U16 - CSCE 22 v RCL 17

A hard-fought victory for the U16 team against friends and local rivals Rugby Club Luxembourg on a bright but cold Sunday afternoon.

With many of those on the pitch now friends and team-mates in the national set-up, this game was always going to be tight. The teams have grown through the various age groups and know each other's game inside out.

The first half swung to and fro, with first blood going to CSCE after just a few minutes with a try in the corner. But RCL fought back immediately to level the score at 5-5. It was clear that with an exceptionally strong set of forwards, RCL were a level above CSCE's usual opponents.

The tit-for-tat scoring continued until the end of the first half, when, after a series of penalties against CSCE, RCL scored two unanswered tries in a row, the last on the stroke of half-time to lead 10-17 going into the break.

The CSCE team, however, strengthened their resolve and came back stronger in the second half. A reinvigorated forward pack fought back at the scrum and the lineout, making RCL fight harder for possession.

A quick, short lineout, close to the try line was whipped away to the backs and a sudden turn of speed saw the outside centre bursting through RCL's defensive line to score under the posts. A straight-forward conversion followed to bring the scores level at 17-17.

Shortly after, a penalty in the corner led to another CSCE try despite a valiant attempt by RCL to defend their line.

With the score now 22-17 in CSCE's favour there followed a nervous final 10 minutes, with the home-team facing wave after wave of attack from RCL. But the defence held firm for a well-earned victory.