Ledbury travelled away to Hereford in full knowledge that the home side were very experienced and street-wise, and would be focused.

HEREFORD U16s 22pts, LEDBURY COLTS 0

For the first quarter of the game, Ledbury competed bravely, although the Hereford pack was exerting tremendous pressure on the Ledbury defence. Only heroic tackling kept Hereford out, but after 20 minutes, their No 8 scrambled over for a try.

The conditions were hardly conducive to running rugby, with a gale force wind on a very muddy pitch, the home side began to demonstrate why they were U15 North Midlands finalists, as their backs were able to carve up great holes in the Ledbury defence, narrowly missing out on scoring chances on several occasions.

Ledbury did threaten the Hereford line from time to time, but basic errors saw excellent work wasted. Ledbury however competed well in the set pieces, able to win all their own ball, but in the loose play, their lack of match practice was exposed. Despite this, skipper Chapman made sure that his side never gave up. Ledbury No8 Teague made several useful breaks, but lacked support. Ledbury scrum half Jack Wilesmith seemed to be enjoying himself tackling anything that he could, but the visitor's defence was unable to prevent a further three tries in the second half. There were a few brief glimpses of the attacking potential that Ledbury could have unleashed. Luke Taylor probably covered 50 metres with his last gasp run in the dying minutes, and Josh Nolan impressed when he came on as a late substitute, with his straight and aggressive running.

In conclusion, this was a heartening performance from a Ledbury side, against well-drilled opposition.