Travels with Dinno Update - Wath, Doncaster and Moortown

Well here is the latest fix for all my readers. The reason for the delay is that I was waiting for some information to come through. That is my story and I'm sticking to it.

Since my last post there has been lots of rugby, lots of nonsense (mainly off field) and lots of positive steps forward in rugby terms despite the results.

On our travels with Dinno we recently visited Wath Upon Dearne. My father in law described it as the last place God made. Other less kind commentators have described it as the arse end of creation.  The snow by the roadside on the way in looked like industrial waste which had spread across the land in some industrial accident. The  sat nav guided us to Moor Road. Unfortunately the location was on the other side of a wall and a two lane highway.

We arrived safely. This is in spite of having to stop and talk to some suspicious looking locals. My advice is when seeking guidance to rugby clubs is only stop somebody who is wearing  walking gear such as Regatta, Berghaus etc. This people will proportionately be more likely to be rugby folk and so be able to help you.

The weather was pleasantly warm after the recent weeks. There was a breeze but for the first time in months we were able to dispense with the winter gear. The clubhouse though small served excellent bacon sandwiches and had an excellent vending machine which served quality coffee and hot chocolate.

We then trooped off onto the rugby pitch and were treated to an excellent game of rugby. Both sides moved the ball around. Both sides had periods where they threatened scores. The team in the first half were ahead but there was no coherence in the forwards. At the changeover a new forward line up came on and was more structured and effective. The forwards not only won the game but they also determined the size of the score as most of the points were scored by forwards. Final score Wath 20 – Dinno 36

Home v Doncaster

Another bright spring day beckoned only the force ten gale seemed likely to affect things. The prior week had seen a clear the air meeting of the parents and the coaching staff. Balance having been restored to the force and having partaken of a bacon roll and a hot chocolate ( maybe I am addicted to this delightful combination)we moved out onto the pitch.

The game did not start well. Through a combination of poor tackling, high winds and Doncaster’s fast back line they went four tries to nil up. Dinno then woke up and brought the score back to 22 – 17. The problem the team had was that a team with players such as Doncaster possess you can’t allow them that sort of lead. Despite Dinno playing well Doncaster added  another try and conversion 29 – 17. Dinno managed to get over for another try and conversion. 29 – 24.

There were positives from the performance. The team continues to bond better. With a better judgment they might well have brought the score back level at least with a scrum move.

The future whilst being uncertain looks bright if the team continues to progress in this manner. Next up for the Dinno treatment is Moortown.

Home v Moortown

When I arrived today the weather was delightfully spring like. I had dispensed with a coat altogether. But that is the kind of life I lead on the edge. I went into the clubhouse to see a stressed looking Val dealing with a parent from the opposition whose little darling did not have a gumshield. The mother seemed intent on trying every gumshield in the place and I feared for her ability to escape the clubhouse intact. 

Having had my regular nourishment (bacon roll and hot chocolate) I ventured out into the 'warmth' (only a force 5 gale today). I went round to the top edge of the field and waited for the match to start. Beforehand having come up against Moortown I was relatively upbeat and confident that a win was on the cards. Unfortunately somebody had merged Moortown with Yarnbury. Moortown were not great but Yarnbury usually were. As with last week's match the opposition went 22-0 up including a 60 metre interception try. The lads then woke up and started to drag things back. The set pieces were better and by half time the score was 22-12 to Moortown.

After half time Jake came on and ran in a try - 22-17. Unfortunately 'Moortown' had worked out how to deal with him. They then ran in a number of tries. Final score 17-41.

The result does not flatter Moortown. There were positive signs in development terms. There is now just a Festival match against Scunthorpe in a couple of weeks.

During the close season I will be working on some other posts and also a team management tool.

Forking hell that's a bad idea

Well that got your attention. So, now that I have you in my evil grasp I will tell you a tale that will leave a chill in your soul. Well, alright cold hands, ears, noses and other assorted extremities which are the lot of the travelling rugby parent.

Today the mighty Dinno were scheduled to play Dronfield. But before we could have all the excitement that rugby brings we had a job today. I arrived pitchfork in hand (well boot) and I went in search of a baying mob to join. This turned out to be a not particularly well coordinated mob and Pete Morley and I decided that as fine upstanding British workers, who had been asked to come and fork the pitches to remove stones, we would survey the job first from the comfort of the clubhouse with hot bacon sandwiches and drinks. After a few minutes of surveying we set out and found some like minded simpletons and started prodding the ground with the forks.

Very quickly we decided that this was a thank less task and went over to the pitches where the actual rugby was taking place.

Dronfield came out on to the pitch with a couple of players who looked a little big. You know the type tall, lanky and with long flowing locks. So needless to say during the game they were dealt with.

The match was refereed by Mark. It was a spirited effort and he tried his best to encourage equally but he did miss some more obvious penalties - accidental offside, knock ons etc.

The match started badly for Dinno when a pass was intercepted from just inside their own half and Dronfield ran in a try and a conversion followed 0-7. Dinno have been working on a new team structure for the last couple of weeks. It paid dividends. Yet again Luke and Rupert and Jacob took apart Dronfield. At half time it was 27- 7.

The team were moving the ball about and the result was never in doubt. The egos had gone from the team. One player who was brought back on midway through the second half opted to directly replace a player and play at flanker rather than move his team mate who was playing in his normal position. Work needs to continue on decision making and judgment on the pitch but the signs are good.

The final score was 53-12 to Dinno. Our only scheduled game this season is against Moortown. But no doubt something will come up between now and then.

As a footnote. Whilst the turnout was good for the forking session. The job needs to be done with more appropriate equipment like a JCB for example.

Interesting Times

The title of this post is supposed to come from a Chinese curse. The curse goes "May you live in  times".

The rugby club has been subject to some interesting times in recent weeks. Things started with a match against Scunthorpe. Readers will recall that we played them away a couple of months ago. We beat them after a tight run start. The 'development team' started well but were not able to hold them. The first XV were able to turn things round. The match ended 29-51 to Scunthorpe but tempers were frayed on all sides that day and a lot of things were said.

The next week we played West Park Leeds in the Yorkshire Cup semi final. It was a very close match and either side could have gone through. In one sense the bounce of a ball and a missed tackle decided it. Some decisions taken were the wrong ones but players learn by making them. In a thrilling encounter the match ended 3-5 to West Park.

Once again there were ructions afterwards and this is not the place toconsider them. A lot of things were said and there has been fallout since.

Last weekend, the team went to the frozen north to play Morley. The coaches had decided to mix the players up. This proved to be a wise move. The team which went out in the first half won the half 33-0. With two tries a piece from Luke and Rupert and a fifth try with conversions from Brendan and Will it was a dominant display from the forwards. 

In the second half the team was changed and Tom played at number 8. The team won 34-0 in teh second half. Overall score 67-0 (after a few recounts). The forwards were strong but the backs dominated the scoring with three tries from Harry and two from Jacob (I think). One of the tries was created by the pack. At a scrum Tom held the ball in at the back and then Sam at scrum half passed the ball out and then the ball was run in from about half way.

The lads left the pitch smiling. The development players were getting advice from the first teamers and together they delivered a stunning, solid performance.

Travels with Dinno - At home versus Sheffield

Hello again as we take our latest steps on the mighty journey around Britain with Dinnington Rugby Club. Last weekend the club sent half the team off to Old Brodleians in Hipperholme (near Halifax for the geographically challenged). This was the first XV. They beat their opponents in snowy conditions at least 32-5. I don't have any details of scorers etc.

Meanwhile, back in sunny Dinno, the development team took on local rivals Sheffield. Regular readers will recall, and if you can't the details are in this blog and you clearly haven't been paying attention, that the development team have played Sheffield twice this season and had a draw and a win under their belts. After an early shock try from Sheffield the development forwards kicked into overdrive.

The development pack have always been strong but sometimes can be off the pace. Not last Sunday. They were winning scrums and rucks and were driving and controlling the game. Sheffield had an injured player who couldn't scrum but got stuck in at everything else. Within minutes Travis built on excellent work by Josh and Ronan and just dived across the line to score the first try.

Dinno scored again before half time thanks to Will (apologies if it wasn't and I'm sure somebody will let me know if that's wrong). After half time the team kicked on. The team broke forward and the ball came out to Richard (aka Ches) and he started to run laterally. The air was blue around head coach Dave but it all worked out in the end and he scored the try.

I used to coach rugby for a couple of seasons (u10-u12) and so had to be a little bit restrained when watching the boy play and do well. A ruck formed in the middle of the pack and then all of a sudden Tom appeared from the back of the pack about 20-30m out. He broke one tackle and pushed off another and then broke clear and headed for the line. He was almost caught but given the conditions he chose to dive in and score just by the posts. This was converted. The score was 17 - 5. Sheffield got another back.

Then James S got the ball on the wing. The thing he needs to do is back himself. Once he believes he can do it he will be fine. He burst down the wing and fended off a couple of tackles and then burst into the clear. He then crossed the line and ran round under the posts. His dad was swearing at this and the swearing got worse when James missed his conversion. Final score 27 - 10.

The team as a whole performed excellently. There is a truism in rugby that forwards win you games and backs decide by how many. On this occasion the forwards did both. Afterwards in the bar coach Kev made it clear that the team as a whole was a credit to the Dinnington badge and that they should not feel inferior to anybody.

As ever the food was excellent.

Next week there may be a game against Sandal. So see you soon.

Rugby - It's only a game

This is an offshoot of my Travels with Dinno strand. Last weekend Dinno took on Old Brodleians. This is a team I know well having come up against them a number of times over the years. For the record the result was a loss for Dinno 19 - 31. The first team were up 14 - 5 at half time I think. In the second half the development team with the boy at stand off came on and were blitzed by the aggressive pack play of Brods. This was something I had mentioned to the coaches before the game.

The development team were simply not able to get the ball moving and on the occasions when passes were made they were not taken.  The reason that I am not adding this post to the Travels With Dinno slot is that it has taken me a week to calm down enough to write this post. If I had written it last weekend I would have been less than complimentary to a lot of people. In particular I don't like criticising coaches because I have done it myself.

These are two u13s sides. It is not the deciding match of the Rugby World Cup. In the scheme of things it does not matter. So I would be grateful if there are any readers out there who can explain why it is acceptable for a kid to be left in tears because  his coach and team mates blame him personally for the defeat.

My lad is an intelligent and sensitive lad who loves his rugby. He plays that way as well and always has. It is equally frustrating and brilliant. He and most of the development team were pulled off as Brods took control. The boy had tried passing to people but every time he did they dropped the ball so he took the decision to try and drive things himself by running the ball. Unfortunately what had worked against Scunthorpe didn't work against Brods.

The boy has played stand off half a dozen times and is still learning the role. He needs support and encouragement not to be taken to one side by a coach and being told it was his fault for not passing the ball. Perhaps if the coaches trained the development players better at catching the ball for a while. The development team that went out that day was not the one that has done so well this season.

It also does not speak well of the welcoming nature of the club that your team mates then pile and in blame you as well. I have been made to feel very welcome since coming back down south. My lad has not settled and his fellow players have not really made him feel very welcome some of the time. At times he feels like an outcast.

If you are a coach of junior or mini rugby I urge you to try and encourage your players. Be aware that not everybody is happy and doesn't feel part of things. Also don't make statements that are not then backed up because you end up with a situation that players don't believe you.

So to those people who may have wondered where I had gone this is my explanation. To those who helped the boy and got in touch with me a huge thank you. You know who you are.

Rant over and hopefully normal service will be resumed soon with the boy back and enjoying his rugby.

The festive season and Travels with Dinno 2013: Scunthorpe

Well greetings from the Costa del Worksop. The weather in these last few weeks since my last post has been a balmy barely getting into single figures and the heatwave is set to continue into the weekend.

My daily sojourns to work in Sutton In Ashfield, cultural hub of Nottinghamshire, have been interrupted by rain, floods, vanilla drivers[1], the festive season, a lethal dose of flu and work.  I survived the festive season by entering that state of my being known as ‘grumpy old bastard’.

Despite my illness I cooked and entertained over two weekends and also survived the annual visit to the in laws and the reactions to various seasonal offerings.

Due to the weather rugby finished early and due to the illness the planned visit to the club on Boxing Day was shelved.

Last weekend I revisited a place I have not been for probably 13 years. The club’s first fixture of 2013 was in ‘sunny Scunny’. Well if we are being strictly accurate ‘misty, cold Scunthorpe’.  I used to visit the place a couple of times each year when my sister was in Irish dancing tournaments every weekend. I have always visited it either in the dark or on a train and so this visit was a new experience, actually visiting for something I enjoyed. My previous visit was for business purposes. I attended a business conference where the person delivering it said that ‘If your friends don’t support your business get rid of them and get some new ones.’ Shortly after this revelatory conference I decided where they could stick the business.

In this life you will encounter many people a few of whom will become friends. Of these, a handful will become true friends who may not always agree with you but will be there for you. I decided that these people were more important to me than wealth, which was by no means guaranteed.

Anyway back to the rugby. The journey up the motorways was relatively uneventful, apart from the police car at the entry to the M180 and the unmarked police car a few miles further on which had pulled over a motorist. The weather drifted from beautiful sunshine right through to full blown mirk.

Scunthorpe have a nice little set up. The clubhouse is well maintained and the pitches had held up well in the weather. I was missing the staff and bell around my neck. The gentle banter of the Dinno parents was a joy as I announced that I was recovering from flu.

The match started with the development team. The boy was at fly half again. The game started at a fast pace and quickly Dinno started to dominate with strong passing and driving runs. We soon went 7-0 up with a try from Olly and a conversion from Will (I think). The referee was praised because he clearly explained his decisions to the players even if those decisions left the spectating parents somewhat baffled at times. The development team maintained their style of play but were unable to make another breakthrough and Scunthorpe despite their pack appearing to tire early on managed to get the ball out to their backs who had plenty in the tank.

The development team lack the devastating pace of some of the first XV and so could not catch their opposition. That being said they played rugby in the right way. At half time the score was 15-7 to Scunthorpe. In the second half the first XV turned things around and the score finished 38-20 to Dinno. 

Normally I would go into detail about scorers etc but I didn’t keep a track of what was happening. I would also normally comment on the refreshments available at the club but due to the delicate state of my constitution I didn’t sample the delights on offer, maybe next time.

The weekly awards went to Kieran, Jake, Ben and, much to my surprise, the boy. He seems to have taken to the position of fly half and he at least went home happy. I remarked to the coach before I knew this that he had come off and for the first time had had no complaints[2].

The boy is starting to settle within the team and is starting to enjoy his rugby more. He now has a rowing machine to train on and is at least thinking about his fitness.

Weather permitting this weekend we are against Old Brods a blast from the Huddersfield days. They like to grind out the results through the pack and if you don’t try and blast down the middle and use width you should beat them.

See you beside a rugby pitch soon.

---

[1] Drivers who are physically incapable of driving at any speed other than 40mph

[2] The boy has a tendency to overanalyse his performance and that of his teams and be a bit hypercritical. We are trying to get him to lighten up a bit but he is a teenager and so there is little danger of that.

Travels with Dinno: Yorkshire Cup: Cleckheaton

The day started early  - like most days. I felt like crap but rugby is a harsh mistress and so after dragging the boy out of bed we set off for West Yorkshire. The night before I had stood on my glasses and so I was having to make do.

First stop was the boy's home town where we met up with the Williams family and spent an hour discussing rugby, school and life in general. We set off for Cleckheaton just after 11. When we arrived the chaos at the club was matched only by the chaos that is the M62. I think not having to deal with that on a daily basis is worth moving to Nottinghamshire for.

The hospitality at Cleckheaton was as good as ever. I have been coming to this club for many years and the welcome is always good and the refreshments are excellent. An added bonus was to see Huddersfield U11s and their coach Martin Leeming. Also good to see Gill and Tommy from the U13s.

We went down to the stand to prepare for the day's entertainment. The time came for kick off. Dinno set off out of the blocks very quickly and it looked like a rout might be on the cards. Luke drove across for a try and shortly after Brandon went under the posts for try number 2. Both of the conversions were missed but the second only because it hit the post.

At this point I joined the general hunt for the team's water bottles. This meant that I missed Brandon's second try and the subsequent conversion. Half time arrived and we led 17-0.

The second half did not go to plan. The team lost two players to injury. But the remaining players did not seem to have any idea how to kill the game off and Cleckheaton demonstrated that tenacity I have seen before and scored twice through breaks down the right and converted both. This brought the score to 17-14. The last few minutes were tense and nervous for everyone but the team got away with it.

The boy wasn't happy but this is a team game and you have to do what you think is right to try and win.  Weather permitting next week is Wetherby.