Bracknell U13 development team came into their Berkshire Youth Cup semi-final with lots to be excited about after recent close fought wins against their opponents Thatcham RFC in recent weeks.

Bracknell fielded a strong lineup which included both pace and strength and got off to a great start, with Alex running over early on to give Bracknell the lead. Thatcham weren’t holding back however, and put heavy pressure on the Bracknell back line. After some strong pushes, many of which the Bracknell defence thwarted with some powerful tackles and great defensive teamwork, Thatcham eventually pushed hard enough and equalised at 1-1.

From this point the hard work Bracknell have put in to strength and conditioning on the gruelling Wednesday night training sessions began to tell. some hard hitting tackles from Fin P and some powerful running from Daniel saw them making good yards. Great hands from Zabi and Finn B saw Bracknell start to carve their opposition open and run over again, before Thatcham once again equalised with a swift breakaway try. For the rest of the half the Bracknell power told as they not only held the ball up after Thatcham crossed the try line multiple times, but they ran in a further 2 tries to go in 4-2 up at half time.

The second half saw both teams exchanging tries readily with some good ball work from Billy and Hayden complimented by great movement from Oliver and awesome power from Cameron and Benn S keeping Bracknell on top. It was looking like Bracknell would start to assert some real dominance before an injury to Zabi saw a prolonged break in play as an ambulance was called with the score at 7-5 in Bracknell’s favour.

Play eventually resumed, and the final 10 minutes saw Thatcham get their tails up and score two quick tries to equalise at 7-7 with just minutes left. Bracknell surged forward with both Alex and Fin P coming close to getting over the line before the final whistle blew and despite the game being a draw, Bracknell progressed to the final having scored the first try.

A fabulous game of rugby with literally everything for the spectators. Great performances across the team, a lengthy break in play (we are all delighted that Zabi is fine after a nasty knock!), and a final to look forward to in the coming weeks. Alex took home a well deserved player of the match after a quality showing pace and power for the Devs. On to the final!!