The U16 team took on the touring side from Essex County Massachusetts in the first of three games Sunday. Pelham was missing many of their best players due to unavailability and injury.

The starting lineup was very different from what it has been: C. Battaglia, D. Maydwell, H. Calamari, A. Marshall, A. Pasa, K. Ndou, M. Biskup, N. Westall (c), L. Persanis (c), C. Burns, J. Galliani, D. Monaco, W. Johnson, H. Fanning, R. Killeen. On the bench was M. Scampoli.

The game was a complete blowout by Pelham, who started early and didn’t let up. Pelham had only one sub, but fortunately the team has many players who can play multiple positions. The Albino Squirrels used the one extra player carefully and all players came out at one point or another except Maydwell and Persanis. Pelham won 75-0. Honorable mentions were: M. Biskup, Westall, Persanis, Galliani, Calamari, Killeen and Fanning. Danny Maydwell was named man of the match after filling in at hooker after playing most of the season at wing and center.

Again, we had lots of kids missing in the U14 game. The U14s played their best game of the season but came up short. With five minutes left in the game, they were down by 1 try, but then gave up a few scores. Our short bench was made worse with some in-game injuries. Sofia Imperato suffered a bad bloody nose, but came back to play with her nose stuffed with gauze. Woods Johnson suffered a badly bruised thigh, but he too was able to come back and play.

Players were: W. Jarka, C. McNulty, M. Adamou, E. Benfieda, S. Imperato, D. Doyle, C. Evans, J. Bristow, W. Johnson (c), C. Beuchner, J. McGibbon, C. Gorman, M. Samachado, M. Ndou. Pelham lost 55-35. Player of the game was James Bristow with two tries.

The U12s played last and showed they may be Pelham’s best group. What a show. Following the theme of the weekend, Pelham was missing several players, but still cruised to a 55-15 victory. Playing today were: L. Matos, J. Matos, P. Monaco, E. McLoughlin, J. O’Bierne, G. Eustace, K. McKinnon, L. Sgobbo, M. Spunberg, M. Laval, S. Jalinoos. Man of the match was Peter Monaco for his hard-hitting style of play.

The entire U12 team continued showing their fantastic defensive prowess. Essex did not stand a chance of getting through. And when Pelham did get the ball, they outpaced the Essex players with several long runs. Look out for this group; their fundamentals are fantastic.