U14s - Leodiensians Vs Barnsley

Leodiensians 62 v Barnsley 0

For the second successive weekend Barnsley U14’s ventured up the M1 to Leeds for their fixture against Leodiensians; and to compound that groundhog day feeling even further they did so with only 15 players as the squad remains decimated by both injury and illness.

As finalists of the previous weeks tournament, Leodiensians were always likely to provide a stern test for the Barnsley lads, but nonetheless they showed great spirit and determination throughout despite the lack of replacements and several players having to play out of position.

With the game underway, the first 10 minutes proved to be an equally matched contest with neither side gaining the upper hand. Ben Thistlewood held the Barnsley scrum steady at tight-head and was ably assisted by locks Dylan Taylor and Sam Atkinson. Fred Butcher was his usual accurate self at the line out and a new star was found in Ashley Powell as he leapt like a spawning salmon to claim every ball that came his way. In the loose, Sam Owen and Luke Townsend continued to tackle like men possessed denying their opponents the opportunity to forge ahead.

Then with the scores still even, full back Paul Kelly soared above everyone on the edge of his twenty-two to claim a high ball before being hit in mid air by what was first thought to be a low flying Boeing 747 from nearby Leeds/Bradford airport. After several nervous moments Paul and his opponent gradually regained their composure. Unfortunately for Paul, despite showing great courage and athleticism in claiming the ball, he was unable to take any further part in the contest.

With no replacements, Barnsley were now down to 14 men; a fact which wasn’t overlooked by their opponents who went on to exploit the overlap for the remainder of the half, going in with a 38 point lead at the break.

After some words of encouragement and further reorganisation Barnsley displayed further determination at the start of the second half. The half back partnership of Stuart Corner and Jacob Lawton were beginning to find their range and provide the backs with quick ball which gave winger Aaron Westmoreland his first taste of evasive running with ball in hand. A special mention must go to Steven Warrior who was tackling anything that moved down his wing, with most of it being at least twice his size; as a result of this collective effort Barnsley were able to restrict their hosts to one further try.

Then disaster struck again as ‘Haggie’ Harrison ran a ball back into contact only to emerge from the tackle with an arm injury which saw him take no further part in the game. A last roll of the dice saw Barnsley pair the monsters of Jordan Darwin and Kyle Holmes in the centres in an attempt to stem wave after wave of attacks as Leo’s pressed home their numerical advantage to give a full time score line of 62 v 0.

Man of the Match awards went to Fred Butcher ( Forwards) and Jordan Darwin ( Backs) for their efforts.