Sherborne    10

Millfield         36

Try:              Harry B

Con:             JP T

Pen:              JP T

All good things must come to an end... and so it proved with the Junior Colts A XV's winning run, as they went down with colours flying against Millfield on Saturday.

Shorn of a couple of first choice players through injury, this was always going to be a tough assignment, although the home side dominated territory and possession for much of the game. However, Millfield were utterly clinical with ball in hand, scoring three tries on each side of the interval and impressing with their pace and offloading skills in particular. Nor was our guests' quality limited to when they - briefly - had the ball: time and again, waves of Sherborne attacks were repulsed, with especially sharp work at the breakdown snuffing out the home team's threat.

The light blues also played their full part in what was a highly entertaining contest, and there were plenty of positives for the two sartorially-matched coaches to take away from the afternoon: the cussedness of Jamie H and Fabian S; the kicking from hand of Ptolemy G, the tireless carrying of Fin G, the all-round footballing nous of JP, and the constant running threat of the back three are all worthy of praise. Ultimately, though, what stood out more than anything was the character and determination of the whole team. It would have been very easy, at 30 points down with a quarter of the game still to play, to fold up and accept a heavy beating. Far from it: the match ended with Harry B scoring a richly deserved try, which speaks volumes for the boys' commitment and their desire to compete until the final whistle. There is no shame in losing to a better side; there is certainly no shame in battling to the bitter end - a fact acknowledged warmly by the crowd at the game's end.

The team has a busy couple of weeks ahead, including the second round of the National Cup, alongside three other fixtures before the half term break. Next up is a trip to Taunton on Saturday - do join us if you can.

HFT