As Exmouth U13s travelled north to South Molton the weather started to deteriorate and they were met by steady rain on arrival. Expectations were for a very messy game with repeated handling errors but the young Cockles were ready to put their recent cup exit behind them and put together a magnificent demonstration of fast running rugby which left their Hosts on the receiving end of a heavy defeat and the match being stopped 5 minutes into the second half due to the max 50 point margin being reached.

Exmouth ran in two tries in the first five minutes which set the tone of the game and with the ball being passed from one wing to the other by the backs and the forwards playing their part with some direct running which was then recycled in several phases which did not give South Molton much opportunity to pose a significant threat.

The Cockles ran in nine tries in 35 minutes of rugby. The referee is required to stop the game when a 50 point margin is reached, therefore the 55 – 0 result is even more impressive. Tries were scored by Harry Sprague (4), Ben Dawson (3), Zac Tucker and Luke Davis. But it was a massive team performance which provided the platform from which these tries were scored. Both Vinnie & Harry Neath Rogers were relentless in their defensive and attacking work. The pack worked well in the scrum and the back line found space when it was needed, passed the ball well and closed down every South Molton move quickly and efficiently. The hosts did not penetrate beyond full back Richard Forrest once and each time the Cockles secured turnover ball there was real a threat to the opposition defence. Both wings were being used to full effect and both Callum Freeman and Zac Tucker made good use of the possession provided to them.

The referee congratulated Coach Mike Sprague on the performance of his team commenting that this was “The best under 13 side he had seen this season”