This weekend the Fullerians U16s got their season off to a great start, welcoming Reading RFC to Coningesby Drive as both teams continued their preparations for the upcoming league campaigns.

With new opposition for both sides, it was a great opportunity to test ourselves in different ways, experiment with combinations and give players the chance to experience new positions and responsibilities.

We were also delighted to welcome Matthew and Luca back into the squad, with both slotting in as though they’d never been away. Rafe, our newest Fullerian, made his debut and brought bags of enthusiasm and passion from the moment he arrived.

The game started particularly well for Fullerians, with the backs setting the tone through some excellent defensive line speed. That pressure created the opening score, as Charlie forced the mistake and pounced to cross the line.

There were plenty of cheers from the coaching team — not just because it was the first try of the season, but because one of our key messages throughout pre-season has been to view defence as the first phase of attack. Someone had clearly been listening!

As the first half developed, the boys showed plenty of attacking ambition. Dara — aka Fred Flintstone — twinkle-toed his way over after some good work from Tom, while Olly and Charlie both benefited from excellent creation from Matthew, who appears to have discovered a new role as the squad’s Assist King.

The second half became a much more even contest as both teams continued to experiment with line-ups and positions. Reading’s fitness and work rate were excellent, and their scrum-half and back three in particular grew into the game and created plenty for us to deal with.

Fullerians continued to find ways to turn pressure into opportunities, with Calan finishing a superb move after good work from Lucas. Tayler then produced another great example of the defensive mindset we have been working on… winning the ball with a jackal, breaking forward and turning defence into attack. Ben C provided an excellent clear at the breakdown to help keep the move alive — yes, we were all amazed when we watched the replay too!

There were plenty of individual performances worth recognising, but Chris deserves a special mention after backing up a brilliant week of training with a performance that came very close to getting the try his efforts deserved.

Luca also had a fantastic day with the boot, converting five of his six attempts.

More importantly, though, the game gave the squad exactly what we wanted from it: a chance to put the work from pre-season into practice, test ourselves against unfamiliar opposition and learn more about how we want to play.

There are plenty of things to work on, as there should be at this stage of the season, but there were also some really encouraging signs of the team’s identity beginning to emerge.

A huge thank you to Reading RFC for making the trip and providing such a competitive and enjoyable game. We wish them all the best for the rest of their season.