
Under
12 XVs |
|

Killicomaine's
finest |
|

Tyrone
Crystal presented to King Henry ref |
|
|
Thirty
seven boys and four teachers from Killicomaine Junior High School
experienced the ninth annual rugby tour to King Henry VIIIth school
in Abergavenny, near Cardiff in March 2007.
:: :: ::
On arrival, this year's under 12 and under 13 squads were introduced
and welcomed by their opposite's family who were to host them for
the forthcoming four nights. So with a mixture of excitement and
trepidation the Killicomaine pupils were taken off for a night's
rest before their visit to the Millennium Stadium the following
morning.
|
Thursday
then was spent walking in the footsteps of their heroes at the
stadium in Cardiff as both Killicomaine and King Henry squads
were guided from the players' changing rooms to the royal box.
Even with so much at their fingertips today, the boys could not
fail to be impressed by the sheer size and awesome statistics
of the venue.
:: :: ::
Leaving Cardiff around midday, both schools were then driven to
Newport where they had the opportunity to let off a little steam
at the swimming pool. Here some more conscientious players decided
to shift focus instead to the upcoming matches of the afternoon
against Crickhowell. An hour later this focus was intensified
as the Crickhowell squads raced onto the pitches, eager to set
an example of Welsh strength to the touring side.
:: :: ::
After
two energy sapping halves apiece the Killicomaine boys emerged
triumphant, two impressive victories under their belts and dreams
of the first ever win on King Henry soil firmly planted in their
minds.
|

Under
13 XVs |
|
|
Friday saw the local boys experiencing life in the mines at Blaenafon's
Big Pit where they were dressed with hard hats and miner's lamps
and taken 130 metres down into the depths of Welsh history.
:: :: ::
Friday
afternoon had arrived and there was no turning back from the challenge
of King Henry on home turf.
::
:: ::
Ryan
Calvert's (centre) under 12 XVs and Matthew Davison's (prop) under13
XVs had the weight of expectation on their shoulders as they ran
onto the pitches, the chants from the sidelines 'be afraid, be very
afraid' echoing in their ears.
:: :: ::
After
a disturbingly early try from King Henry in the under 12 match,
Matthew McDonald (outhalf) turned the game around only minutes later,
scoring both try and conversion to take the score even up to half
time. Matthew went on to score two further tries, one of which came
from a cleverly stolen ball along with a further conversion. 19-7
with everything to lose. The outhalf then broke quickly away and,
tackled five metres from the line, got the ball to captain Ryan
Calvert who went on to score the final two tries with Matthew converting
one, leaving the final score line at 31-7 to Killicomaine. A jubilant
team celebrated the first KJHS victory at King Henry, with Jordan
Elliot, hard-working and consistent prop, taking the man of the
match ball.
|

King
Henry's Mark Stockham shaking the victorious hand of Killicomaine's
Alistair McCaffrey |
|

In
white, under 13s man of the match |
|

Centre
left, under 12 Man of the match |
|
The
under 13s had a more gruelling match against a strong hosting
side, with Matthew Gribben (no 8) scoring the only try, to be
converted by Michael Busby (outhalf). The match remained at 7-5
to Killicomaine up to half time, with fear building in the minds
of King Henry staff! With a combination of tries, one penalty
and a conversion though, it was the Welsh who took the final score
up to 45-7 leaving Matthew Gribben taking the man of the match
ball, King Henry's winger, Luigi Ocampo, proving to be simply
too fast and too strong for the local boys.
::
:: ::
After
Friday night's celebrations the pupils spent a free day on Saturday
with their hosts. Hunting, quad-biking and more rugby of course
were enjoyed by some, whilst others experienced the beauty of
the surrounding Brecon Beacons.
::
:: ::
The
tour complete, memories created and friendships firmly secured,
Killicomaine departed in the early hours of Sunday morning, waved
on by the ever present warmth and generosity of their Welsh counterparts.
A trip to be remembered for its healthy rivalry and good humour,
Killicomaine's diary will always have a place for King Henry and
this successful touring tradition.
|
|