It was always going to be difficult to follow their all conquering year as Under 10’s but 2012/13 was another fantastic season for the Under 11’s squad. Talisman Ellis Kilbane left a big hole when he headed off to Romania but there was a queue to fill his boots headed by James Ross and Gregor Stewart, both converts from the backs to the front row, Ollie Rowe and Archie Harris. The pack was bolstered by the huge physical presence of Joel Clifford, and Oliver Thomson and George Barker were both unstoppable and usually at the bottom of every ruck. Many players including Harvey Hempstead, Max Derbyshire, Sam McLoughlin, Harvey Williams and Paddy Mountford showed their skills at half back and Ruben Surti, Fergus Vickery, Thomas Peacock, Adam Walker and Jake Garner demonstrated their prowess in attack and defence as centres, wingers and fullback. Nicholas Cardozo and William Allison, not wishing to be typecast, demonstrated their determination and versatility by playing in most positions at some point during the season. New to rugby this year were Jaden Barry, Max Harding and Sam Doherty each of whom developed as great players and represented the team in the final game of the Season.

With second rows and full backs introduced this year along with kicking there was much to learn especially for the new recruits to the sport. The first half of the year provided a great opportunity to try out players in different positions and this allowed everyone’s skills and understanding of the game to develop whilst the opposition was regularly kept at bay. Valuable time on the training ground was missed due to the bad weather but the team made up the deficit through some fast and fun Friday evenings on the All Weather Pitch. The season finales, the Ipswich Festival and the Land Rover Cup, demonstrated what a fantastically enthusiastic and talented squad the U11’s have become with a “Golden Try” win in Suffolk and a single score loss to the winners in Leicestershire. Player of the Year: Harvey Williams, Most Improved Player: Thomas Peacock, Players’ Player: Paddy Mountford.