Well, what a watershed weekend for Australian rugby! Our determined and patient Kiwi Hawthorn U9s have put in the hard yards at training, improved their fitness and honed their skills and there was a palpable sense on Saturday that we’ve turned a corner of sorts and all the hard work is starting to pay off!
We headed South to face the might of Moorabbin and with our full roster of players in attendance, Luke was named our Captain reflecting his great work rate through training and the season to date and Charlie as our Half Back for his accurate passing, unshakeable will and blossoming ability to boss his teammates around.
In too many of our other games this season, our opposition has got the jump on us, but this weekend it was our turn. We started with a few quick tries and never really looked back.
We played our best game of the season so far with tries flowing from solid break-down work and good support for our runners. Special shout out to Will for scoring a double – you know how to find the line now Will, there will be no stopping you!
Our tackling is improving, with six boys scoring three or more completed tackles in the game, showing that we’re taking big steps in not just effectiveness but in depth as well.
Moorabbin have a fearsome reputation for producing huge powerful runners and their U9s this year are no exception. How inspiring it was to see some of our U8s that are playing up a grade and some of our new boys taking on the tall timber and bringing them to ground.
Of course we have our own powerful runners, no more so than Lucas who had some booming runs, breaking the line and clocking some big yards.
But most gratifying of all is the way the boys are working well as a team, playing for each other more than themselves. We have lots to work on, but if we can keep this trajectory of improvement going, we will be very competitive.
George, our Medal winner for the day, really embodies the spirit of working hard to improve yourself, of getting up again when knocked down, of determination and good sportsmanship. Well done George, we are very happy to have you at our Club!
Next week another big test: Endeavour Hills.
Kiwi Hawthorn Junior Rugby 