MORE than 60 year 7 students from Dyson Perrins, Hanley Castle and The Chase gathered on Morgan's field next to Malvern Rugby Club last weekend and made a huge effort to play enterprising rugby in difficult conditions.

They were cheered on by a sizeable crowd of friends and family who watched the second stage of the Malvern Gazette-sponsored Super 12s Challenge series.

First to play were The Chase and Hanley Castle teams, with all the pressure on The Chase to conjure up a big win to prevent their local rivals from prematurely wrapping-up the series before the final round of matches in April.

But from the off, it was Hanley Castle who looked the most threatening and only stout defence from The Chase halted the flighty Hanley Castle backs from scoring out wide and the Hanley pack, led by David Humphreys, from ploughing through the midfield.

Nevertheless, with the early threats from Hanley subdued by some awesome tackling by the current Super 12 champions. The Chase countered with intent and by the break they were leading by three tries to nil.

Running with the slope in their favour, Hanley Castle were desperate to get a score, but again The Chase line held firm. Each Hanley attack was repelled by some tremendous tackling and the resulting Chase counter-attack pushed the spirited Hanley side closer and closer to their own try-line. Eventually The Chase claimed two more tries, with Will Watling's solo effort the pick of the bunch. The final score Hanley Castle 0, The Chase 27.

Watching from the wings and fired-up for the second match were Dyson Perrins, who arrived with a huge pack that had the promise of their success. From kick-off Hanley Castle were in deep trouble as the Dysons' pack rumbled forward to claim their first try of the competition.

But a turn-over gave Hanley Castle the opportunity they needed and Tom Avery set the Hanley backline off for a classic try in the corner.

If after two more first half tries Hanley Castle had thought that Dyson's were beaten, they were in for a rude awakening in the second half, because the plucky Dyson's team refused to give up and it was not until the last play of the second half that Hanley claimed their fourth try and the win by 22-0.

The final match saw a determined Dysons side take to the field against The Chase, who had taken advantage of the break to reshape their team to counter the big Dyson's pack.

The Chase midfield runners made in-roads into the Dyson's half and captain Sam Moyse led the forwards by example with some breathtaking rucking. With the ball secured, Stuart Puffett was able to set the second and third phase play into motion and with Watling in full flight, tries were inevitable.

But Dyson's had slick runners of their own and Jon Bartlett and Neil Powell led the way and Tom Schofield and Max Waters were always in support to provide the extra drive for the line. Nevertheless, Dyson's finishing was spoilt by silly handling errors or the stubborn Chase defence and the match ended with another try for The Chase and victory by 22-0.

So with one round remaining in the Malvern Gazette Super 12's Challenge series, there is everything to play for. The Chase and Hanley Castle are level on points, but the Chase take top spot on account of their superior try count.

However, if they can change their winless run of luck for the better and beat either or both of their high school rivals, Dyson Perrins could still become the competition kings on Saturday, April 23.