Please support the production of The King’s River by becoming a young singer and/or warrior dancer or choreographed mover at: –
THE KING’S RIVER
Performance dates are; 11 July to 16 July (except Thursday 13th)
The King’s River is a community theatre production which has been commissioned by Woodbridge Riverside Trust to celebrate the opening of the new community space and Longshed formerly known as Whisstocks. It tells the story of Sutton Hoo and the discovery of King Raedwald’s Ship. Part one takes place outside by the river and is set in an Anglo Saxon village following the death of King Raedwald, part two takes place in the Riverside Theatre and tells the story of Mrs Pretty’s Dream.
Click on the following links for more details of how you can join in: –
TKR Young Singers – practices start on Saturday 11 March from 9am to 11am at Woodbridge Primary School.
Primary School Dancers – rehearsals start Monday 20 March for school years 5 and 6 from 4 to 6pm at Melton Primary School
Senior School Dancers – rehearsals start Friday 24 March for school years 7 and upwards from 5pm to 7pm at The Abbey School Hall.
U16 Rugby – Sudbury match report courtesy of Julian Hobday
Another great cup win from a team who played like the defending champions that they are. All credit to the Sudbury players who gave everything and asked some serious questions. Now looking forward to another Cup Final at Colchester next Sunday.
E London Ladies have proven themselves to be a powerhouse in the division this season, and the display they put on at Hatchley Barn on Sunday confirmed that status.
Just like in last weeks loss up at Wymondham, the Amazons were up against an experienced group that had a gameplan, executed it well and forced their will onto a less experienced side.
It’s not hard to see why East Londons two enormous props, Sam Leetch and Christine “CC” Kitizo are the clubs leading scorers. They spearhead a massive pack that drives up the centre of the park, sucking in defenders along the way, before unleashing a potent back line that always seems to have a numerical advantage.
First half tries from Leetch, winger Kate Webb, and New Zealand centre Amy Howie forged a 0-19 lead, with the hosts struggling to grasp any momentum of their own.
Kat Chaplin, Carmel Roisin and Jenna Ray all tackled like demons, but each of the Woodbridge tacklers needed help bringing down much larger opponents, and the simple strategy of bash it up the middle repeatedly, before spreading the ball wide, was effective enough.
Once again, the Amazons stepped up a gear in the second period, their pride bruised and heart as big as ever. Again, the recycling was much improved, despite some questionable decisions from referee Lane, and there were inroads made into the visitors 22.
Kitizo forced her way over from a metre out after East London pressure to extend the lead to 0-24 but the Amazons fought back well, desperate to score. Skipper Claire Brickley, then Anna Dewberry both got close to a try, before winger Josephine Wiltz was nudged into touch when sprinting for the line.
Frustration in the closing stages, after competing well in the second half, led to some indiscipline by the Woodbridge girls, and Kitizo scored again after back to back penalties had the hosts pinned deep inside their 22.
The final score of 0-29, or 5 tries to none, was a fair reflection as the old adage “you can’t beat a good big’un” was proven the case here.
This seasons Amazons side will undoubtedly learn from this however, and be all the stronger for it. Again, the less experienced newcomers are one game wiser, and the whole squad can be proud of their achievements thus far. They have one last chance to end the season on a high with Harlow coming to town next month. A win to round out this rebuilding season would be just reward for the progress made.
Despite an early maul from the kick off where Clacton’s large front row showed their impact, a nimble up and under saw Warrior fly half JP Hart score in three minutes. The joy was short lived though as Clacton was quick to counter, applying pressure and feeding full back John Vine who ran a great diagonal line to level the score.
Woodbridge‘s Hart kept the play in the Clacton half with his boot as the visitors started to accumulate penalties, spinning scrums and hands in the ruck. However a couple of stolen line-outs and they were back at half way, flanker Ben Buxey leading his pack on a sortie and wing Alan Redpath also pressurising the home defence but Warriors ran it back only for busy Clacton scrum half Elliot Shuttleworth to steal at the ruck and force more Woodbridge defence.
The penalties kept coming as Clacton couldn’t keep their hands out of rucks which set up a great runs from Warriors wings Luke Garnham and Simon Ward and three points from Jamie Smith. Woodbridge forwards withstood a couple of attacking scrums from the big Clacton front row; Simon Anderson, Daniel Wigfall and Shane Jerram on their 22 as well as threatening runs from James Garrod, Tom Nation and the ever-threatening Vine. Woodbridge started to rack up the penalties as Clacton had a number of line-outs in the home 22. Hart’s clearance drew a sigh of relief as tempers were tested and both teams became 14 for ten minutes. Great pressure at the ruck then saw Warrior Dan Bond steal to Aldis Salavejs and set up Garnham to score.
More Clacton penalties allowed the home side another attacking position before the break where a line out saw Lewis Jacobs gain metres, Hart move the ball wide to Ward who scored on the whistle.
Clacton re-started by kicking for position and using their big forwards to maul towards the line until flanker Max Swift broke, drove and recycled to big prop Jerram who scored to get Clacton back in the game.
Woodbridge’s line speed, fluid inter-play and dogged tackling, Herb Parsley putting in a hard shift, continued to cause the visitors problems as did penalties so play stayed in the Clacton end for much of the time. Charges by Warriors Jono Cooke and Capt Tom Stokes kept threatening and Hart’s kicking got better and better creating attacking platforms from nowhere. Clacton worked hard in defence but Woodbridge’s Smith took another three penalty points and despite some dangerous runs from the hard-working Vine the Warriors got another attacking position from a penalty that hit the bar forcing a drop-out from which they took possession for substitute Luke Norman to score. Smith, acting as scrum half, fed from a Warrior scrum on the 10 metre line to hart, to Stokes and back to Hart to score and draw a close a tetchy but action-packed semi-final and see Woodbridge deservedly progress to meet Southwold on 18 March at Woodbridge.
Concussion is a disturbance of the normal working of the brain but without there being any structural damage. Most people who sustain a concussion do not require any treatment as they normally get better by themselves and recover quickly, but for some the symptoms may last for days, weeks or in rare cases even longer.
Is concussion different in young players?
In young players we do need to be more cautious. Because the child or adolescent brain is still developing, there is particular concern that concussion can have more of an impact on the brain, and a second concussion occurring before recovery of the first results in prolonged symptoms that can have a significant impact on the child.
Can more serious conditions appear like concussion?
Although extremely rare in sport, a blow to the head (direct or indirect) may first appear to be concussion, when in reality there is something more serious going on; such as bleeding or swelling in or around the brain. Sometimes the symptoms of a more serious brain injury do not occur for several hours or days after the initial injury has taken place. If not recognised, these injuries can have very serious consequences.
What about repeated concussions?
Because there is considerable variation in the initial effects of concussion, and spontaneous recovery is often rapid, this can increase the potential for players to ignore concussion symptoms at the time of injury or return to play before they’ve fully recovered. There are therefore concerns that repeated concussion – particularly before full recovery – could shorten a player’s career, significantly interfere with their academic performance, and may have some potential to result in permanent neurological impairment.
It is hard to say how common concussion is as players often don’t admit to being concussed or there isn’t someone who can correctly diagnose concussion available at the time.
How common concussion is also varies depending on the level of play; studies in professional rugby have shown that it occurs at a rate of about 3.9 per 1000 player hours (i.e. one concussion in every six games among all the players involved) whereas studies at amateur adult level suggest that concussion occurs at a rate of about 1.2 per 1000 player hours (i.e. one in every 21 games).
What is rugby doing about concussion?
Over the years there have been a number of specific initiatives within rugby, and an ongoing programme of player, coach and official training and education which all contributes to the prevention of concussion. Some of these include:
Young Suffolk rugby players took lessons from a team of premiership winning professionals – before watching their new mentors secure a bonus point win in front of a 21,000 strong crowd.
Woodbridge Rugby Club’s outing to the Leicester Tigers’ “Matchday Coaching Clinic” saw the youngsters develop their individual and team skills, as well as taking tips and techniques to work on for the rest of the season.
They also quizzed Tigers player Will Evans about his life in rugby before enjoying the atmosphere at Welford Road where the Tigers stormed to victory against Gloucester.
Jason Turner, a coach at Woodbridge RFC, said: “We’ve had an amazing day. We had a great coaching session in the morning – we did passing drills, identifying space and a bit of contact.
“They had a Q&A with Will Evans, who was really good and the group absolutely loved it. They got a lot out of the day and the good thing from our point of view is they are getting that half the stuff we tell them is true!”
The Amazons travelled north across the border to Wymondham in great spirit on Sunday. Buoyed by a super performance in last week’s win over Chelmsford, the Suffolk side were determined to get closer than the 12-36 loss to the league leaders just a few weeks ago.
And despite battling throughout, again ramping things up in the latter stages, the Wasps showed their vastly more experienced squad are currently a cut above the rebuilding Amazons.
It was a highly entertaining contest from start to finish, the game ebbing and flowing constantly. The difference was in the finishing however, as the hosts capitalised on the pressure they created, while the travellers seemed to come up short when it mattered.
Libby Lockwood, always the talisman for the Norfolk side, back at her favoured number 8 role, opened the scoring. She very nearly followed that opening try with another as she burst through a gap and ran 50 metres, but Beth Clapson at fullback wrestled her down just shy of scoring.
Charges from Melo Roisin, plus some nice running lines from Ash Hendrie showed determination and promise for Woodbridge, but it was Lockwood that scored again. Nicola Kaciubskj converted for a 0-12 scoreline.
Further tries from winger Harriett Rose and stand-off Kelsey Harpman before halftime padded the Wasps lead to 24 unanswered points, but the commanding score line failed to reflect the matches competitiveness.
The Amazons coaches stressed to the side they were giving their hosts far too much respect, and last week’s aggressive defending had been softened and replaced with a certain trepidation.
So, once again, the Amazons played their best rugby in the second half, more than matching the high flying Wasps.
Pressure into the hosts 22 saw Anna Dewberry go close, and after a series of penalties against Wymondham, scrum half Morven McAlpine dived through a gap from close range for a well-deserved try.
That score boosted Woodbridge and they drove forward. Excellent scrummaging, and neat handling kept the pressure on, but all too often phases ended with a knock on or turnover at the breakdown.
One such turnover ended with Rose scoring her brace out wide, and just as it looked as though time would expire with a morale boosting 5-5 second half, Lockwood secured her hat trick right at the death.
The final score of 5-34 was harsh on the Amazons, but this year’s new crop of talented beginners will learn from defeats like this and be all the better for it.
Ipswich YM started this local derby in fiery form, establishing a platform in the Woodbridge half early on from where Keiran Rudland and Jack Coomber galloped cross-field into the 22 to wake everyone up. Woodbridge held on and cleared through a Jack Johnson run and YM knock on. With play now in the home half Woodbridge a good scrum saw YM Ben Coomber pass back to Thomas Coulter who was pounced on by fast advancing Warriors. This happened again as play stayed nervously mid-pitch and both sides made errors, including a missed penalty kick from Warrior Jack Johnson. Woodbridge expanded their attack with a long pass wide and kick-through from full back Jamie Smith who was stopped in the chase and YM mauled out of immediate danger, No 8 Adam Sawyer off-loaded but fly half Tom Hale’s clearance went straight out. A line out yielded another Woodbridge missed penalty attempt but they were rampant and fast ball to Smith saw him score after an arcing sprint.
The Warriors continued energetically; they turned over a line-out, scrum half Adam Plummer and prop Billy King made runs and No 10 JP Hart and Johnson peppered the YM 22 with kicks until another penalty let Johnson take three points. It was time for YM to attack. Lock Rudland stole at the ruck and stampeded through, spinning the ball wide to full back Robert Owen to threaten. A sustained onslaught ensued, YM’s forwards led by Capt Ben Hockley exploited breakdown after breakdown, picking and driving until a penalty gave Owen three points. Woodbridge camped in the Ipswich 22 until halftime at 3-8.
Warrior prop Simon Codd put in a storming charge and Johnson punched the ball into the YM 22 to set the theme for the second half. A Woodbridge scrum stole possession to relight the assault through Smith and Hart against Sawyer, Andy Gostling and Tristram Gladwell defending tenaciously in their 22. The next offensive was started by a cracking kick from Hart for a touch halfway down YMs 22. Some hard work and fast hands from wing Simon Ward ended with Jamie Smith getting a high speed diving try in the extreme corner. Johnson’s and Hart’s boots continued to keep Owen and Hale busy and the chase stopped them on the 22. Woodbridge’s scrum was picked up for binding and YM centre Corey Parfit put in a blistering diagonal run setting up a sustained blitz from which Capt Hockley scored to give the home crowd hope. It was the Warriors though that built a raid on the home try line, swinging play back and forth Jono Cooke, Ed Berridge, Dan Taylor and Olly Gray notable among those trying to punch through. It was Dan Bond that eventually found the gap and scored. Woodbridge kept the pressure on despite the 14 point gap, rucking aggressively and losing Nick Woodley to enthusiasm. With a man down the Warriors must have thought the last ten minutes would be about defence. Then a clearance kick from Owen was caught by flanker Bond on his own 10m line. He bolted 60m down the right wing, without need of his support runners, to score and kick off unrestrained celebration from the large posse of travelling Woodbridge supporters.
This rebuilding year is fast turning into a terrific league campaign for the Woodbridge ladies as they dispatched the visiting Chelmsford side by 32 points to 5 on Sunday. In bright, dry but bitterly cold conditions, this result was never in doubt as the hosts dominated in every aspect.
Coaches Simon Thompson and Jason Stuart have not been impressed with their sides slow starts of late. They will have been delighted this week though, as the Amazons came out firing on all cylinders. A scrum at halfway for the Essex side resulted in enormous pressure on the Chelmsford fly half, the ball was turned over and Amazon skipper Claire Brickley raced clear. Forced to look inside as tacklers closed in, little Libby Stopard was in support to receive the scoring pass and get the scoreboard moving. Stacy Robinson missed the conversion, 5-0 to the Suffolk side. Chelmsford fought back, but a combination of the freezing conditions and terrific Amazon defending thwarted any forward momentum.
Vicky Watts found herself in space and chipped over. She regained the ball and after excellent rucking over, the ball was worked out to Carmelo Roisin who rounded the defence for try number two. The game opened up and both sides enjoyed possession, albeit inside the visitors half. Consecutive scrums at the Chelmsford 5 metre line maintained pressure, and when fullback Robinson entered the line at pace inside Brickley, there was no stopping her for try number three. She converted her own score to make it 17-0.
Whilst core players in the pack like Karen Black, Roisin, Julie Thatcher and prop Toni Bell all enjoyed huge efforts, the fact the Woodbridge side were able to field four debutants, three of whom had never played rugby before, is testament to the work Thompson and Stuart have put into training. This is still a rebuilding process, but there has been a host of new girls into the club, and they are all getting playing time as the squad rotates. Sue Wardell, Ash Hendrie and Tolia Wiltz all contributed, while Ella Ehret, a product of the Valkyries junior side, looks an exciting prospect. There was further scoring before the break as bursts from centre Anna Dewberry, and Roisin ended in Dewberry touching down for try number four. Another scrum inside the Essex sides 22 saw a darting run by scrum half Morven McAlpine stopped just short and Black was unfortunate as her pick up saw her run into the back of a fellow forward. Halftime.
Kat Chaplin replaced Charlotte Granger after the break. Her physical presence bolstered an already aggressive defensive Amazons side. After enormous pressure that went across the field and back, Bell was knocked off the pitch just a yard shy. The next possession ended when a determined run, handing off three tacklers, resulted in her scoring her first try for the club – after 3 years of trying! 27-0.
Further substitutions took place, some forced, some tactical, and the visitors grabbed their chance. A second half replacement herself, Michelle Saville burst free for Chelmsford from a scrum at halfway. A couple of missed tackles and great support from fullback Amy Ironmonger reduced the arrears. This try, against the run of play was a wake up call that blotted an otherwise impressive display by the Amazons. Determined to have the final say, and underline a dominant performance, Woodbridge pushed on. A number 8 pick up and charge by Roisin went close, and Brickley seized the follow up to end the rout. With several missing players returning next week, the daunting prospect of next weeks trip to league leaders Wymondham looks a juicy challenge now, and in this form the Amazons may very well cause an upset!
Woodbridge was expecting a demanding contest with top-of-the-table Thetford and Saturday didn’t disappoint. In steadily falling snow the visitors started confidently, holding an early scrum and No 8 Luke Bailey working well with his scrum half Chris Thomas. The crowd were reminded of the 49-3 away loss but were lifted when Woodbridge won an early penalty as the Thetford front row went down. Another scrum and Woodbridge started to look sharp, edging play downfield with centre Jack Johnson much in evidence. Thetford suffered penalty after penalty as they scrambled together a defence against a lively series of attacks based around centreTom Stokes and No8 Jono Cooke with JP Hart having to be forced into touch. Woodbridge looked as if they had learned from their last encounter. Thetford’s busy 15; Will Martin was then pinged for holding on but Jack Johnson missed the 3 points. Woodbridge missed another penalty attempt and injury forced Thetford to start making substitutions. The penalties kept coming against Thetford and Hart found an attacking position deep in the Thetford 22. Several charges were put in from forwards; Cooke, Tim Johnson, Aldis Salavejs and Nick Woodley. Woodbridge was dominating territory, the scrum and possession so it was credit to the visitor’s defence, lock; Will Chase and the Thetford back row; Dan Cotton, Zak Pizzey and Bailey that they didn’t score. The scrum was a good source of Warrior ball on all put ins and several times they moved the ball wide but the last pass went astray and the fast-paced first half ended scoreless.
Woodbridge continued its energetic onslaught in the second half, Hart and Jamie Smith bombing full back Bailey and chasing fast to stifle counterattacks. Both sides were kicking more but, with Dan Bond and Tim Johnson performing well at the line-out, the lion’s share of ball stayed with the home side. Injury reduced Thetford to 14 men and their luckless streak continued when Thomas decided to run a penalty only for Bailey to be done for holding on. And so it continued – an intense, fruitless battle between David and Goliath until the 75th minute. Players, spectators, coaching staff and probably even the ref were thinking of a football 0-0 draw, a warm clubhouse, an England Wales international on the telly and maybe refreshment when a remarkable thing happened. Thetford centre Adam Harper broke from a midfield ruck and found space. He ran 40 metres brushing off Jamie Smith to score in the corner. The only sound was the tolling of a Thetford supporter’s bell as Hatchley Barn fell silent. Was this to be the reward for dominating territory? Woodbridge ran back to the centre spot. Two minutes to play. A long kick and fast charge put them in the diametrically opposite corner, 5 metres from hope. Cooke took responsibility, Thetford responded, Stokes took over, Adam Plummer to Cooke again then Stokes took a first step towards martyrdom and battled through prop Gary Lawrence and an exhausted, depleted defence to level the score on the whistle. Jack Johnson stepped up and, watched by his team mates lined abreast on the centre line, stuck the cherry on the cake to wild celebrations from a royally-entertained crowd. Exhausting to play and watch, it’s a testament to Thetford, who were down a man for most of the second half and remain top of the table, how much the win meant to Woodbridge.
THE KING’S RIVER
