Henry Dowswell Mini Festival Sunday 26th February 2006. Under 7’s report. This was our first competitive outing since October and what a great start to the next couple of months, during which we have three other festivals. The day started cold and windy. The first challenge of the day was to set up the tent, without it blowing away. The wind and sleet were sent to test us, but man (and two women) overcame the elements to succeed in providing a shelter for all. Our first game was against Maidstone, who were an unknown entity. We started off slow going down to an early Maidstone try. This galvanised the team, who put the wind and sleet to one side and played as a unit. Max Talliss started us off, putting his snake hips to great use as he weaved through the Maidstone defence. Tries followed from Harry Gibson, Joe Bennett and a second from Max before half time. The second half started with some great tagging from the boys and tries from Matthew Clarke, Harry Scott-Munro, Tom Buckle and two more from Max. Maidstone managed to sneak another try in before the final whistle. 9 - 2 to us and off to a great start. Old Elthamians were unable to attend the festival and so Sidcup put out a second team to fill the space. Again we needed a kick to clear the chill out of the bones and went down to an early try. Great tagging and passing play, followed during both halves resulting in tries from Cameron Grant, Scott Thomas and two each for Ben Steward and Tom Buckle. Final whistle gave us a 6 - 2 win. The boys worked together and were proving to be a force to be reckoned with ! The Beccs were on roll, nothing was going to stop them. However, in between matches they could be found, chilling in the tent, munching on chocolate and reading copies of The Beano and The Dandy, whilst dreaming of playing for England ! or being Dennis the Menaces’s best mate ! Our final pool game was against Beckenham, who had also won both their proceeding games. This game was important for two reasons, one being local pride and the other to end as pool winners. Ben Steward opened our account, which was quickly neutralized by Beckenham. Two more tries by Max were again neutralized by great tagging and supporting play by both teams leaving the score very tight at 3 -3 by half time. In the second half we managed to get two early turnovers, which Max capitalised on for two more tries. Beckenham applied the pressure and with one minute left the score was 5- 4, with most of the play going Beckenhams way. A great steal and passing move left Harry Scott-Munro free to run for the line and put the final score at 6 - 4. We ended the pool section as winners. The boys had all played extremely well in difficult conditions and deserved their position. Both of us were immensely proud of what they had achieved. As usual our supporters were the most vocal on the U7 pitches! You know who you all are ? It was very tight but the fog horn trophy was awarded to Sarah Talliss. Ear plugs will shortly be available on request, sponsored by AXA. The pool winners final for the Henry Dowswell cup was against Sidcup A. The boys were geared up for the game and chomping at the bit by the time we eventually found a ref ! Sidcup quickly showed their colours and rushed to a 2 - 0 lead by half time. The boys showed great strength of character and pulled together to push Sidcup hard in the second half. But by final Whistle Sidcup were deserved winners at 4 -2. Beccs tries being scored by Max and Harry Scott-Munro. The boys have done themselves proud, in their first competitive competition of 2006. Both of us were left on a high with our heads in the clouds with pride at how well the boys had performed, representing themselves and Beccs. The Beccs man of the tournament and player of the week was Ollie Gadd, for his great supporting play and tagging skills. A big thank you has to be given to Sidcup RFC for a fun and well organised event and to Conner Goulds for coming along to support his Beccs team mates. As usual a very big thank you has to go out to the parents, who stood there in the cold and sleet supporting the team. Several must have had sore throats the following day, one Mum was so overcome, she had to go home and take to her bed! A massive thank you has to go out to those of you who helped pack away the tent, it made one think of the joke ‘ how many men does it take to……..?’ and we have the photos to prove ‘just’ how many. Andrew & Rod.