P4. The team arrived early morning not entirely sure if the sun was going to make a permanent appearance, and were full of excitement, anticipating a wonderful day of rugby. Thanks to Deeside, the game coaches, all the parents and players they were not disappointed!
Their first two games were against Wanderers and Mackie 1 which we won 6-0 and 8-1 respectively. Both opponents played well but Ellon’s brilliant ball handling won out. There was hardly a ruck in these games as their passing into space and offloading was so good. Combining this with excellent support play and merciless tackling, allowed Ellon to win these games by such decisive margins!
Next up, Grammar. Tackling went off the boil for the first 5 minutes but was bubbling away nicely in the 2nd half of the game. There were rucks aplenty though and good contest for the ball at the breakdown from both teams made for a much closer game, Ellon winning 6-5. Ellon were in the semi's, plating Garioch who had won so narrowly in Stonehaven last week. Time to settle the score?
The first 5 minutes seemed to be close but Ellon nudged a couple of tries over before almost the entire Garioch team were changed and Ellon ran away convincing 6-0 winners. Score settled, who was next? Mackie 2 in the Final.
Ellon P4 were joined on the side-lines for encouragement by the P6 boys. Mackie 2 scored first the Ellon players, buoyed by the cheers of encouragement from the P6 lads, all dug deep to level the score. All the hard work in training seemed to come together for the P4 lads and lass after this. Their defensive organisation and line speed were much better. Competing for the ball, rucking, tackling, continuity and above all support play, were excellent and a joy to watch by all! Deserved winners of the tournament 5-1. WELL DONE, ONCE AGAIN YOU HAVE DONE YOURSELVES AND ELLON RUGBY PROUD!
P5. In the group Ellon played Deeside and won 5-3, Grammar lost 3-2, Garioch won 5-4 and lost to Heriot 5-1. They played some good rugby but were too slow at the breakdown and ruck. They scored some well-constructed team tries that included several phases of play and some very good individual tries where the player had a lot of work to do to beat the defence. A few handling mistakes cost Ellon tries but Head Coach Didier Orus was very proud of the players for carrying on playing and taking initiatives as this is how to become better players. A lot of positive playing today, after the defeat in the second match they kept their heads up and went on to win the third one. Everybody was working hard at keeping the ball moving, which the Heriot coach was very complimentary about. Didier said “Personally I am very proud of the way we played, some very well crafted tries. Well done boys”!

P6. Today the squad faced Mackie, Wanderers, Deeside, Garioch and Grammar. Game one against Mackie was a very close hard fought game which Mackie just edged 2-1 scoring in the last play of the game. Ellon played really well once they got going competing well at the breakdown, quick line speed in defence and an attacking threat. A few of the teams decisions could have been better and passing the ball wide into space rather than cutting back inside into contact, this was definitely one thing Ellon could have done better , not just in this game but in all the games played. Game Two was a 5-1 win against Wanderers. In both attack and defence Ellon had the upper hand, turning over a large amount of the ball at the breakdown with some great rucking which gave Ellon plenty of opportunities to attack. They could have scored a few more tries but as in the first game they cut back inside too many times when they had options/overlap outside. Game Three was another win beating Deeside 2-1. Ellon didn't play as well in this game as the previous two with too many missed tackles and were second best at the breakdown both in possession and in defence. But once again credit to the boys they stuck at it and got the win. Game four was a 4-2 win against Garioch this was definitely a game that they tried their best to throw away! After starting well and going into a 3-0 lead Ellon took their foot off the gas and Garioch scored two quick tries to take it back to 3-2. This was great for the neutral but not great for the coaches and parents on the side lines, Ellon eventually scored the 4th try and a huge sigh of relief could be heard from the sidelines! Their last game was a 3-1 win against Grammar. They played well in this game completing more tackles, turning the ball over on several occasions and some good flowing attacking play. So with 4 wins and one defeat Ellon finished second behind Mackie. The whole squad deserve a huge amount of credit today, the match scheduling definitely put Ellon at a disadvantage having to play the first four games back to back and only a 15 minute break before their last game and with only two subs for the majority of the day they all put in a good shift.
P7 did themselves proud even though a few key players were missing, they had 3 new players getting game time, 2 of which were playing in their first tournament and everyone did well. 2 draws, 1 win and 2 losses by narrow margins, plenty for the team to be happy about.
Meanwhile back at the Meadows Orkney had travelled down on the overnight ferry to play Ellon at S1, S2 and U15/16 combined.
S1 played first with a 10:00 kick off. Traveling with 13 players Ellon match to make a 13 a side game with 4 subs to be shared between both teams. Orkney started off the better team, reclaiming the kick and after one phase scoring on the left. On the restart Ellon fought back up the pitch but a handling error meant turn over ball and the Orkney Centre collected the ball and went over for his second try. Both conversions had been missed as the kicker rushed to take them. This proved costly at the end of the game. This try showed Orkney’s plan as the center was the tallest, fastest and strongest player they had and was the one they looked to give the ball to. Ellon came back with some great phases up the middle of the pitch, passing wider, but the wide players kept cutting back into the middle of the pitch, where the large Orkney pack were based. Pushing forward Ellon used the second row and Dylan Kemp at 8 to move up the pitch, scoring close to the posts. Conversion was missed also. There was exchanges of tries now as both teams pushed forward. Over the next two thirds, both teams were fairly even, but Ellon started to focus on the number 12. Double marking him and needing both players to bring him down. Also in attack Ellon actively avoided this player, creating more play for Ellon. However it was the turn overs at the tackle and rucks by Kemp and Adam Fowlie that got the ball back to Ellon, with Logan Vavangas passing at 9 and Ben Dickie’s great lines carving Orkney defence. The Ellon scrum also won three against the head. With 2 minutes left Orkney were leading by 1 points in a tit for tat final third, where the lead changed three times. Pushing hard up the pitch from a scrum that Ellon won against the head, Ellon scored in the corner to win the game by one point. There were missed conversions for both teams, but the Orkney missed kicks cost the game and both teams scored 6 tries, while Ellon made three conversions to Orkney’s two. A great close game that both teams learnt a lot from. 21 – 20.
At S2 it was another very close game. Orkney again short of players, they borrowed a number from Ellon to ensure both teams were competitive. This game also came down to the wire with Ellon winning in the final minute to make the score 29 – 28. However Ellon let a three try lead slip, as they started to coast in the second third.
Last game was a mixed U15/16 game, played with good numbers to both teams. Orkney taking the lead and leading for most of the first half, Ellon held their game plan and worked hard to regain the ball. This along with some great team play led to a final score of 24 – 17 to Ellon.
This Saturday the Juniors are off to Garioch for a tournament, while the Old Boys team head to Strathmore for the Scottish Golden Oldies Festival 2016.