.jpg&w=55&h=55&zc=1)
U19s Secure Victory Over Rovers
Warrington Wolves U19s 42 - Featherstone Rovers U19s 18
By Dave Whalley
Warrington Wolves Under 19s gained their first win of the 2013 Academy season when they defeated Featherstone Rovers at Wilderspool Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
It was a fully earned victory for the Wolves as they built on the lessons learned from the opening two games and ran in some excellent tries in a very encouraging all-round team performance that proved too powerful for a game Featherstone side.
The Wolves opened the scoring inside the first minute when a short pass from stand off Will Milner found scrum half Toby King and he superbly stepped through a gap and raced forty metres before finding centre James Saltonstall on his outside to score at the side of the posts. Four minutes later hooker Ryan Maneely went down the blind side on the last tackle and found Saltonstall whose inside ball put second row Jonny Brown over on the left. Loose forward Jimmy Rowland added the conversion.
Warrington went over again on ten minutes when the industrious Maneely found prop forward Joe Philbin steaming onto the ball and he powered over under the posts, Rowland converted but then midway through the half Rovers hit back when a kick to the corner by stand off Chad Moss was collected brilliantly by centre Joe Turton and he managed to twist in the tackle and touch down wide on the left. Full back Kyran Johnson added the conversion.
Four minutes later the visitors scored again when a sweeping move the width of the field stretched the Wolves defence and it allowed space for Johnson to go over in the right corner. He landed a fine touchline conversion to reduce the deficit to just four points but four minutes before the break the Wolves went over when substitute Andy Ackers burrowed over from dummy half after fellow substitute Daniel Murray had been held just short. Rowland goaled to make the half time score 22-12 in the Wolves favour.
Two minutes into the second half the Wolves moved further clear when Rowland scored an excellent solo try as he stepped through the line superbly and raced clear to score wide out on the left and then five minutes later a great break from dummy half by Ackers split the Rovers defence and he sent Milner on a forty metre run to score under the posts. Rowland added the conversion.
Just after the hour mark the Wolves swept the ball from left to right and King then switched it back to Rowland who danced round four defenders on thirty metre run to score wide out on the left. He landed a fine touchline conversion to his own try and then the Wolves swept the ball out wide on the last tackle and winger Jack Johnson collected and did superbly well to dive over in the right corner despite three defenders around him.
Featherstone were rewarded for never giving up three minutes from time when a brilliant offload from substitute Jack Coventry put second row Alec Batty over from close range. Johnson converted to make the final score 42-18 to the young Wolves.
After the game Wolves Under 19s head coach Gary Chambers said: "It was a very good win for us and will give the lads great encouragement to get a win under their belts. We made some small improvements on our previous two performances and if we can continue to take the things we are working on in training into games then we will be ok. We were made to work hard for the full eighty minutes by a good hard working Featherstone side; we were punished for a couple of errors in quick succession midway through the first half but we managed to handle that and we bounced back well.
"We had a very young team again but they are gaining very valuable experience about how to cope at this level and it will put them in good stead for the rest of the year and beyond. It was really good to have Will Milner back in the side for the first time since picking up a serious injury at Hull FC eight months ago; he did really well, guiding us round the field and was the calming influence that we have needed. Jimmy Rowland also had an excellent game and took his two tries superbly while Sam Wilde showed lots of enthusiasm and effort on his first appearance. We will now prepare well during the week for our trip to Hull FC next Saturday, kick off 2.30pm at Bishop Burton College."
Warrington u19s
Daniel Hirst, Jack Johnson, Will Fairhurst, James Saltonstall, Tom Battye, Will Milner, Toby King, Gavin Bennion, Ryan Maneely, Joe Philbin, Jacque Peet, Jonny Brown, Jimmy Rowland.
Subs: Andy Ackers, Sam Wilde, Robert Holroyd, Daniel Murray.
Tries: Saltonstall (1 min), Brown (5), Philbin (10), Ackers (36), Rowland (42, 62), Milner (47), Johnson (68).
Goals: Rowland 5 from 8
Featherstone u19s
Kyran Johnson, Jordan Potter, Matty Brook, Joe Turton, Joe Caulfield, Chad Moss, Jordan Myers, Luke Cooper, Sam Day, Jack Byrnes, Alec Batty, Joe Burns, Liam Lowson.
Subs: Charlie Ledger, Dave Robinson, Ashley Hill, Jack Coventry.
Tries: Turton (20), Johnson (24), Batty (77).
Goals: Johnson 3 from 3
Game Pictures Here (courtesy of Bob Brough)
17, Feb, 2013
