlessly towards the opposition's tryline. Unfortunately the game was abandoned at that point due to a Kingsbridge injury. Okehampton players of the match were Lachs and Saul.

Kingsbridge U9s 12

Okehampton U9s 45

THE first ten minutes saw Kingsbridge with a slight edge, aggressively attacking Okehampton's try line, but denied any points through staunch defence. 

The floodgates opened when Daniel Tomkins, who had a superb first half, burst through the middle of the Kingsbridge defence, to touchdown for the first of his three well taken tries. 

The teamwork and support play by forwards and backs alike was superb from thereon in, with the whole squad growing in confidence as the game progressed. 

Oke fullback, Will Cunningham, who had a great game, bagged two tries of his own, and from a turnover ball on his own try line, set up Greg Haste on a near full length pitch run, to touchdown for a try.  Barnaby Waddell put in a hardworking, determined performance. 

Jack Rutley had a sound game in the pack as did James Stevens, who tackled relentlessly, and number eight Saul Holliday, whose work rate around the field was tirelessly effective.

The start of the second half saw Okehampton take their foot off the pedal, allowing Kingsbridge to score two well deserved tries. 

Okehampton ended the game on a high with great interlinking of backs and forwards, to see Barnaby Waddell through from halfway, to cross Kingsbridge's line just before the final whistle. 

This really was a great display of solid defence, much improved tackling, and outstanding attack play, by every member of the team.  Conversions came from James Close (3) and Joshua Burgoyne (2). 

Saltash U7s 55

Tavistock U7s 50

ANOTHER great turnout of 21 players for Tavistock U7s. The first game was a narrow defeat with quick individual tries from Oliver, Kier and George.

Saltash U7s 50

Tavistock U7s 50

THIS was a hard fought draw. Imogen and Elliot for Tavistock scored well worked tries through the majority of the Saltash line.

The squad are making great strides forward in understanding the game better, particularly in running in support of each other with Isaac, Rory and Ben scoring tries from quick off loads following a tag tackle. Great progress has been made with each game.

Okehampton U7s

Kingsbridge U7s

OKEHAMPTON's first match of the season was at home to Kingsbridge.

IN the first Okehampton one played well, keeping a good defensive line with excellent tagging and scoring. Some top team tries from Jacob (7), Rocco (4), Molly (6) and Ryley supporting his team mates superbly.

Okehampton U7s

Kingsbridge U7s

OKEHAMPTON two were keen from the start and when the team got organised, scored some good tries.  Oke team tries were scored by Ciaran (5), Finley, Wilf (10) and Lily (3). It was a good start to the season by the teams.