AFTER playing at Chard on the Saturday, a comfortable night's sleep and a hearty breakfast prepared Launceston Under-8s for some intense rugby at the Bournemouth Festival, writes Peter Maunder.

Long discussions into the night about philosophy and politics however left some of the parents looking slightly tired and fragile. Coach Craddock obviously had long meetings discussing tactics, selections and strategies — and it took the skill of Rachael Striplin to select the exact colour to match his bloodshot eyes. A few cups of coffee and an aspirin soon put him right.

]The first match was against Wimborne. Last year they were victorious over us, we were out for revenge. We were not disappointed, right from the start we were hard on defence, turning over ball and scoring regularly. The usual first match nerves were not apparent and our quick runners and solid defence ended with a quite comfortable victory for the All Blacks. Frankie Bamford scored two tries and Finn Turley, Sam Lang and Charlie Tummon each scored a try each. Wimborne had the temerity to appear in black shirts, obviously they had to be educated into who had the true right to wear the mighty all-black shirt.

The second match saw the mighty blacks drawn against Tonyrefrail – no we could not pronounce it either.

A committed team from near Cardiff played with a different interpretation of the rules than used in England. They enjoyed carrying the ball with one hand and using the hand off. The referee did not pick up on these misdemeanours and for a while these tactics threw the Launceston team. The true character of the team shone through however as they overcame this confusion and decided to play their own brand of rugby. When they concentrated on their own game Tonyrefrail could not live with the pace and direct running. The game eventually resulted in a win for the all-blacks with stunning running by Frankie Bamford, which saw him score four tries and George Maunder and Charlie Tummon who each scored a try apiece ably supported him. It was a suitable victory by 6 tries to 4, with the scoreline being closer than the performance deserved.

With progress virtually guaranteed to the next round the players encountered St Ivel Barbarians, a large physical team who were very well drilled. A tense, close match ensued with lots of defence and turn over ball caused by successful tagging. This was the closest match of the tour and tortuous to watch. It was a real nail biter.. Eventually St Ivel ran out winners by 4 tries to 3 with Finn Turley scoring a delightful try and George Maunder bagging a brace, the second of which took him from his own try line right to the other end of the pitch with at least three of the opposition being dumped on their backsides due to his murderous sidesteps.

The final pool match was a dead rubber in terms of qualification, the opposition were Eastleigh and both teams had qualified to the next stages, it was only to decide which competition we progressed to. Coach Craddock took the opportunity to rest some tired legs and changed the line up. The instruction to the team was to take it easy and not over exert themselves. Typically 8 year old boys do not understand such instructions and tore into Eastleigh as if qualification depended on it. Launceston won this game 6 tries to 4 and qualified for the Shield semi-final. Josh Rowland was the pick of the try scorers, making his debut and scoring two storming tries, Sam Lang and Finn Turley also scored a try each and George Maunder again ran in two mazey scores.

Again the instructions for the semi-final were to wait and relax, again eight year old kids do not understand this and they were soon off running around and trying to practice their contact skills for next year. If only they relaxed.

The semi-final saw us meet and get thoroughly beaten by an extremely accomplished side from Bridgend. They were by far the best team we encountered all season and gave us a lesson in tag-rugby. It all started so well, George Maunder ran in a try from close quarters and Finn Turley also scored early on. During the first half scores were exchanged but eventually Bridgend's skill and power extended their lead and our players started to tire and lose their shape. Little niggling injuries that were ignored when we were winning started to hurt a bit more and heads started to drop. The final score was 7-3 to Bridgend, unfortunately I missed the final scorer, apologies to that player, it was too emotional to watch.

At the end of the match Launceston left the pitch with their heads held high, they played some beautiful rugby over the weekend and were a delight to watch. Throughout the weekend they behaved in an impeccable manner and were a credit to the town, the shirt and the Cornish Nation. All the coaches were incredibly proud of their team and it was noted that the old, tough, gnarled coaching team appeared to have one or two tears in their eyes.

The parents and guardians also had a great weekend and must be thanked for their constant encouragement and positive support, we did observe some teams who really gave their young players a verbal roasting and it was not pleasant to listen to but our parents were a credit to the players and the club and supported in an exemplary manner.

The final thanks must go to the players, defeat in the semi-finals hurt like a pain never experienced for them before, they hated losing and vowed not to let it happen next year. They were magnificent and it was honour to accompany them for the weekend, well done boys and Olivia!

The Launceston squad for the weekend was Berin Howard, Ross Striplin, James Bickle, Harvey Fry, Lawrence Armstrong, Josh Rowland, Charlie Short, Louis Sampson, Charlie Tummon, Frankie Bamford, Olivia Parham, George Maunder, Finn Turley, Sam Lang, Sam Bates and Alfie Craddock. Coaches, Steve Craddock, Darragh Turley, Andy Bickle, Pete Maunder and Parent rep Rachael Striplin.