Burton colts travelled to National Division 2 Doncaster to face a well drilled Yorkshire side. After a fast and furious 10 minutes, where both sides came close to scoring, it was Doncaster who eventually opened the scoring with an unconverted try under the posts. Burton responded well by pinning the home side in their own half and with 16 year old Jason Hooper winning the scrum against the put-in, Jon Evans made a 40 mt. break to score in the left hand corner to bring the scores level, which remained until the interval.
The second half began badly for Burton and the lack of concentration gave Doncaster another try within the first 5 mins. this was converted to give the home side 12 – 5 lead. At this stage Doncaster introduced fresh legs to the game who were bigger and faster, this, with the added 250C heat, should have finished Burton off. Instead, Burton lifted their game and with every attack that Doncaster mounted it was countered by big tackles from all of the Burton lads, especially from the two of the other 16 year olds Luke Peach and Steve Cross. Eventually the pace, power and disciplined side scored another converted try to finish the game 19 – 5. Burton deserved to add to their score, but were denied by this very good Doncaster side.
With 4 key players unavailable, including Captain Gavin Cole, it bodes well for the season.

With a full squad to select from, including captain Gavin Cole for his first game due to injury, Burton entered into this game with high expectations, however it was not long before the away side showed why nine of their players represented the County. With basic rugby Paviors displayed a complete all round performance with pace, power and support which destroyed the Burton players; all Burton mistakes were punished especially from the scrum half and No. 8 who both had outstanding games and both contributed to the four tries in the first half.
At 26 – 0 down Burton started the second half with five of the eight changes, two of which were to replace James Parker and Ian Scott who will be leaving us to start University. Their game plan was to up their work rate and get to the breakdown as quick as possible to stop the increasing confident Paviors completely annihilating us. This they did and Paviors only scored two more tries to end the game 36 – 0. The Paviors coach stated that he had never experienced such a brilliant display of rugby from his team and praised the Burton squad for never at any time did their heads drop and playing to the final whistle.
With Nuneaton at home next Saturday we need to have two good training sessions, build on the positives and realise that we have definitely got the squad to reach this level of rugby.

Burton Colts entertained Nuneaton looking for their first win of the season and for the first half this elusive win looked as though it was on the cards. Nuneaton started the scoring in the 5 minute with a converted try, but Burton soon hit back when hooker Jason Hooper scored a fine try after some powerful forward play. However, with 2 minutes to go before the break Nuneaton extended their lead with another converted try.

So trailing 5-14 Burton, having made nine changes, started the second half in determined style and once again some fine forward play was rewarded by a try for scrumhalf Ian Jones and with Luke Peach converting Burton were again in touch with the opposition. With Adam Baker, Ian Scott, Mark Topliss and Tom Murphy showing their previous experience and the rest of the Burton team playing with spirit and determination and giving a good account of themselves hopes of a Burton win were still high. But the older, more experienced Nuneaton team pulled themselves together and started to control the game. This control resulted in four more tries for the visitors in the last 20 minutes as they used the pace and guile of their older players to best effect. The final score of 12-42 is perhaps not a true reflection of the game as for at least 50 percent of it the Burton lads stuck to their task well and were not overawed by the older more experienced visitors. This young Burton side will play many teams this season who are older than themselves but the lessons learnt from such games will give them the ability to build on their own skills and experience and help make the rest of the season more fruitful.

With the home side scoring first from a breakaway and with this try being converted it looked ominous for Burton who were still searching for their first win of the season. But Burton responded well with an unconverted try scored by Andy Hosier after some fine forward work involving Simon Peplow and Pete Burchell. Some loose play by Burton allowed Leamington to snap up a spilled ball and score a second converted try. However, just before halftime Burton struck back when Andy Eastwood raced clear to score wide out and this try meant that Leamington now only led by 14-12 at the break.

After the break Burton made several changes and Burton began to dominate the game and were permanently camped in the home 22. But although in control Burton were unable to turn possession into points, until a well worked move at the base of the scrum saw Tom Murphy pick up and feed Tom Gregory who linked with Luke Peach to score halfway out and with Liam Rollason adding his second conversion Burton were now in the lead 19-14. Despite a few anxious moments the Burton pack, with fine displays by Simon Peplow (prop) and Tom Gregory (flanker), remained dominant and Burton secured a well-deserved first win of the season.

Burton despatched a talented Stoke side with relative ease. The Crofters pressurised a large Stoke pack like terriers making it very difficult for the visitors to unwrap themselves from the vice like grip the Burton colts applied. Quick ruck ball from the forwards and the scorching service from scrum half Jon Evans gave the young Luke Peach the valuable time he required to unleash the new centre partnership of Gavin Cole and Ian Cartwright to make either devastating penetrative inroads into an usually dominant Stoke defence or pass the ball out wide to the wings for Eastwood and, first game back from a broken arm he suffered a year last August Dan Atkinson to cause havoc. The 29 – 0 score line reflects an excellent team performance with interjections of crafty skill provided scoring tries from Evans (2), Eastwood and the tireless Gregory and with 16 year old Ian Cartwright slotting 1 penalty and 3 conversions, 1 from the touch line, to finish off the afternoon in style.

This win gives the Burton side another home draw against Leamington – match to be played before 14th Nov. 2004 .

A gallant Broad Street travelled to Burton with only twelve players for a game to be played on the Washlands, but found that after only 10 minutes of play the referee had to abandon the match because amount of surface water made it unsafe for players to continue.

Having travelled to Coventry Burton got off to a poor start when slack defending after only 5 minutes resulted in a try for hosts Old Coventrians, but within minutes Liam Rollason had pulled backs 3 points with a well struck penalty. Persistent offside by the Coventrians pack soon led to a yellow card for one of their back row and this man advantage was utilised by Chris Lycett who chased a somewhat lethargic kick ahead by Gavin Cole to score in the corner. With the score now 8-5 to Burton’s advantage Gavin Cole at last woke up from his previous night’s birthday celebrations and began to play as though he had seen a rugby ball before and caught a ball to race clear for the first of his two tries. With Rollason converting Burton now were well in the driving seat at half time with a 15-5 lead.

The second half was fast and furious as both sides dropped ball after ball, but Charlie Cook who fed on to Luke Peach and John Evans who strolled over for a try snapped up one such error. Some sound defending by Burton saw pressure relieved by Gavin Cole’s boot and his missed touch was excused as he raced after the ball and hacked on to win the touch down for his second try. This took the score to 20-5, which proved to be the final score and just reward for a good team effort only marred by some players’ lack of preparation.

Burton overcame Leamington to progress to the next round of the Colts National Cup competition with a display of good, solid attacking rugby that soon established a comfortable cushion for the game. A great start saw Arthur Eastwood storm over for a try after 5 minutes and with the Liam Rollason’s conversion narrowly missing Burton soon had a 5-0 lead. But within a minute Eastwood had scored his second try and this time Rollason made no mistake with the conversion. After a stoppage due to a neck injury to a Leamington player Luke Peach weaved his way over for a try, which Rollason converted. The half ended with Gavin Cole making a break from the half way line to score under the posts and Rollason’s extra points gave Burton a 26-0 lead at the break.

With Burton making seven changes the second half was fast and furious as both sides tested each other out and Leamington tried to get points on the board, but Burton’s defence held firm with some good tackling by James Houghton, Tom Murphy and Ian Scott. A dropped ball in mid-field, however, saw Leamington pick up and score a converted try, but apart from this lapse the Burton team whilst not scoring were never really troubled by the opposition and went close to scoring themselves on several occasions with Tom Gregory, John Evans and Brett Bailey. The final whistle saw the score to 26-7, which fully justified the work put in by the Burton team and gave them the victory they deserved.

Having lent three ‘senior’ players to the Club’s senior sides Burton overcame a strong Hinckley team with a solid all round performance that showed the depth of talent in this young squad. The game started with some good plays by Burton that saw Gavin Cole score an early try near the posts for Liam Rollason to convert. But more was to come as Burton show clinical finishing with their next move as No 8 Luke Mayne picked up to feed Jason Cartwright who fed back inside to left wing Shane Howard to score in the corner. Although Rollason missed the conversion he made no mistake with a penalty just before half time to give Burton a 15-0 lead at the break.

Once again Burton made a large number of changes after the break and this had immediate effect as Arnold Eastwood, who up to this point had been unusually quiet was suddenly awoken from his dreams and snatched up a loose ball to race 60 metres past three defenders to score a superb if not spectacular try. However, Burton and Eastwood then went to sleep and let Hinckley back into the game allowing them to score a converted try and a penalty as they pinned Burton in their own half for the rest of the game. But Burton’s defence held firm and a good 20-10 point win was secured and a victory they deserved.

Early Sunday morning’s just don’t suit Burton Colts and with sleep still in their eyes they were soon trailing in this fixture as their hosts ran in three quick scores to set up a fifteen point lead before the Burton side had got itself organised and rubbed the sleep from their eyes. However Burton soon got points on the board as Liam Rollason landed one penalty but unfortunately missed another plus the conversion of ‘try a match’ player Alistair Eastwood who finished off an excellent passage of play by grounding the ball in the corner. So Burton went into the break trailing 8-15 and with only having a squad of 16 for this game could not make any changes.

The start of the second half saw injury take its toll of the Burton side as Liam Rollason sustained a suspected cheekbone fracture, following some foul play that the referee did not see, and had to leave the field to be replaced by Colin Turner. This injury saw Gavin Cole move to fly half and this forced switch was soon rewarded as he broke through the Birmingham defensive line and raced seventy metres to score under the posts and convert his own try. But unfortunately Burton then proceeded to switch off and missed several important tackles that resulted in scores for their opponents.

Although Burton tried to rally with Chris Cook, Adam Hosier, Tom Gregory and Mark Topliss all making surging runs they could not break the Birmingham line and so the game ended with Burton conceded defeat at 15-29.

With Harrogate arriving at Peel Croft having only lost one game this season they brought a strong side to face the youthful but equally strong side of Burton Colts. Straight from the kick-off Burton threw down the challenge as they chipped away at the opposition defence gradually working their way into the visitors 22 until an overlap was created and John Evans vision saw him put the first points on the board, which with Gavin Cole’s conversion gave the home side a 7-0 lead.

But Burton switched off for a second and Harrogate quickly turned defence into attack to level the scores with a converted try. A repeat of the earlier creative thinking by Burton put Harold Eastwood into space and a chance to stretch his legs which he did with good effect to race over from sixty metres out and Cole’s fantastic touch line conversion restored Burton’s lead at 14-7.

In the second half the Burton side were straight in again with superb support work by Steve Crossley sending him over the line but Cole’s missed conversion would later prove costly. With the score at 19-7 Burton began to relax thinking the game was won and soon paid the penalty for their naivety as Harrogate quickly crossed for two further tries, one converted, to level the scores.

Although Burton tried to raise their game their over confidence had let the win slip from their grasp as the referee’s final whistle signalled the end of the game. Perhaps this was a game Burton should have won but in the end a draw was a fair result for both teams

With Burton now facing Lichfield instead of original opponents Huddersfield only a short trip down the A38 was necessary for Burton to demonstrate what a strong team they are and despite Gavin Cole’s late appearance delaying the teams departure and causing possible travel delays this was perhaps as well. Burton completely dominated proceedings from start to finish scoring 8 tries with 5 conversion to Lichfield’s 2 tries and one conversion.

From Burton’s kick off and it was soon evident that Cole’s extra beauty sleep had helped him as he raced in for the first of his five tries, and this plus his creative thinking assured Burton of a dominance they enjoyed all game. However, it was not just Cole’s individualism that shone but also the teamwork and work rate of the rest of the side that gave him the foundation for his display. Time and again Mark Topliss and Adam Baker produced line out ball while front row of Ed Jessel, Kev Fern and Sean Peplow secured plenty of set piece possession that allowed Charlie Eastwood to keep up his try a game record as he raced over from fifty metres to score. Not to be outdone John Evans and Tom Gregory also got their names on the score sheet, but it was Cole’s fantastic contribution that was the star of the display as he produced the form of the last few years that has been so sadly lacking this year until now.

Burton faced a much fancied Loughborough’ team on the Ox-Hay but once again put together a solid performance that resulted in an excellent win.

From the visitors kick off Burton conceded a break away converted try following some lethargic ball watching by the Burton team. But Gavin Cole soon replied with a try to restore some of Burton’s pride. Then with the ball being moved sweetly out wide to winger Enrico Eastwood, the youngster used his pace to the full as he rounded his man on the outside and raced forty metres to increase his try a game run to eight. Unfortunately Cole missed the conversion but Burton’s forwards were now establishing a firm foundation as the team led 10-7.

From the restart Gavin Cole, again demonstrating his individualism and skill, helped himself to a second try after good work by John Evans had set up Eastwood to feed back into Cole to jink over for the try. This score took Burton’s lead to 15-7 but before they could add to this the halftime whistle sounded.

The second half saw more of the same from Burton as Adam Baker, Ian Scott and Tom Gregory secured line out ball while front row of Ed Jessel, Kev Fern and Pete Burchell never let their opposite front row settle and gave them a torrid time in every scrum. After nine minutes Cole again darted through the Loughborough’ ranks to score under the posts for his hat trick and followed this by converting it. At 22-7 Burton seemed home and dry but their visitors upped the pace and surged to the Burton line, but despite some 15 minutes of intense pressure the defence held firm with Steve Houghton, Tom Murphy and Jack Handy all putting in some fine tackles. From this pressure Burton broke away and clever work by Luke Peach and Jon Evans put Tim Butler in the clear to race over and score in the corner to take the score to 27-7. With the Loughborough’ side short of players due to injuries four of Burton’s players, namely Eastwood, Butler, Chris Lycett and Steve Howard changed sides and played for them for the last twenty minutes and it was one of these players who had the last word as Lycett dived over for a try in the dying minutes and take the score to 27-12.

Burton travelled to play an undefeated South Leicester side that soon showed they were a well-drilled side as they pounced on a charged down kick to score with 5 minutes of the start. But Burton fought back and with Gavin Cole exerting his great influence on the side took control of the rest of the half but could not crack a defence that has only conceded 53 points all season.

The second half saw more of the same from Burton as Mark Topliss joined Gavin Cole in setting an example to his team mates with some strong excellent work. However try as they might no one, not even the ‘winged’ Rupert Eastwood, could pierce the home defence. The Burton pack played well with Ed Jessell taking two against the head and the two Tom’s, Gregory and Murphy, always creating havoc amongst the home attack. Unfortunately all this pressure left Burton vulnerable to breakaways and the hosts scored two such tries to take the score to a flattering 23-0 to them.

Burton Colts travelled to face a well-drilled Old Northamptonian side, whose greater experience eventually gave them a victory in this Colts National Cup fifth round tie. In the first half skipper Gavin Cole put Burton ahead with a well-struck penalty goal, but the home side struck back with a converted try to take the lead. But Burton stepped up the tempo and a piece of deft handling by Luke Peach set up Gavin Cole to race in and score under the posts. The latter’s conversion put Burton into a 10-7 lead at half time.

The second half saw the game become very scrappy with both sides making unforced errors, but the hosts did manage to score a second unconverted try to take the lead at 10-12. They added to this with a penalty before settling down and letting their organisation and experience begin to show as they settled into their rhythm. Northamptonians added a further try and penalty to take the tie with a 23-10 victory. But the Burton side were not outplayed by their older opponents and definitely gave a good account of themselves and with more experience next year can look for better things in this competition.

Burton Colts travelled to Coventry to play Broad Street, and were robbed of a win by the antics of their hosts. With Burton soon settling into their game they immediately took advantage of the opposition’s lack of discipline and also demonstrated how to control their own. Roughhouse tactics by the home side did not hamper Burton’s own ideas of playing rugby, and even a broken nose for Mark Topliss did not deter their efforts. In fact when Topliss returned to the action he helped set up the maul that led to Liam Rollason getting quick ball and run in a spectacular try from his own half, which to add salt to Broad Street’s wounds he also converted. But this score seemed to light the blue touch paper for Broad Street when a player was yellow carded for an incident and then a second player incurred the referee’s wrath and was given a red card. But unfortunately a watching parent, who showed a complete lack of respect for the referee and the laws of the game, started to shout abuse at the referee and when asked to stop continued to abuse the referee. The referee asked the parent to leave the touchline but he refused and so the referee had no alternative but to abandon the game just before half time.

With the Burton side playing so well and being in complete control of the game this action was a pity and robbed them of a win, but unfortunately parents must learn that referee abuse will not be tolerated and set a bad example to the youngsters who are playing.

Burton Colts had to face an older heavier side when they played University of Warwick Freshers XV and in the end age and experience won the day. With Burton soon settling into their game they immediately took a scrum and moved the ball out wide to Ian Cartwright who raced 35 metres to score wide out. But with the conversion missed the visitors soon began to use their extra weight to control all set scrums and quickly scored two tries, one converted, to take a 5-12 lead into half-time.

he second half began with the Burton side playing well and taking some good lineout ball through Adam Baker and Mark Topliss, but once again it was their visitors size that began to dominate

Burton Colts were victorious over Huddersfield, 29-0, in a good game of rugby that started with Gavin Cole setting the standards with a strong run that saw him cover forty metres as he raced to score the opening try. It was not long before Lee English opened his account for the Club by scoring on his debut with a demonstration of his lightening pace as he flew passed defenders to score wide out. Unfortunately neither of these two scores were converted but nevertheless gave Burton a commanding lead of 10-0 with only 15 minutes played.

With good forward play taking play up to the opposition 22 the backs then were released with the ball and with Liam Rollason making a fine angled run to fool the defence and score under the posts, which Cole converted. The half-time whistle saw Burton with a very healthy 17-0 lead and the possibility of plenty of points to come after the break.

Unfortunately the second-half was a very scrappy affair with Burton slipping into old habits and giving away penalties that nearly let Huddersfield narrow the gap. But these negatives were turned into positives as Luke Peach made a magnificent run to score and give Burton an unassailable 22-0 lead. Not long after Peach’s partner in crime Ian Cartwright showed his power and strength to get over the line for another score, which Rollason converted. This final score gave Burton a well-deserved win over a good Huddersfield team and bodes well for the county cup semi-final.

Burton travelled to Harrogate, having never beat them away, with a strong squad of players with intent on putting the ghost to bed. Playing against a strong wind Burton soon put points on the board when scrum half Jon Evans broke down the blind side, chipped over the remaining defender and with a lucky bounce scooped the ball off the ground to score. The pressure on Harrogate was persistent and with a line out on the homesides 22, Chris Cook finally found his jumper, an eight man powerful rolling maul resulted in, man of the match, Steve Cross touching down - converted by Gavin Cole. This pressure continued and before the interval Jack Handy, playing on the wing, finished off some precise passing to again score in the corner - converted by Gavin Cole.

With Burton playing into the wind against a big, strong Birmingham/Solihull side, who had only lost two games this year, the home side were soon on the back foot and spent most of the first half defending. But after twenty minutes against the run of play Gavin Cole burst out of his 22 and finding support took play with some excellent handling to the halfway line. A pass to Liam Rollason saw him speed past the bewildered visitor’s defence and race 40 metres to touch down in the corner. But the visitors soon hit back with an unconverted try to level the scores. But Burton fought back and again from deep in their own half Cole broke clear and raced the length of the pitch to re-establish Burton’s lead at 10-5. However, despite heroic defending particularly by the makeshift back row of Brett Bailey, Steve Howard and Tim Butler Burton hung onto the lead until just before the whistle for half-time when Birm/Solihull scored another unconverted try to level the scores at the break, 10-10.

Burton kicked-off the second half and set about using the strong wind that was now at their backs with some long kicks up field that had the visitors struggling to clear their lines as the speedy Burton backs chased hard after the ball. Now getting more possession Burton now turned the screw on the opposition and kept them pinned in their own half, but the elusive score just would not come. With 10 minutes left the score was still 10-10 as Gavin Cole put in a huge cross kick that saw Lee English gather and race over for a try in the corner that Cole converted to take the score to 17-10. This seemed to take the stuffing out of the visitors and for the last 10 minutes Burton laid siege to the opposition line but could not add to their lead.

So the final whistle saw Burton victorious by 17-10 and they deserve full credit for the way in which their 15 players stuck to their tasks. In particular the back-row of Bailey, Butler and Howard who had never played there before but showed tremendous resilience throughout both in their tackling and support work.

Burton Colts arrived at Worcester to see a pitch whose width immediately showed that their opposition’s game plan would be to move the ball out wide and use the acres of space that was on the massive pitch. From the start this theory was proved correct as Worcester moved the ball out wide and quickly put points on the board and for twenty minutes produced another five more tries like they were coming off a production line. But with ten minutes left in the half a try by Liam Rollason settled some nerves and Burton began to get more into the game. With the score at 32-5 the whistle signalled the end of the first period and allowed Burton to regroup.

In the second half the pace of the game became slower as the hosts tired and Burton began to get more into the game by playing the game down a narrower channel and keeping the ball closer to the pack. Although Worcester scored two further tries this half belonged to Burton as first Lee English supported by Ed Jessel scored a try after a brilliant run. Following his successful conversion Liam Rollason then again showed more of his talent with a brace of tries that he also converted. The second of these came after Tom Gregory had shown the power of his tackling by hitting the opposition centre so hard that he not only lost the ball, but also had to leave the field, and from this Luke Peach snapped up the loose ball to feed Rollason who raced in to score. With another conversion this took the score to 42-26 and showed a final result that did not really reflect Burton brave second half come back. Burton paid the penalty for being overawed by the size of their surroundings and not realising until too late that any game is just fifteen against fifteen and it’s not the surroundings that count, it’s what is done on the park that matters.