Season 2009-2010The only way to reply Frampton Cotterell RFC. 7 v 3 Whitehall RFC Frampton eagerly awaited this return fixture having seen an injury-weakened team loose against an impressive Whitehall team earlier in the season. The game played on a soggy pitch soon developed into a forwards slog, on the few occasions the ball being played out and not being utilised by either set of backs. With Frampton relying on a kicking game to gain terroritory and Whitehall using their large forwards to smash their way forward the game settled into a stalemate With chances few and far between Whitehall opted to kick their penalty for an infringement just outside Frampton’s 22, the ball was well struck between the post putting the visitors in the lead which they maintained up to half time. Frampton started off the second half with much more intent, with quick ball from the set pieces releasing the backs earlier allowing them to make inroads into Whitehall’s defence, midway into the half, strong running by Frampton’s inside centre Tavs saw him almost cross the line but being injured in the process forcing him to come off, without him Frampton’s back line became disorganised and started to loose their effectiveness, however from a well rehearsed lineout move Frampton’s attacked but were stopped 10 meters from the Whitehall’s try line, Ginge winning a quick ruck carried the ball forward with Davidge in support, 2nd phase Davidge won the ball from the ruck popped the ball nicely for the impressive Zack who carried over near the post for his maiden try for Frampton, Young blonde boy in front of his proud grandfather converted the try. There was only one thing for Whitehall to do and they did it, throwing their powerful pack forwards at every opportunity, with injuries to key players forcing Zack and Tavs off the field, Frampton gradually wilted under intense pressure, dropping deeper and deeper into their own half, strong leadership was called for and captain Ginge was up to the mark, leading his forwards by example with bone crunching tackles and momentous rucking, it was a long last ten minutes played mainly in Frampton’s 22, but Frampton despite their smaller pack size won more then their fair share in rucks and scrummaging, providing clean ball time and time again, allowing some fine defensive kicking by young blond boy which kept Whitehall at bay. As the clock slowly ticked down Whitehall made a final desperate surge but were held up over the line, in the resulting scrum Frampton won the ball against the head, clearing their lines setting up a well deserved victory for Frampton who now eagerly await next week final pre Christmas game against local rivals Aretians. It just wasn’t Whitehall’s weekend, with Captain Ginge showing the visitors how to quench your thirst in the after match formalities finishing off a great weekend for the ever-improving Framptons 16s Oh Yes Frampton Cotterell 10 – 5 St Brendan’s After two weeks of inactivity except in the skittle alley and swimming pool, with a lack of game preparation, this match was viewed with trepidation especially with injuries still prevalent and a few bad boys (yes we even have them at Frampton) grounded. Historically this fixture has always been a close encounter and the match certainly lived up to its billing. With the sun out and surprise surprise, no rain, both teams seemed to be content for a first half relaxing stroll on the beach with few memorable moments, the game constantly interrupted by petty infringements. Some initial St B’s breaks were snuffed out by Frampton’s up and coming replacement full back Sam Crawley who although playing in a new position ran the ball back with profit and tackled like a demon but otherwise the game rarely got going. Half time couldn’t come soon enough and after a doubling up of jaffa cakes and some coaching words of wisdom, Frampton maintaining better discipline then their visitors, gradually started to win possession and terroritory, the blond boys’, big and small, making St B’s pay for their indiscipline, finding touch with their accurate touch line kicking, with Sam Davidge ‘I may walk around on the pitch but I fly in the air’, controlling line out possession, St B’s were constantly on the back foot. Midway through the half, deep in the opponents territory, baby blond boy, from a penalty award, restarted quickly and ran with the ball, catching the visitors by surprise, drawing the defenders in he released the perfect weighted flat pass for Sam Bonny to crash over the line, for the opening score. Momentarily ST B’s heads were down and Frampton went for the jugular, from a well controlled scrummage on the opponents 22, Frampton’s scrum half, baby smudge went solo, ducking and darting, avoiding all the frantic tackling, diving low scoring a superb solo effort. With 5 minutes of official time remaining Frampton thought the game was in the bag, but St B’s had other ideas, coming back strongly, working a try, which started from deep within their own half, a number of quick phases leaving Frampton’s players strung across the park allowing a gap for the visitors to touch down in the corner. With the referee playing additional time, Frampton were put under pressure from a revitalised St Brandon’s, however stout defending, led by the emphatic tackling of Captain Ginge saw Frampton hold out, with the home spectators and coaches all asking where ‘the Sir Alex Fergusson’s extra time’ was coming from the referee eventually blew the final whistle. Another Frampton well deserved win, setting them up for some hard pre Christmas games to come with local rivals, Whitehall and Aretians. Frampton 19 Bristol Saracens 12 Frampton under 16’s ended a 3 week losing streak against a newly formed Saracens. Frampton were delighted to welcome Andy and his Saracens team who he had worked hard for the last 8 weeks to re-establish themselves after numbers had dropped off. With the heavy rain in the 2 days preceding this game and injury worries Frampton fielded a cobbled side together to play in better conditions than expected. From the start of the match Frampton must have had nightmares as the Saracens hooker caught the ball fromthe kickoff and dazzled and danced through the luckless Frampton defence to score the fastest try seen on the park which was converted. Hard work was called for and hard work was made of the game as the Frampton pack pounded away at a very tight Saracens 5 who were in no mood to fall over and lie there.Eventually after a prolonged spell of pressure told blonde boy delivered a well place kick and Monty collected the ball for Frampton sneaked unconverted try in and game on. No further points came in the first half and at 5-7 either team could have pulled one out of the bag.Second half saw Frampton playing with the Wind, rain; slope and TIDE run the ball at the Saracens back line and eventually went over for a 7 pointer 12-7 now it seemed that Frampton had the upper hand but again no one told the Saracens that this was the case. Saracens cont’d to make probing attacks and on several occasions made massive inroads only to be held by some frantic tackling by the Frampton forwards.Working the ball back towards the Saracens line Frampton applied enough pressure where in desperation saw hands into a ruck and a penalty awarded to Frampton who wasted no time and a quick tap by blonde boy saw a third try which was converted 19-7 “game over” no way.Saracen with their tenacity still would not concede they were beaten and attacked the Frampton line at every opportunity, with 5 mins to go Saracens worked the ball to the left hand wing and by applying pressure saw Frampton infringe by coming in on from the side. Calling for a Scrum saw the Saracens Scrum half pick up and dancing like a Gazelle left and right make the Frampton line then spinning off a tackle and grounding the ball to the delight of Saracen forwards.This was converted and with 2 mins to go Frampton had to fight to keep control, from the restart Saracens Frampton attacked and 5 mtrs out from the Saracen line again committed the cardinal sin of hands in the ruck, with the ref stating “when its dead its dead” the ball was tapped and the Saracens worked the ball through 5 phases to the Frampton’s 22mtr line then the ball was turned over and with the shouts of “kick it out” ringing in his ear Tav’s duly obeyed and brought the game to an end much to the delight of the Frampton spectators. Overall Frampton played the better rugby but it could have been so different if Saracens would have played their rugby as they finished.Frampton would like to thank Andy and his boys for a good game and wish them luck on their rebuild and look forward to a rematch at a later date. Peter Zaffiro Frampton under 16’s 5 Chew Valley 10 Improvement Seen Frampton travelled to Chew Valley for an eventful match. With confidence running high and 16 players Frampton thought Christmas had come early.From the start Frampton applied pressure on the Chew valley line only to be denied any score by some excellent defence work, with so many attacks being made gaps appeared in the Frampton line and after 10 minutes Chew Valley exploited this and ran in the first of their 2 tries which was unconverted. From the restart Frampton attacked the Chew line and then the spate of bad luck which has dogged Frampton this year started, 10 Mins before half time Joe Ferries twisted his Knee aggravating an old injury.With Joe off Ging had to plug the gap and played prop. Some extraordinary tackling from the Chew forwards saw 2 other players injured although able to carry on, Tav’s and Crawley must have thought they were pilots as both were taken off the ground and dumped only for the referee to speak to the offending player number 5 and asking him to “be more careful”.With the continuing pressure Frampton got to within 10 mtrs from the Chew line and from a set piece move saw Gingalocks peel of the front of a line out and score in the corner, with such an angle and the high wind Tav’s was unable to convert the try. Second half saw Frampton come out with the determination to put the game away, it was Chew who were under the cosh and all watching had the feeling it was a matter of time before Frampton scored again.On 3 occasions Frampton came within a whisker of crossing the Chew line but the defence held firm, on one occasion they did cross the line and after a long look was deemed as “held up”.15 minutes’ into the second half and against the run of play Chew pick up a loose ball and ran it at the Frampton back line , a little bit of panic and hands in saw a penalty awarded to Chew and the resulting Kick saw a line out 15 mtres out from the Frampton line. This should have suited Frampton as they were dominating the lineout but on this occasion Chew won their ball and a succession of rucks saw Chew work their way to within 5 mtrs of the line. A monstrous tackle saw Chew brought down short only for the ball to be passed back via the Squeeze ball and driven over for the second unconverted try.Frampton were somewhat miffed at the decision to allow the try to stand and again attacked from the KO which came the second and third bit of bad luck.Dan Chapman chased the kick and caught the Chew prop as he caught the ball dumping him big time but due to the impact Dan dislocated his shoulder and had to retire.5 minutes’ later and after 2 fantastic runs from Sam Crawley saw him make another break only to be tackled by the number 5 again and be dumped but on this occasion hurting his upper back and neck he also had to retire which left 13 players to face the last 5 mins against the 15 Chew players.Even with a depleted side Frampton showed their grit and kept hammering at the chew line, Blonde boy took a hit and had to be treated on the pitch but finished the game on his feet.Chew Valley must have felt a sigh of relief as the final whistle sounded although I do not think Frampton could have held out for much longer as numbers were the telling factor. The game was played as a fast pace and was very entertaining and both teams deserve the plaudits as nether side gave up.Man of the match for Frampton was Sam Crawley as each week he attacks the opposition line creating havoc and as he is playing in a full back roll to plug a gap it is remarkable that has taken to it without a second thought. Peter Zaffiro Frampton under 16’s 5 Gordano 41 Shock Defeat. Frampton were confident that the game against old rivals would be a corker; unfortunately a much improved Gordano spoilt the party and demonstrated that they are a side to be reckoned with.Frampton were in trouble within the first 15 min’s as Gordano ran in 3 tries and it looked like it was going to be one way traffic and a long afternoon for the home side. Quick off loading and support play was the key to Gordano’s unstoppable attacks which resulted in a forth try just before half time.All was not lost as the coaches held a halve time talk with the now dejected Frampton but the boys would not lie down. The first 10 mins of the second half saw Frampton hold their own and applied pressure on the visitor’s line only to have their attack rebuffed and the ball ran back at them. Two more tries for the visitors could have seen the collapse by Frampton but then came a somewhat unusual leader.Jake rampaging Bull decided enough was enough and started playing some his best rugby ever seen, picking the ball up from the base of rucks and charging at the opposition must have ignited the Frampton team to start playing rugby as they knew they could.One of Jake's runs was a moment of magic, taking the ball on from just in Frampton’s half and running like a gazelle down the right wing saw him tackled in the opponents 22 short of the 5 mtre line, from this a hand in the ruck saw a penalty awarded to Frampton ,Blonde boy saw an opportunity and a quick tap and off load to Sam the man Crawly resulted in a well deserved try. Gordano had one other advantage that Frampton could not match and that was numbers, with 24 in the Gordano squad replacements were made and fresh legs were always available to them, Frampton could only muster 15 players and this told as Gordano ran in two more tries to put the game in no doubt. Overall the game was a good indication of where Frampton are and what is required by them to compete. Although disappointed the boys held the heads high and won the most important game “The Drink Off” where Look at my hair Sheppard demonstrated his nurtured skill at drinking unlike his old man. Peter Zaffiro 25/10/09 Frampton under 16’s 10 Whitehall 22 Not a good day at the office, this was how the game was summed up.Frampton were again depleted of numbers due to injury and illness, never the less they travelled with 13 players to a much improved Whitehall side. Frampton had never lost to Whitehall in the last few years and the team were confidant possibly over confidant that this would remain the same.From the outset Whitehall laid down the gauntlet and ran the ball at Frampton’s defence, an horrendous late tackle on Frampton’s fly half Ed (Blonde Boy) Spalding so late in fact the ball was on the opposite wing before the tackle went in . Whilst the furore of this tackle was taking place an infringement saw a penalty to Whitehall 5 mtrs out from Frampton’s try line which saw a cavalry charge and try scored.When the referee questioned by Frampton’s captain was unaware that this was stopped some 2 years ago and the try was given.Just before half time a well worked move saw the Whitehall backs shipped the ball quickly across their line and an overlap saw a second try. Half time and a discussion by the team and coaches saw Frampton start the second half with a different attitude, moving the ball quickly from a ruck the Frampton backs shipped the ball to the right wing, outside ctr Bonny drew his man and popped the ball to who he thought was the wing but it was the speedy prop Joe (burnt Finger) Ferries who took the ball and with what can only be described as an excellent execution of try scoring drew the Whitehall wing and popped the ball to the ever present Dan ( 3 tries Brov) Chapman.!0-5 and all to play for, things then somehow got confused as the penalty count against Frampton went into double figures.Whitehall again scored a try and 17-5 down Frampton looked like they were on the back foot. From the restart the White backs collected the ball and drew in the Frampton defence and the ball sent to the left where the Whitehall number 10 ran in a 30 yard try, 22-10 surly this must have been the final nail in Frampton’s coffin, but no one told Tav’s, from a turn over ball Tav’s hoisted a high one and chased it putting pressure on the Whitehall full back who in turn fumbled the ball and sent the it spilling over the try line where Tav's pounced onto it for an excellent solo try.22-10 with 10 mins to play? Question Ref how long are you playing Answer 40 mins this half as agreed, Ref by whom??Law states no more than 35 mins each way and we agreed on 30 mins each way., play on. After 2 horrendous spear tackles and with 6 mins to play it was decided to call time for the safety of all concerned. Can’t wait for the rematch. Peter Zaffiro 18/10/09 Frampton under 16’s 29-14 Avonmouth Frampton travelled to Avonmouth looking to secure a second victory. Things did not look good as Avonmouth declared 12 players only but it was agreed that the game would go on with 12 aside. Frampton must have thought it was going to be easy when after 15 minutes they were 19 nil up with a hat trick again by the flying full back Toby (legs) Creed but no one told Avonmouth how it should have been , some quick handling saw the Avonmouth score a try which was converted then after more pressure and very sloppy tackling a punt to the right wing saw Frampton caught of guard and the chase was on, as the mighty Sam Crawley chased back he slipped and as he went down dragged the Avonmouth winger down with him, the Referee had no chioce but to award a penalty try which was converted and now it was game on. Frampton knew that if they continued as they were that Avonmouth would score again and victory would slip away. Half time and all the talk was about tactics but most of all our tackling, From the start of the second half tackling was the key, Whenever Avonmouth had possession they were hit hard so much so that the ball carriers were starting to shovel the proverbial. This in time paid dividends as hooker Josh (look at my Hair) Sheppard on two occasions pounced on loose ball to score 2 excellent tries. Avonmouth never gave up and was unlucky not to score their 3rd try when faced with a 2 to 1 Avonmouth drew the full winger but a forward pass denied them what would have been a well deserved try. Peter Zaffiro. 11/10/09 - Frampton under 16’s 33-10 Lydney Frampton ran in 5 tries in match against Lydney, a hat trick of tries by the impressive Toby creed was only matched by a Brace of tries from the new man on the block Dan Chapman. Lyndney honoured the fixture and travelled down with 11 players and Frampton loaned them 1 and both teams fielded 12players to make an exciting game for players and spectators alike. Both teams gave 100% and battled it out to the end much to the delight of both sets of coaches. The score did not truly reflect the closeness of the game but there has to be winners and losers as in all aspects of life. Frampton would like to thank Lydney for travelling as some clubs would have cancelled and would have missed out on a thrilling encounter. Peter Zaffiro. 27/09//09 - Frampton under 16’s 14-12 Aretians Frampton under 16’s were put in a position of calling on the services of 4 under 15’s to bolster up an injury and sick under 16’s squad. Making appearances were Joe (I got talent unlike my dad) Brookes, Henry (Look at me go) Ball, and the mighty William (Blue Blood) King, and the strangely tall Criag Penbold AKA Penfold. The match was predicted to be an end to end spectacle and lived up to that statement, both side's were not in the mood for losing and as the whistle sounded for the start of the first half the crowd fired off their vocal support, none more so the Will’s father. The first 20 mins was evenly contested but for some unknown reason Scrum have Smudge Smith was only firing on 3 cylinders and the decision was to replace him with the quick hands Brookes and give Smudge a de-coke. Aretians worked the ball well and through some decisive running and slap dash tackling scored their first try which was unconverted. Frampton were now under the cosh and intense pressure from Aretians could have opened up their defence but like the Battle of Britain Frampton waited but no attack came due mainly to the massive amount of work by Ging and the rest of the forwards who laid their bodies on the line. This must have inspired the backs to copy the forwards and Aretians were down to 14 players after a monstrous tackle from inside centre the gentle James Tarvener. The whistle was never so sweet when it sounded for the end of the first half giving the punch drunk Frampton time to recuperate. Aretians asked if they could play an under 17’s player and after comments from the players the coach Zaff (I am always right) decided to ignore the pleas of the team and allowed them to play him. The coaches hastily gave advice and put an emergency action plan together which ended with "if we lose we will blame Carvers lot", which after all said and done is the only reason we could or would offer. The second half started and a new air of confidence from Frampton could be felt all around, Aretians created an attack on the right flank and Frampton quickly snuffed this out and turned over the ball, this was quickly sent back by Joe Brookes to James the inside centre who tried an up and under only for it to be charged down by the under 17’s played who then collected it and promptly scored under the posts and was converted. Howls of outrage were thrown at the coach by all but Zaff held his ground and insisted that victory would be so much sweeter if Frampton held firm. 10 mins into the second half and the second lot of changes were made, Smudge was back on at scum half and Henry ball Came in on the wing, this was a stroke of genius by the coach as the fresh legs made a difference as a quick penalty by smudge sent the dynamic full back Toby Creed under the posts for a brilliant try which was converted. This sparked a revival for Frampton as the forwards grew in confidence and started to take the Aretians forwards apart, Some fantastic talking from the under 15 Henry Ball denied any chance Aretians had of breaking the Frampton defence, With 10minutes to go Frampton made a secession of probing attacks at the Aretians defence which resulted in a gap appearing which was quickly exploited by the Frampton backs, the ball was moved across the back line then a cheeky inside pass saw the great Monty cut deep into the Aretians defence and scored a fantastic try which was converted to put Frampton in the lead with 8 minutes to go. From the restart Aretians were not going to roll over and found some extra energy and battered away at the Frampton defence, with such ferocious attack the Frampton back line started to take injuries, the much improved Sam Crawley had to leave the field after sustaining a hand injury whilst carrying out a try saving tackle. A quick reshuffle saw William King back on in the back row to add an extra dimension to it.. When the final whistle sounded you could have heard the screams of delight in Frampton, the coaches were very pleased at the performance of the players and retired to the bar where adulation was poured on them followed by beers. My thanks to the 4 under 15’s who without a doubt showed their characters and never wavered under the pressure. My thanks also goes to my mum and Dad for having me and most of all my thanks to ME for having this gift. Peter Zaffiro. 02 Scrum on the BeachLusty Glaze Newquay Frampton Cotterell under 16’s entered 02 Scrum on the Beach afternoon competition.Saturday saw 32 teams in 4 pools of 8, Frampton Slum dogs played in their round robin and the guys put up sterling fight and went through to the next round, results were Win 8-1 lose 6-4 win 8-6.Sunday saw the draw and Frampton Slum dogs were placed into the plate competition and had to win their next 3 matches to go through to the knockout stages. This was a big ask as the squad had to decide if they wanted to play all those who came down and played the day before knowing that we did not have the strength in depth as other teams, or do we go all out for the win which meant that selection had to be tough and not all would play on Sunday but those that did would be very tired.The squad returned to the coaches and informed them they wanted to go for the win? This was a unanimous decision and selection was made and the 9 man squad was selected out of the 14 players available. The first game was not as hard as was expected and gave the coaches a chance of playing all the players this we won 8-6.The second was a hard fought contest but again Slum dogs ran out winners 6-2.The 3rd game was a battle royal as both teams wanted to go through to the knockout tournament, Frampton eventually won this game and deservedly so.After what seems an eternity the results were calculated and Frampton went straight through to the Plate final.Frampton faced a very fit adult team (Multi Scoregazums) who had won their round robin pool with results 9-1, 8-3, 7-1. The game started and Frampton scored almost immediately, no time for celebrations and we conceded a try from the KO. Again Frampton scored and again conceded a try, this continued until 4-4 then Frampton went to sleep and conceded a try putting us 5-4 down.Second half and Frampton struck back and levelled the score 5-5, we then went ahead 6-5 with minutes left, disaster a well drilled set piece and the score was 6-6. Seconds left to play and the thought of extra time and sudden death was looming from a fantastic attack through the middle Frampton sucked in the opposition’s defenders when the ball was released wide for a try to Frampton. The noise off the final whistle was the catalyst for the celebrations to start.Winning the Plate final was remarkable on 2 counts firstly this was the first time we had ever entered this kind of competition 5 a side in the sand and none contact, and secondly we had never really played tag rugby. Plate Winners Frampton Slumdogs were presented 10 England playing shirts by Paul Sakey and Josh Lewsey, pictures were taken and a lot of back slapping to be had. At the end of the day every single person 32 in all who came down to Newquay parents, players, and supporters were part of this win as they added something to the week endWhich was enjoyable for other reason apart from the rugby. Roll on next year. Peter Zaffiro
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